Skipton Building Society: Embracing a Test & Learn Culture for Digital Optimisation
- Debbie Rhodes
- Jan 1
- 2 min read
Skipton Building Society, like many established financial institutions, faced challenges with a stretched digital team and an ever-evolving website. The pace of change in the digital space made it crucial to refocus their strategy and planning to ensure long-term success. They sought to transition from a reactive digital approach to a proactive mindset, driving continuous improvement and innovation.
Our work with Skipton Building Society focused on delivering tangible results through a strategic and data-driven approach. By addressing key operational challenges and fostering a culture of innovation, we enabled the organisation to achieve measurable improvements across several critical areas. Below, we detail the key aspects of our approach and the impacts delivered.
Our Approach
Strategic Transformation
We instilled a culture of continual improvement, championing a ‘test and learn’ approach. This empowered Skipton’s digital team to embrace innovation, take calculated risks, and adapt quickly through experimentation. The shift enabled faster decision-making, allowing the organisation to ‘fail fast’ and pivot towards more effective strategies.
Improved Stakeholder Engagement
The introduction of data-driven decision-making removed subjective debates from stakeholder discussions, ensuring smoother approvals and quicker alignment on priorities. This data-centric approach fostered trust, consistency, and streamlined processes among senior leaders, enabling faster buy-in and focused collaboration.
Increased Proactivity
We transformed the digital team’s working practices from being 90% reactive to 80% proactive. This cultural shift allowed the team to focus on long-term growth and optimisation opportunities, reducing the need for constant firefighting and better preparing them for future digital challenges.
Enhanced Customer Experience
By leveraging data to refine their online presence, Skipton consistently improved the customer journey. This not only optimised user experience but also identified and capitalised on key revenue opportunities, delivering measurable business outcomes.h? Commit to once a month and stick to it."
“Without data, you’re just another person with an opinion.” – W. Edwards Deming
What We Delivered
Health Check
We began by conducting a comprehensive review of Skipton’s digital capabilities. This included analysing website performance metrics and identifying areas for improvement and strengths to leverage.
Prioritisation through Data
We introduced the ‘test and learn’ model, providing a structured, data-driven approach to content planning. By validating changes with real user data, Skipton’s digital team avoided assumptions and ensured their efforts were impactful and aligned with business goals.
Education and Collaboration
Through workshops with key stakeholders, we educated the organisation on the long-term benefits of a test and learn culture. This collaborative approach secured buy-in across all levels, paving the way for successful implementation of the new strategy.
Building the Roadmap
We co-developed a structured content plan incorporating A/B testing. This approach validated hypotheses with measurable outcomes, leading to confident decision-making. Additionally, we created a backlog of prioritised hypotheses, ensuring a clear and actionable roadmap for ongoing optimisation.
Stakeholder Clarity
Regular reviews of testing outputs provided clarity and demonstrated tangible benefits to senior leaders. This visibility reinforced confidence in the approach and showcased the impact on key business metrics.