Citi
THE SITUATION
Like many organizations, Citi’s customer service channels had grown organically and still ran in siloes. Move from chat to phone and the thread was lost - customers explained themselves all over again, costing everyone time and effort. That held back automated channels like chatbots, voicebots, and IVR, and made it impossible to suggest a channel switch even when it would help the customer or the company.
OUR CONTRIBUTION
We talked with stakeholders across the siloes to inventory every customer service channel and its performance and cost. Then we surveyed customers about their behavior and preferences. Combining the inside-looking-out and outside-looking-in perspectives, we designed an ecosystem where each channel plays the role that best fits customer goals. We mapped intake, escalation and de-escalation paths, and the emotional moments worth extra time.
THE BENEFITS
Joining the siloed channels into one service ecosystem let Citi improve experiences while controlling costs. Automated channels handle intake, so simple tasks go fast, and customers can escalate to detailed or human help without repeating themselves. The system is flexible, and customers choose the channels that suit them best.
TIAA
THE SITUATION
TIAA had a serious customer and asset retention problem. Three life events pushed customers to close their accounts, take their money, and leave: job changes, retirement, and the death of an account holder. A 1% improvement in retention was worth more than $300 million in assets under management (AUM) every year.
OUR CONTRIBUTION
TIAA had already invested in a smooth retirement experience, and retirement was what the money was for. So we focused on job changes and death events. We learned how differently people feel about finding a better job (voluntary) and losing one (involuntary). We heard about the emotional rollercoaster of losing a loved one, and how differently each family recovers. From those findings we built customer journey maps, experience design principles, and service innovation concepts that aligned teams across TIAA around these life event experiences.
THE BENEFITS
TIAA beat the +1% retention goal and cleared an obstacle to growth. Since our project ended, AUM has grown 1.6x, from about $930 billion in 2018 to $1.5 trillion in 2026.