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Building a Behavioural Science Centre of Excellence
- Behavioural Science Training,
- Behavioural training,
- Capability building,
- Contact centre transformation
How behavioural training helped Aegon transform conversations and drive business growth
The Challenge
Aegon’s advisors regularly communicate complex pension and financial information to customers. However, these conversations can often become difficult for customers to understand, leading to confusion and lower engagement.
At the same time, Aegon wanted to ensure that behavioural science interventions introduced into the organisation could be sustained and scaled across teams.
The leadership team recognised that behavioural science could help transform customer conversations, but for this to work long term it needed to become part of how employees worked every day. The challenge was:
How can behavioural science capability be embedded within the organisation so employees can consistently deliver clearer, more effective customer conversations?
Behavioural science interventions often fail to scale unless organisations build internal capability to apply behavioural thinking independently.
Our approach
Cowry partnered with Aegon to build internal behavioural capability through a structured learning and development programme.
Behavioural capability design – We designed a comprehensive learning programme that enabled employees to understand how customers make decisions and apply behavioural science principles in everyday interactions.
Tiered learning structure – The programme was delivered through the Cowry Academy, with three levels of training:
- Foundation training for contact centre staff
- Masterclass training for team leaders – Practitioner level for employees responsible for embedding behavioural science within the organisation
- Behavioural implementation – The programme was designed not only to train employees but also to transform how conversations and environments were structured within the contact centre.
Behavioural insight
Our work identified several behavioural barriers affecting customer conversations and employee performance.
1. Cognitive Complexity
What we observed
Financial information is often difficult for customers to process.
Why it happens
Customers must interpret unfamiliar terminology, multiple options and long-term financial implications.
What it means
Conversations must be structured to simplify information and guide customers toward clear decisions.
2. Employee Confidence
What we observed
Advisors can struggle to explain complex financial products clearly and confidently.
Why it happens
Without behavioural frameworks or structured guidance, conversations can become overly technical or confusing.
What it means
Employees need practical tools and training that make behavioural principles easy to apply in real conversations.
3. Organisational Sustainability
What we observed
Behavioural interventions often lose impact if organisations cannot sustain them internally.
Why it happens
Without internal capability, behavioural initiatives remain isolated projects rather than embedded practices.
What it means
Building internal behavioural expertise is essential for long-term impact.
The solution
Cowry developed the Cowry Academy, a structured behavioural training programme designed to embed behavioural science within Aegon’s organisation.
The programme addressed four key areas of behavioural design.
Skills – Employees were trained to understand how customers make decisions and how behavioural biases influence financial choices.
Scripts – Customer conversations were redesigned to improve clarity, structure and simplicity.
Screens – Digital call scripts and supporting systems were redesigned to make it easier for advisors to guide customers through conversations.
Space – The working environment was optimised to improve productivity, engagement and wellbeing among employees.
Impact:
The behavioural capability programme delivered significant improvements across both employee and business outcomes.
The programme delivered a 37:1 return on investment, demonstrating the value of embedding behavioural capability within the organisation.
The work was also recognised externally, winning Most Effective Learning & Development Programme at the European Contact Centre & Customer Service Awards.
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increase in sales conversion
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increase in assets under management
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pt
increase in NPS
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%
reduction in employee attrition
“We believe in partnering with experts and Cowry has a proven methodology using cognitive and behavioural psychology that really works. Through our pilots we have already seen significant benefits across the business in how we support customers and make it easier for them to engage and make good decisions about their financial futures.”
Michael Reed-Smith
Retail Director, Standard Life
“Employee engagement is at the heart of customer advocacy and has been key to our success.”
Colleen Nielson
Head of Platform Operations, Aegon
Why it worked
The programme succeeded because it moved beyond individual behavioural interventions and focused on building organisational capability.
By equipping employees with behavioural tools, redesigning conversations and embedding behavioural science into everyday operations, Aegon was able to create sustainable improvements in both employee performance and customer outcomes.
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