Paul Noone, Head of Onboarding at the Pensions Dashboards Programme describes building an onboarding strategy for the programme and invites providers to be part of early testing.
The Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) will start onboarding data providers (pension providers and schemes) to the ecosystem in defined stages from 2023, in the third phase of the programme. The recent call for input on staging outlined some possibilities on how this might work. However PDP will connect volunteer providers well before this time, in order to test the processes around connection and the functionality of the dashboard itself.
Seven major pension providers have volunteered to connect towards the end of this year, to be part of the initial Alpha testing phase:
- Aquila Heywood
- Aviva
- Capita
- ITM
- Legal and General
- Mercer
- Phoenix Group
More are lining up to take part in the subsequent testing phases, where we’ll scale up the numbers of participating data providers, prior to compulsory staging. We expect to cover a substantial proportion of the pensions universe with the initial test providers, which is a huge step forward for the programme.
Working with the pensions industry on initial (Alpha) testing
The support of our colleagues at these major pension providers is vital for the programme to progress. We absolutely recognise that getting dashboard-ready is a challenge for many providers, so the level of interest I’ve encountered from industry in being part of this first wave of testing is a real boost.
During the Alpha phase, the seven pension providers will help test the processes and systems involved, while they connect to the pensions dashboards ecosystem.
We will use the learnings from the Alpha phase testing to help shape our onboarding plan. We will share all the relevant updates with the wider industry as we progress through Alpha, to help other data providers with their plans to connect. The experience all parties gain during the Alpha phase will help create a smoother onboarding process for all.
Calling for providers for subsequent testing
Summer 2022 will mark the start of the next phase of testing.
We will connect a further raft of volunteer pension providers to the ecosystem, to scale up the whole testing programme. Volunteer providers in the subsequent phases of testing will benefit from the hard work undertaken during the Alpha phase, while still reaping the benefits of additional support and time thanks to early connection.
We already have organisations that have confirmed their interest in getting involved in subsequent test phases but I would encourage representatives of any organisation considering taking part to contact me at: Paul.Noone@maps.org.uk
My team and I are happy to talk through the process and the potential benefits of early connection to dashboards.
Staying up to date
As a programme, we remain committed to keeping data providers informed about what they need to do to get dashboard-ready, irrespective of when they’re likely to onboard. There is already a significant amount of information on our website, in the data providers hub, including a timeline and steps to connection, plus further explanation of the pensions dashboards ecosystem.
I would also recommend signing up for the PDP newsletter, which provides you with all our news and updates on a monthly basis, as well as following our Twitter and LinkedIn social media channels to keep up to date with any developments.