Evolving our business to deliver innovative solutions

How we're investing in our technology ecosystem

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We want to help more people secure a life of possibilities. With the pensions landscape constantly changing, it’s vital that we continuously invest in and improve our business to meet clients’ needs now, and in the future.

To help us deliver on our ambitions, we’ve partnered with global IT provider Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to evolve our technology ecosystem. This is part of a multi-year programme of work, and we’ll be taking a phased approach to rolling out the changes.

In the next stage, we’ll be switching on our new scheme administration portal using a carefully planned and phased approach.

Hear from Andy Curran, CEO Standard Life, to learn more about our partnership with TCS:

What are the benefits of the new portal?

We’ve built our new portal based on employer insights, introducing features and functionality that will make it easier for them to manage their scheme.

Easy to use

Real-time validation, fully automated processing, and downloadable records ensure that members’ details are always accurate and up to date.
Secure

Multi-factor authentication, tailored access, and encryption keep your clients’ data safe and secure. Plus, clients can view real-time audit trails for total visibility.
Flexible

Our portal gives employers the flexibility to tailor access, control payments, and adapts to different scheme requirements such as single or multiple payrolls.

Watch our video to discover more about our new portal

When will the new portal be switched on?

Over the next 18-24 months we’ll be switching on our new portal for all clients. We’ll be doing this in phases, to ensure the switch-on is safe, secure, and smooth.

We’ll be in touch with clients directly to let them know when it’s their turn. They’ll get plenty of notice and we’ll explain what to expect.

In the meantime, our current administration portals continue to give clients easy access to all their regular scheme management tasks and data.

Scheme administration portal FAQs

We’re replacing the existing scheme portals, where routine tasks such as assess, join, and pay are carried out, with a new portal that’s powered by TCS. The new portal is part of the TCS BaNCS ecosystem.

Designed using employer insights, the new portal utilises the latest technology to offer an intuitive and streamlined user experience.

It brings everything that your clients need to run their scheme together into one place, including a new dashboard that makes essential, routine tasks easier and faster to manage.

Designed using employer insights, the new portal utilises the latest technology to offer an intuitive and streamlined user experience.

It brings everything that your clients need to run their scheme together into one place, including a new dashboard that makes essential, routine tasks easier and faster to manage.

In a nutshell, our new portal includes:

A personalised dashboard showing pay period, payroll date and number of members, plus a real-time summary of upcoming actions such as payments due.
The ability for clients to assess their workforce and add eligible employees as members.
The flexibility to add new members in bulk or one by one.
Full control of payments, collection dates, and amounts.
Data validation, with the ability to resolve any issues within the portal.
Fully automated processing that ensures member records are always up to date.
An audit trail of who carried out which task and when. Historical submissions can be viewed and downloaded whenever your clients need them.
Step-by-step help guides, tooltips, and the ability to send secure messages to our customer operations team.

In a nutshell, our new portal includes:

A personalised dashboard showing pay period, payroll date and number of members, plus a real-time summary of upcoming actions such as payments due.
The ability for clients to assess their workforce and add eligible employees as members.
The flexibility to add new members in bulk or one by one.
Full control of payments, collection dates, and amounts.
Data validation, with the ability to resolve any issues within the portal.
Fully automated processing that ensures member records are always up to date.
An audit trail of who carried out which task and when. Historical submissions can be viewed and downloaded whenever your clients need them.
Step-by-step help guides, tooltips, and the ability to send secure messages to our customer operations team.

Our technology provider is ISO27001 certified. Plus, we use multi-factor authentication, tailored access, and encryption to keep scheme data safe and secure.

Portal users can access it in the same way as before – the web address and login details remain the same.

When logging in for the first time, users may need to:

Confirm the scheme payroll date and start of pay period. This ensures the personalised dashboard is set up correctly.
Confirm the auto enrolment pay definition. This is required to validate contribution amounts.

Visit our auto-enrolment contributions page for more information.

Portal users can access it in the same way as before – the web address and login details remain the same.

When logging in for the first time, users may need to:

Confirm the scheme payroll date and start of pay period. This ensures the personalised dashboard is set up correctly.
Confirm the auto enrolment pay definition. This is required to validate contribution amounts.

Visit our auto-enrolment contributions page for more information.

To make sure that the portal switch-on is done safely, securely, and smoothly, our digital applications may be unavailable for a short period of time. We’ll work to keep this to a minimum and where possible limit this to evenings/weekends.

Our new portal has built-in user guides, tooltips, and a help centre to guide your clients through each step of the journey. Plus, they can access our secure messaging to get in touch with our team.

For most clients all the data is the same, but for some of your clients the improved validation may raise some additional queries the first time they process payments. To reduce the impact of this, they should make sure they’re submitting the correct Pensionable Pay Definition in their current files. Our Pensionable Pay Definition (PPD) guide can help them through this process. This should only happen the first time they log in, and our team are on hand to provide support too.

The Portal will check if the contributions they’re making meet the Auto Enrolment minimums. Where they don’t, we’ll highlight this to them, and they’ll need to select a reason.

