Company: Human Interest
Company Description: Human Interest Inc. is a full-service 401(k) and 403(b) provider that seeks to make it easy and affordable for small and medium-sized businesses to help their employees save for retirement. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in San Francisco, Human Interest has helped employees at 25,000+ companies access retirement benefits and a path to financial independence.
Nomination Category: Customer Service & Call Center Awards Achievement Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Achievement in Customer Experience
 Nomination Title: Human Interest Inc: Customer Experience
- Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 178 words used.
We'd like to provide some footnotes to further explain and detail some of the evidence we have shared above. We feel these may better help judges understand the thinking and methodology we put into assessing our achievements before we elected to draft our nomination:
- [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
- Human Interest calculations using data from "Provider Rankings" included within the Plan Sponsor 2022 and 2023 Recordkeeping Surveys.
- Human Interest Lays Public-Ready Foundation with $267M in Financings, New Key Hires, and New Board Members, July 17, 2024.
- Includes primary and secondary equity financings and an extension of the company’s credit facility.
- Includes the company’s credit facility.
- Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 196 words used.
Human Interest is a full-service 401(k) and 403(b) provider that seeks to make it easy and affordable for small and medium-sized businesses to help their employees save for retirement. Founded in 2015, Human Interest works with companies across multiple industries, including those with many hourly workers, such as restaurants, retail, hotels, hospitals, manufacturing, franchises, startups, and nonprofits. Legacy retirement providers historically underserve these industries, but Human Interest is on a mission to ensure everyone has access to retirement benefits.
By dismantling traditional barriers to retirement benefits, Human Interest enables many of these organizations to offer plans for the first time. [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]¹.
Human Interest is one the fastest-growing 401(k) providers² and was recognized by PlanSponsor and PlanAdviser as one of the top three recordkeepers in adding defined contribution retirement plans in 2023. The company passed $100M in annual recurring revenue and expects YoY revenue growth of approximately 70% in 2024³. In July 2024, Human Interest announced $267M⁴ in financings, bringing their total financings to over $700M⁵.
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes, explaining the nominated achievement since July 1, 2022, OR written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- Outline the nominated achievement since July 1 2022 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 200 words used.
Support is essential to Human Interest customers, many of whom are first-time retirement planners needing additional help with plan set-up and ongoing management.
In 2023, Human Interest opened its Utah call center, moved all support onshore, and forecast the creation of 300 jobs over the next five years. One year in, almost 100 roles have already been created and filled. Bringing support in-house has allowed the organization to control the customer experience, boost productivity, and improve customer outcomes. According to internal calculations:
Customers are spending less time on hold: Speed-to-answer decreased [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION].
Customer issues are being resolved: Long hold times and a lack of information have historically led to frustrated customers hanging up the phone. The abandonment rate has shrunk [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION].
Issues are being resolved faster: The company now resolves calls more than three minutes faster. [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
The result? The company has seen a [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION] improvement in customer satisfaction scores. [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video. If you are submitting written answers to the questions for this category, provide them in the spaces below.
No video. Please see the sections below and the attachments for our nomination.
- Explain why the achievement you have highlighted is unique or significant. If possible compare the achievement to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 198 words used.
Human Interest’s customer service helps customers set up, manage, and get the most from their retirement plans.
In 2024, the company automated tasks involved with making distributions (payments) to participants withdrawing money from their retirement plan. As a result, agents can walk the participant through the entire process live via a portal and then make the payment electronically so the money is in their bank account within days. Traditional providers require multiple interactions, forms, emails, and delays.
Fear of unexpected audits, burdensome administrative tasks, or missed deadlines can be a major disincentive for employers to offer employees a 401(k).
Human Interest launched several services to support customers in these areas. With DOL Defense Audit, it became the first provider to offer support and coverage against certain unexpected expenses that may be incurred if an employer’s retirement plan is audited by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). And, with the launch of Notice Delivery Protection, Human Interest reduced the burden of paper mail notices on employers, unlike other 401(k) providers that charge fees or don’t support mailings. The company also became the first provider in the industry to offer an embedded tax credit tool called Tax Savings Maximizer.
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