Westpac - Digital Early Cycle Collections

<h2>Overview</h2> <p>As <b>Technical Programme Director</b> at <b>Westpac</b>, I led the technical stream of the <b>Digital Early Cycle Collections (DECC)</b> programme, piloting a consistent digital collections process across home-grown and acquired financial products. Partnering with the Business Product Owner, I delivered a simplified architecture using <b>Experian PowerCurve</b> and robotic interfacing to legacy systems, reducing progression from early cycle to formal collections by 30% through proactive SMS outreach and flexible immediate payment options. The programme enabled cost-effective on-shoring of the collections team.</p> <h2>Key Activities</h2> <ul> <li>Managed technical stakeholders and vendors, including Experian and a robotic interfacing provider to align with Westpac’s strategic objectives.</li> <li>Presented current-state architecture of collections systems and devised an incremental transition to a simplified target architecture with Experian PowerCurve at the centre.</li> <li>Designed and configured a streamlined collections workflow in the Experian PowerCurve microsite, integrated via robotic screen-scraping of legacy collection system green screens to update customer account statuses in real time.</li> <li>Developed a hybrid waterfall plan with embedded sprints in <b>Microsoft Project</b>, fully costed and integrated into corporate resource plans.</li> <li>Engaged an off-shore managed testing capability, remediating a failing test plan to deliver the pilot on time.</li> <li>Aligned service and change management teams to productionise the pilot for live trial.</li> </ul> <h2>Technologies Used</h2> <ul> <li>Experian PowerCurve (hosted collections microsite)</li> <li>Robotic interfacing (3270 screen-scraping for legacy integration)</li> <li><b>Microsoft Project</b> (hybrid planning)</li> </ul> <h2>Challenges and Solutions</h2> <ul> <li><b>Challenge</b>: Defining an efficient collections workflow in Experian PowerCurve that interfaced reliably with legacy platforms.<br> <b>Solution</b>: Configured a streamlined workflow and used robotic screen-scraping to ensure real-time account status updates across systems.</li> <li><b>Challenge</b>: Coordinating parallel business and technical streams under tight timelines.<br> <b>Solution</b>: Partnered with the Business Product Owner and leveraged hybrid planning in Microsoft Project to align delivery and testing.</li> </ul> <h2>Outcomes</h2> <ul> <li>Delivered the DECC pilot on time, fully tested, and deployed into production.</li> <li>Achieved a 30% reduction in customers progressing to formal collections via SMS vs. letters, avoiding penalties and reducing human-intensive processes.</li> <li>Generated cost savings in resource management, supporting Westpac’s on-shoring initiative with fewer resources.</li> <li>Secured business approval for rollout to additional products, with a roadmap to expand Experian PowerCurve capabilities.</li> </ul> <h2>Related Skills</h2> <p>This programme highlights my expertise in:</p> <ul> <li><a href="/skills/1">Programme Management</a></li> <li><a href="/skills/4">Stakeholder Management</a></li> <li><a href="/skills/10">Vendor Management</a></li> <li><a href="/skills/11">Planning</a></li> </ul> <h2>Learn More</h2> <p>Explore <a href="https://www.experian.co.uk/business-platforms/powercurve-collections">Experian PowerCurve</a> or <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/project/project-management-software">Microsoft Project</a>. Contact me via <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nigel-bates-3409a23/">LinkedIn</a> to discuss my contributions to Westpac!</p>

Overview

As Technical Programme Director at Westpac, I led the technical stream of the Digital Early Cycle Collections (DECC) programme, piloting a consistent digital collections process across home-grown and acquired financial products. Partnering with the Business Product Owner, I delivered a simplified architecture using Experian PowerCurve and robotic interfacing to legacy systems, reducing progression from early cycle to formal collections by 30% through proactive SMS outreach and flexible immediate payment options. The programme enabled cost-effective on-shoring of the collections team.

Key Activities

  • Managed technical stakeholders and vendors, including Experian and a robotic interfacing provider to align with Westpac’s strategic objectives.
  • Presented current-state architecture of collections systems and devised an incremental transition to a simplified target architecture with Experian PowerCurve at the centre.
  • Designed and configured a streamlined collections workflow in the Experian PowerCurve microsite, integrated via robotic screen-scraping of legacy collection system green screens to update customer account statuses in real time.
  • Developed a hybrid waterfall plan with embedded sprints in Microsoft Project, fully costed and integrated into corporate resource plans.
  • Engaged an off-shore managed testing capability, remediating a failing test plan to deliver the pilot on time.
  • Aligned service and change management teams to productionise the pilot for live trial.

Technologies Used

  • Experian PowerCurve (hosted collections microsite)
  • Robotic interfacing (3270 screen-scraping for legacy integration)
  • Microsoft Project (hybrid planning)

Challenges and Solutions

  • Challenge: Defining an efficient collections workflow in Experian PowerCurve that interfaced reliably with legacy platforms.
    Solution: Configured a streamlined workflow and used robotic screen-scraping to ensure real-time account status updates across systems.
  • Challenge: Coordinating parallel business and technical streams under tight timelines.
    Solution: Partnered with the Business Product Owner and leveraged hybrid planning in Microsoft Project to align delivery and testing.

Outcomes

  • Delivered the DECC pilot on time, fully tested, and deployed into production.
  • Achieved a 30% reduction in customers progressing to formal collections via SMS vs. letters, avoiding penalties and reducing human-intensive processes.
  • Generated cost savings in resource management, supporting Westpac’s on-shoring initiative with fewer resources.
  • Secured business approval for rollout to additional products, with a roadmap to expand Experian PowerCurve capabilities.

Related Skills

This programme highlights my expertise in:

Learn More

Explore Experian PowerCurve or Microsoft Project. Contact me via LinkedIn to discuss my contributions to Westpac!

Systems Software

Experian Powercurve