Case study
AXA Connect: Transforming Broker Efficiency
with an innovative Portfolio Management Dashboard
Timeframe:
The design phase, which included user research, wireframing, prototyping, and design handoff, was completed over a period of 8 weeks (approximately 2 months). The entire project, from initial discovery to final launch, spanned approximately 7 months.
My role:
As the Senior UX/UI Designer, I was responsible for shaping the entire user experience, from initial concept to final implementation, ensuring that every aspect of the portal was aligned with AXA IM’s goals and the brokers’ needs.
Executive Summary:
This project was a key initiative in AXA IM’s broader digital transformation strategy, aimed at leveraging technology to enhance broker efficiency and client engagement. The AXA Connect broker portal dashboard was specifically designed to provide brokers with an intuitive and powerful tool for managing client portfolios and streamlining client interactions for brokers within AXA IM.
Key Challenges: One of the primary challenges was organising complex financial data into an accessible and intuitive format for brokers. Additionally, a significant challenge was ensuring seamless user interaction while maintaining high levels of security and compliance. These challenges were met through iterative design processes, close collaboration with stakeholders, and the implementation of advanced data visualization techniques and secure protocols.
Outcomes: The portal has significantly enhanced operational efficiency and client satisfaction, leading to notable improvements in broker productivity, overall satisfaction, and stronger client engagement.
Increasing
Broker efficency
Boosting
Broker satisfation
Optimising
Client engagement
Design Process
⬇️Jump directly to these sections:
1.Project Background:
The AXA Connect broker portal dashboard was designed as a response to the growing need for digital tools that could enhance portfolio management and client interaction within AXA IM. The dashboard aimed to streamline day-to-day broker activities by providing a centralised platform where brokers could manage portfolios, communicate with clients, and access key information with ease.
Project Goals:
- Streamline Portfolio Management: Provide brokers with tools that simplify the management of client portfolios.
- Enhance Communication: Improve the quality and frequency of interactions between brokers and clients.
- Comprehensive Toolset: Offer a suite of features that support brokers in their daily tasks, from performance tracking to document management
2. Requirements gathering:
The design process began with extensive research involving key stakeholders from various departments, including Sales, Risk, Compliance, Marketing, Operations, and IT. Through workshops, interviews, and surveys, I identified the critical functionalities and pain points that needed to be addressed in the AXA Connect portal.
Compliance
Risk management
Project Management
Sales
Marketing
Operations
IT
Developers
- Compliance: Ensured that all design elements adhered to industry regulations and company policies.
- Risk Management: Provided insights on risk-related data that needed to be visualised.
- Sales and Marketing: Offered perspectives on how the portal could support client acquisition and retention.
- Operations and IT: Ensured that the design could be effectively implemented within existing systems.
1. Dashboard Welcome Page:
▪️ User Story: As a broker, I need a comprehensive welcome page that provides an overview of my clients’ portfolio composition, access to important documents, a graph showing Year-to-Date (YTD) performance, quick contact with AXA IM, and visibility of new notifications.
▪️ Design Challenge: Brokers required a centralised starting point that combines multiple essential functions into a single, easily navigable interface. The challenge was to present diverse and complex information (portfolio composition, performance metrics, documents, and notifications) in a way that is both accessible and actionable, without overwhelming the user.
▪️ Design Solution: deisgned a clean, modular welcome page layout that prioritises ease of access and usability. The page features distinct sections for portfolio composition , YTD performance graphs, document access, and notifications. A contact widget for AXA IM was integrated prominently to ensure brokers can reach out without navigating away from the dashboard. This design not only centralises key information but also enhances the broker’s ability to manage client portfolios efficiently, leading to improved decision-making and quicker response times to client needs.
2. Portfolio Overview:
▪️ User Story: As a broker, I need to consult general information about my clients’ portfolios.
▪️ Requirement: Access all portfolios for which the broker has a role of owner, co-owner, or legal representative. View key metrics such as the value of the portfolio, asset allocation, and detailed insights into cash and securities accounts.
