Advisor Match Experience
Thrivent needed a more transparent, personalized way to connect prospective clients with the right financial advisor, replacing a manual, call center driven process. I led discovery, strategy, and ideation for the first two-way Advisor Match system—while coaching a senior designer and partnering closely with research, engineering, and product to balance user, business, and technical needs. Though not launched yet, we hypothesize it will create a more human and trust-building entry point for new clients to connect, in addition to time and money saved on poor matches. It also helped establish the foundation for an AI/ML recommendation engine in flight currently.
Industry
Financial Services
Year
2025
Problem
The foundation of quality matching
Sharing your finances with an advisor is vulnerable, and many people meet several advisors before finding the right fit. Advisors face the same issue—often meeting prospects who aren’t aligned in financial requirements, timing, readiness, or values. To foster stronger relationships and save both sides time, we needed a better way to qualify and match prospects earlier in their journey.
Process
Reducing cognitive load with question categorization
Starting with existing UXR research on what makes a strong prospect–advisor fit, I then collaborated on a survey for advisors and interviewed business partners to uncover patterns and opportunities. Using these insights and competitor research, I categorized questions, mapped the user journey, and worked with product teams to define MVP requirements and a content model for Thrivent’s advisor search ecosystem.
Solution
Creating the first advisor match experience
Research showed that values were key to a strong advisor–prospect match, so I used those insights and a competitor audit to redesign the quiz into a clearer, easier flow. I grouped questions to reduce cognitive load and mapped key inputs into a content matrix that shaped MVP requirements. We explored two design directions—one streamlined and professional, the other warm and supportive—and ultimately combined the strongest elements into a values-driven, intuitive experience that feels both clear and human.
Impact
Laying the foundation for better lead qualification
Though not launched yet, reviews with stakeholders showed a lot of excitement. We anticipate this matching experience will drive a noticeable increase in user connection rate, lead quality, and client retention once launched. It did help pave the foundation for an engineering partner to begin experimenting with a conversational AI chatbot for matching as well.
