Industry experts have suggested that the use of robo-advice will grow, although the pensions industry has been urged to offer savers a combination of technology and “human kindness” to help support savers.

Speaking at the Cross-Border Benefits Alliance (CBBA) Europe Annual Conference 2022 yesterday, 15 September, Previnet senior manager, Martino Braico, emphasised the potential benefits of utilising robo-advice to support savers, suggesting however, that the concept of conversational interface can sound “less scary” for savers.

Braico suggested that while older savers may not be keen to interact with a chatbot, younger members will be much more accustomed to this.

However, he stressed that there are a number of things which contribute to the user experience, stressing the need to ensure that customers are not facing excessive waiting times, suggesting that a combination of tools could be a better approach.

“You cannot just offer the machine responding to member calls, you need a backup if you find a situation where a question cannot be answered by robo-advice,” he stated, suggesting that providers should “combine technology and human kindness capabilities”.

Adding to this, Generali Employee Benefits business accelerator manager, Denis Cabrillion, agreed that digitalisation and robo-advice, including online member portals and mobile apps, are “definitely a trend that will continue to grow”.
“Members and companies are asking us for more digitalisation more artificial intelligence and all these solutions,” he continued.

In addition to this, Cabrillion noted that there is an increasing focus on mental health and financial wellbeing following the pandemic, with an increasing number of employers looking to help educate members.

“This is a very important topic when it comes to pensions because not everyone is financially educated in a way that they can understand complex pension savings and products,” he added.

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