▪️ Design Challenge: Brokers needed a way to quickly and efficiently access critical financial data across multiple client portfolios. The complexity of this data required a solution that balanced detailed information with usability.
▪️ Design Solution: Implemented a streamlined tile-based layout, allowing brokers to quickly access critical information like Assets Under Management (AUM), portfolio performance, and asset allocation. This solution not only streamlined access to critical information but also enhanced the brokers’ ability to respond swiftly to client inquiries, improving overall client satisfaction.
3. Portfolio Composition:
▪️ User Story: As a broker, I need detailed breakdowns of my clients’ portfolios.
▪️ Requirement: View detailed breakdowns of equities, geographical allocation, bond allocation per asset class, and alternative fund allocations.
▪️ Design Challenge: Brokers needed a clear, intuitive way to differentiate between various client portfolios and understand the detailed composition of each.
▪️ Design Solution: Used color-coding and unique portfolio identifiers to visually differentiate portfolios. Clear visual hierarchies and interactive graphs were incorporated to provide a comprehensive view of each portfolio’s composition, including equities, bond allocations, and alternative investments. This approach ensured brokers could easily analyse and compare different portfolios.
4. Portfolio Performance:
▪️ User Story: As a broker, I need to view the performance of my clients’ portfolios.
▪️ Requirement: Access performance data, including year-to-date performance, performance since portfolio creation, and overall performance on specific date.
▪️ Design Challenge: Brokers required tools to not only view but also interact with portfolio performance data in a way that would enhance their decision-making and client communication.
▪️ Design Solution: Performance tracking was a key feature integrated into the portfolio performance tab, where brokers can view performance trends over time through interactive line graphs. The wireframe included date selection tools to allow brokers to customise the performance data view.
5. Transaction History:
▪️ User Story: As a broker, I need to see the transactions within my clients’ portfolios since their creation.
▪️ Functional Requirement: View transactions categorized by date, type, and amount, allowing for detailed tracking and analysis.
▪️ Design Challenge: Balancing the need for robust data security and compliance with the requirement for a user-friendly interface was crucial. Brokers needed to view sensitive transaction data without compromising security.
▪️ Design Solution: Designed sortable and filterable tables for easy transaction tracking, with secure file transfer protocols and minimal temporary data storage to meet compliance requirements.
4. Design Challenges and Solutions:
🎨Prototypes
The prototyping phase was critical in validating design solutions before full-scale development. Interactive prototypes were created and tested with users to gather feedback and refine the interface. This iterative approach ensured that the final product was both user-friendly and aligned with the strategic goals of AXA IM.
Key Prototype Features:
- Interactive Dashboards: Allowed brokers to explore different data views and customise their dashboard experience.
- User Testing: Involved brokers in the testing process to ensure that the interface met their needs and expectations.
- Stakeholder Reviews: Regular feedback sessions with stakeholders ensured that the design aligned with broader business objectives.
Interactive prototype:
Click the ‘Expand View’ icon in the top right corner to enlarge the interactive prototype in Figma
Key Improvements:
- Broker Efficiency: Brokers are now able to access and analyse client portfolios more quickly and accurately, leading to a significant boost in efficiency.
- Broker Satisfaction: There has been a noticeable improvement in broker satisfaction, particularly in areas such as portfolio performance tracking and transaction history visibility.
- Client Engagement: Enhanced communication tools and better insights have empowered brokers to deliver more personalised client experiences, resulting in stronger client engagement.
Additional Metrics:
- Client Retention: Early indicators suggest a positive impact on client retention rates, as brokers are now able to provide more timely and informed advice.
- Portfolio Growth: Brokers have reported that the improved tools have helped them identify new opportunities for portfolio growth.
6. Future Enhancements and Next Steps:
- Advanced Data Security: Implementing cutting-edge encryption protocols and multifactor authentication to further protect sensitive client information.
- Predictive Analytics: Integrating AI-driven analytics to help brokers forecast portfolio performance based on historical data, enabling more proactive management.
- Mobile Integration: Expanding the portal’s capabilities to mobile platforms, allowing brokers to manage client portfolios with the same level of detail and security on the go.