LA VAUDOISE
Modernising the letter mailing system
In 2016, the insurance company Vaudoise Assurances wanted to modernise and simplify its policyholder correspondence tool and processes. The project is part of the company's global strategy, which is to develop new digital solutions and improve the tools used by its employees on a day-to-day basis.
Moving from an ageing tool to a user-friendly solution.
"Each year, Vaudoise Assurances sends out more than 100,000 letters to its policyholders, and receives no less than 2000 letters per day, which are scanned at the head office in Lausanne." explains Axel Pidoux, Project Manager."To process such a large number of letters, our teams need a simple, user-friendly tool that does not hinder their productivity." he adds.
"The previous solution used by our agents at points of sale, and employees at the company's head office, was clearly showing signs of weakness. It was a system developed "in-house", based on Microsoft Office, which did not integrate, or poorly integrated, the latest developments in this technology." recalls Axel Pidoux.
The insurance company, which is based in Vaud, Switzerland, used this "in-house" system for writing its letters. There were few opportunities for evolving the system and it did not manage the standard needs of employees (archiving, digital signature, etc.)
"We wanted to provide our employees with an easy-to-use system to write their letters." states Axel Pidoux.
When technology and user experience come together
"After consulting a number of service providers, we decided to work with SQLI Switzerland and its digital agency WAX Interactive; a company we have already worked with for several years on other projects. SQLI Switzerland proposed SharePoint technology, combined with the use of Word Web App, a tool which we wish to hold onto because of its ease-of-use," explains Axel Pidoux.
"Models of the application-based solution were created alongside SQLI's teams using Axure. Focus groups with end users were then organised to find out about their needs and expectations. "WAX Interactive's UX/Design experts put forward a structured work environment for the writing of letters using Word. We wanted this to be governed by usage and approval processes, while allowing plenty of freedom to make modifications. This requirement was fully met!" recalls Axel Pidoux.
“Writing a letter has never been simpler”
Once the design was approved, the next challenge was to enable the tool to be easily integrated into other applications.
"It is now very easy for our employees in the pilot group to write letters. Via our business applications, users simply click on the button "Create a letter", the form appears and they select a template and letter-type. They can then attach a file, if required, and write the text in Word Web App. This generates a letter that can be previewed before being exported and printed.
All data concerning the recipient, sender or sending options are added by application-based services." Axel Pidoux is delighted to note that "Users don't have to fill anything in, except for the content of their letter."
Members of Vaudoise Assurances' working group are satisfied with this new letter sending system, which is simpler and more user-friendly, and therefore improves employees' performance and the quality of their work.
"The next step will be to create templates containing text to make additional time savings. Users will once again be involved in this project: we will ask them to put forward text templates that they often write, so they can be reproduced almost exactly. They will therefore find themselves in a familiar environment.
The advice provided by SQLI and WAX Interactive's teams, as well as their technological and business expertise, has been very valuable to us."
Eventually, signature, printing and envelope-stuffing workflows will also be digitised and automated.
"With entirely digitised incoming and outgoing letter flows, employees are no longer burdened with physical documents and are able to consult and manage their business wherever they go in Switzerland.
Now, sending letters, in an enjoyable work environment, while meeting our customers' expectations, is child's play!" concludes Axel Pidoux.
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