A Dundee financial technology school has more than doubled its cohort in 12 months as it tries to encourage more people to pay attention to their pensions.
Based at Embark, the education hub has been developing game-inspired technology designed to engage Scottish Widows, Halifax and Bank of Scotland customers with their pensions.
Engaging young people in particular in pension and contribution plans has been traditionally challenging for the industry, boss Jackie Leiper points out.
She said one in four people in their 20s have no pension and 30% of the UK population are not on track for even a basic standard of living based on their current pension plans.
Embark school to make pensions fun
Jackie Leiper is chief customer and distribution officer and chair of the Scottish executive committee for Lloyds Banking Group, which owns Bank of Scotland, Halifax and Scottish Widows.
She spoke to The Courier about the difficulties faced in getting people interested in saving for the future and how the financial technology school in Dundee works.
The company wants to use “gamification” – elements commonly used in video games or apps like Duolingo – to encourage more people to save.
“The pensions industry is a bit late to the game on gamification, and I am not aware of any of our competitors doing anything similar,” she said.
“It is an area we see as a key way to make something which can look quite complex and even boring, much more interesting and engaging.
“And what we are really trying to do is appeal to a much broader customer base and get people thinking at a much younger age about what they are planning to do for their retirement.
“Because of compound interest, for younger people in their 20s they can earn more by saving earlier.
“The amount saved in your 20s has so much longer to grow, it can be almost worth twice what you can save if you start in your 40s.
“And being able to make it a bit more appealing and interesting and making it a bit easier to understand can make a huge difference.”
What is gamification?
Gamification uses techniques popular in video games to engage users with content.
Apps like Duolingo have worked well in engaging people with typically tricky or difficult subjects, such as learning a new language.
Jackie adds: “One of the first gamification tools we’ve developed shows the benefits of making work place contributions.
“Most people in the work place will be automatically enrolled by their employer.
“The contributions are set-out so your employer pays 3%, you pay 5% and you receive 1% back in tax relief.
“So the gamified experience we have developed shows the impact of having those contributions, and what you can get if you put in even a little bit more.
“And it allows the user to show how much more extra you can earn by starting in your 20s than in your 40s.”
Embark school doubles in size
The “fintech” school at Embark has flourished over the last 12 months, Jackie says, increasing from a pilot of 12 cohorts to its current 24.
Lloyds was keen to establish the institution outside of Scotland’s traditional banking and financial services hubs in the central belt. Dundee’s prestigious universities were a draw too, she added.
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