Goal
Plan sponsors needed a clearer view of the participant experience to answer questions with confidence. This project paired greater visibility into participant-facing communications with a modernization of Vanguard's email experience.
Current state
Plan sponsors rely on Vanguard to support participants with questions about communications, submitted requests, and process updates. This created a two-sided challenge: internal teams lacked visibility into what had been communicated to participants, while participants often struggled to understand the messages they received. What initially appeared to be a broader issue of confidence in communications ultimately came down to two connected problems: limited visibility for our internal users and limited clarity for participants.
A lot of times the caller uses different terms, so I’m trying to figure out what they mean while searching for it at the same time.
“When I’m confused or have to ask the participant to explain what they received, it makes it harder to answer their questions with confidence.”
The Communication Loop
Plan sponsors | the support layer
Plan sponsors were often the first point of contact when participants had questions about communications, submitted requests, or process updates. They needed enough context to understand what a participant had received, what had happened previously, and where a request stood so they could confidently answer their questions.
Participants | the recipients
Participants interacted with Vanguard communications throughout their journey, from receiving informational messages to submitting requests and waiting for them to be processed. When those communications were unclear or lacked context, they turned to their plan sponsors for clarification or updates.
The connection
The two experiences were closely connected. When participants lacked clarity, they turned to plan sponsors for help. When plan sponsors lacked visibility, they had less context to answer those questions. Gaps on either side created additional work for the other.
2
The existing experience
Constraints
Deep linking limited by the platform’s login API
Sample emails may not always be available
Not all email types can be supported at MVP
Legal requirements limit opportunities for plain-language content
3
Our approach
Updated Emails
The biggest opportunity was updating the email notification. The existing version was difficult to scan and didn’t clearly communicate that it was coming from Vanguard, causing users to overlook or ignore it. As strategist for three of the five MPM verticals, I knew the solution needed to scale across the platform. I partnered with B2C teams to adapt their notification system for our B2B experience.
Cutting through the noise
Participants received a high volume of communications from Vanguard, making it difficult for MPM emails to stand out. We needed to create a distinct MPM identity within the broader Vanguard email ecosystem, helping participants quickly recognize and prioritize these communications.
Building stronger client relationships
Participants were frustrated that they couldn’t deep link directly to a task. Because the MPM landing page is built as a monolith, this wasn’t technically feasible. We focused instead on what we could improve: reducing the cognitive load required to identify the right task and making the content easier to scan and understand.
Updated Documents repository
Sponsors lacked visibility into what communications had been sent and how they were delivered, making it difficult to support participants.We improved both the participant communication experience and the communication table to make outreach more transparent and easier to navigate.
Helping sponsors navigate ambiguity
Sponsors often connected with participants without knowing exactly what they were calling about. We identified common questions and information gaps to give reps the context they needed to navigate those conversations with confidence.
Building stronger client relationships
We gave employees the context they needed to create smoother customer interactions. By surfacing key information and clarifying notifications and task reminders, sponsors could support participants more confidently with less cognitive load.
Impact
Scalable Communication System
Created a reusable cross-channel communication framework, including 2 new notification types, an updated notification, and a scalable email template. The framework provides a foundation for 4 additional notification types on the roadmap.
Faster Issue Resolution
Improved participant issue intake and resolution by making notifications more timely and actionable, helping users identify and address participant needs more efficiently.
Clearer Communication Model
Refined message taxonomy and terminology to better align communications with users’ mental models, creating a more consistent and streamlined experience. The updated taxonomy also clarified how, when, and why participant communications were being sent across Vanguard beyond the product’s direct scope.
