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This first webinar in the “Behavioral Approaches for Financial Product Design” series illustrated the importance of behavioral science thinking in financial product design and begin to touch on what it means to do systemic product innovation using the behavioral approach.

Bringing to life behavioral science concepts and the psychological biases that come into play in financial decision-making, speakers contextualized these biases in real world situations and showcase examples of financial products or services that were designed to address those biases for improved outcomes. They then introduced a few key behavioral principles to keep in mind when building financial products for the poor and underserved, and invited discussion from the participants on applying these principles.

Participants walked away with a strong understanding of key psychological biases and heuristics that influence consumers’ financial decision-making. Participants also saw several concrete examples of how the design of financial products can either alleviate or aggravate negative client behaviors. In combination, these will help to illustrate the importance of behavioral design as a way to address such behaviors.

This webinar was organized by SEEP and delivered by ideas42, with the support of MetLife Foundation, as a part of the "Behavioral Approaches for Financial Product Design" webinar series.

Speakers

Marina Dimova

Marina Dimova is a Vice President at ideas42. She designs, tests and scales behaviorally-informed products and programs in consumer finance, international development and financial inclusion. Her work spans projects with U.S. financial institutions aimed at improving financial management behaviors and loan repayment outcomes, as well as the scale-up of a heuristics-based financial management training for microentrepreneurs in developing countries. She also works on the design of pro-poor social programs. Prior to ideas42, Marina was an Associate Director at Ikatu International where she led the strategic research on the design of a youth employment and skills training program in West Africa. She has also worked on agricultural value chains and private sector development with the World Bank, as well as finance and healthcare consulting. Marina holds a BA in Economics and Government from Franklin & Marshall College, and an MPA degree in International Development from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She enjoys road trips, dance, mountains and good conversations.

Alex Blau

Alex Blau is a Senior Associate at ideas42 currently focusing on challenges in consumer finance, design and decision-making, and international development. Prior to joining ideas42, Alex worked as a research analyst at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, examining the exit-strategies of a number of large, Title-II funded integrated nutrition interventions in Kenya. In addition, Alex has extensive experience developing agricultural supply chains for small-scale organic farmers in the Caribbean. Alex holds an MSc in food policy and applied nutrition science from Tufts University, and a BA in political science with a focus in international relations from Brown University.