For Group Pension Zone (GPZ) clients only, they should also make sure that the mandatory fields for their scheme type are correct. Our mandatory fields guide for GPZ clients can help with this.

Another important change is that our portal will no longer accept payments for new members that haven’t been joined to the scheme. New members can be joined during the pay process or via the ‘Join Members’ process before the payment schedule is submitted.

The Portal will check if the contributions they’re making meet the Auto Enrolment minimums. Where they don’t, we’ll highlight this to them, and they’ll need to select a reason.

For Group Pension Zone (GPZ) clients only, they should also make sure that the mandatory fields for their scheme type are correct. Our mandatory fields guide for GPZ clients can help with this.

Yes, the regulatory timescales for contribution payments remain the same. Payment files must be submitted and payments made by the 22nd of the month following payroll deduction, e.g. contributions deducted from a July payroll must be paid by 22 August.

Yes, existing scheme terms and conditions apply.

Yes, we’ll be moving all of our Workplace clients onto the new portal in a carefully planned, phased approach. We’ll be contacting employers with onboarding details at each phase.

Ultimately, having everyone on a single, modern portal will enable us to make enhancements more quickly and easily in the future.

Yes, we’ll be moving all of our Workplace clients onto the new portal in a carefully planned, phased approach. We’ll be contacting employers with onboarding details at each phase.

Ultimately, having everyone on a single, modern portal will enable us to make enhancements more quickly and easily in the future.

: You’ll continue to receive any remuneration from us at the same frequency and to the same bank account.

Because we’re taking a phased approach to moving schemes and updating our technology, you may see settlements coming across as two separate payments and receive two separate statements. However, Dash will display a combined payment amount. The information shared to your back-office system will also be combined. This will continue until all policies are switched over from the current system.

There'll be no other changes to the service you and your clients receive from us, and your points of contact remain the same.

: Our purpose at Standard Life is to help people secure a life of possibilities. Combining data and insights with state-of-the-art technology, we’re focussed on continuing to deliver even better experiences across all our key touchpoints, while maintaining value for money.

Key to this success is having the right technology and administration solution in place. To help us deliver on our ambitions and improve member outcomes, we’ve chosen to partner more closely with TCS.

Whilst our existing infrastructure is fit for purpose, it’s vital that we future proof. Using TCS technology and expertise, we’ll enhance our development efficiency across all of our propositions and services. We want to be at the forefront of the latest technology and the greatest innovation, so we can continue to provide solutions that meet the evolving needs and expectations of our members, clients, and advisers.
: TCS is one of the world's largest IT, Consulting, and Business Process Services companies. They employ 600,000 people worldwide in 55 countries – including c4,000 in Scotland. They operate across multiple sectors including insurance, wealth management, and banking.

Their specialisms include digital transformation, business process services, and analytics. Globally, TCS works with over 1000+ clients. And in the UK, they provide services for 200 leading UK organisations – including around half of the FTSE 100 Companies.
: We’ve already successfully moved over 80% of our digital journeys onto new TCS technology, and seamlessly transitioned over 400,000 annuity customers to the BaNCS system . We also worked with TCS to deliver our award-winning Client Analytics platform, market-leading Innovation Lab, and Adviser Dash platform – and we’ll continue to work with them on new and innovative solutions.
: Our programme of work involves updating the existing technology that currently supports clients and scheme members. This removes the limitations of maintaining multiple legacy systems, making it easier to integrate with new and innovative products and partners. Enhancing our technology ecosystem enables us to be more responsive to the evolving needs of clients and scheme members.
: There will be no investment buys/sells and no out-of-market risk as part of the transition.
: Yes, all plan and scheme numbers will remain the same.
: At Standard Life we’re committed to protecting the personal information of members and the systems that data is held on. In order to meet this obligation, we have robust Information Security and Data Protection policies in place. These policies set the appropriate safeguards and are embedded and tested through our assurance and due diligence model. Furthermore, external audit and specialist third-party consultants conduct regular, independent assurance and benchmarking exercises across our business to ascertain the effectiveness of our security control environment and our security strategy.

Our security controls also apply to our third-party suppliers and are aligned to industry standards and good practice. This provides a controlled environment that effectively manages risks to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information. We have a robust and thorough due diligence process prior to appointing any third-party providers, along with ongoing oversight and monitoring.

All member data is stored in the UK. We use some third parties that may process data outside the EEA and the material ones are listed on the sub processor website (https://www.standardlifeworkplace.co.uk/employer/third-party-providers.page). Where we appoint a sub processor that processes data outside the EEA, we ensure that processing is compliant with Data Protection Legislation and that all of the relevant standard contractual clauses are in place.

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Evolving our business to deliver innovative solutions

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What are the benefits of the new portal?

Easy to use

Secure

Flexible

Watch our video to discover more about our new portal

When will the new portal be switched on?

Scheme administration portal FAQs

Adviser FAQs

TCS partnership FAQs