Personal Group Uses OutSystems to Develop Hapi, a Powerful Employee Engagement Solution

Personal Group PLC, a provider of employee benefits and insurance products, has used the OutSystems low-code development platform to create an innovative employee benefits platform named Hapi.

Hapi makes staff happier and more engaged at work through a suite of HR services and employee benefits. As shown in research from the University of Warwick, happier staff are 12 percent more productive[i]. So, Personal Group’s solution benefits the employee and their entire organization. It provides employees with a single point of access to a range of different services and third-party solutions. Currently, Personal Group works with more than 2 million UK employees across 550 organizations providing a range of services to improve happiness and productivity in the workplace.

In the past, Personal Group had depended on third parties to provide a white label platform that it could resell. However, Personal Group wanted to have the power in its hands and was determined to build its own platform to provide a more agile solution to support its growing client base. Personal Group’s IT team typically worked in a Microsoft development environment and coded in C# ASP.Net or Delphi, but opted this time to upgrade its development environment using a modern low-code approach.

Personal Group chose OutSystems because company leaders were impressed by its large and successful user base that displayed a wide variety of use cases including creating enhanced digital experiences.

“From the outset, we had a clear vision in mind and we wanted to work with a technology partner who could help us realize Hapi’s full potential,” Ashley Doody, CIO of Personal Group, said. “We wanted to accelerate the development of the platform while leveraging the skills and capabilities we had in-house and minimizing the amount of additional technology recruits needed to get the platform to market quickly. We also needed to ensure the platform could service a high and growing number of customers and users. OutSystems and a low-code development environment was the perfect answer.”

Next on Personal Group’s agenda is to expand on its success with public sector organizations, especially within the NHS and local government, where the new platform has proven invaluable to HR departments.

Richard Tilbury, Director of Development at Personal Group, added, “With OutSystems we have a development platform that produces a solution that scales across multiple servers without the need to specifically code for this. Low-code, while initially scary for some developers, is a win for us. The tool is visual, the developer works with flowcharts, and this makes the usual troubleshooting of issues much quicker, as the developer is not having to read through pages of code. OutSystems allows us to turn around new developments quickly.”

In terms of future development plans, Personal Group is currently scoping a new mobile app. It plans to use the OutSystems platform to simultaneously develop a solution for iPhone, iPad and Android, targeting a launch for Q3 2017.

About Personal Group PLC

Personal Group Holdings Plc (AIM: PGH) is a technology enabled employee services business, working with employers to drive productivity through better employee engagement and a more motivated workforce. With over 30 years’ experience, the Company provides employee benefits, serving 550 businesses, reaching over 2 million employees across the UK.

Personal Group's offer comprises 8,000 in-house and third party products and services, from c.60 supply lines. In-house services include employee insurance products (hospital, convalescence plans and death benefit) and the provision of home technology via salary sacrifice (iPads, computers, laptops, smartphones and smart TVs). Third party services include retail discounts, e-payslips, employee assistance, wellbeing programmes and salary sacrifice cars and bikes.

The offer is provided via the Company’s proprietary technology platform, Hapi. The platform is intuitive and accessible via web, tablet and mobile app, driving better engagement, communication and value recognition. Hapi is flexible and can quickly integrate additional services, such as existing employee services and partner platforms. Hapi is a SaaS product.

Through technology and select acquisitions, the Company has grown its addressable market from 6m to 27m UK employees; including 15.6m SME employees targeted via its partnership with Sage, the UK’s largest software company.  

Personal Group’s innovative approach to using technology to deliver its programmes, combined with its face-to-face method of communicating with employees, makes its offer compelling to blue chip clients across the UK as a way of attracting, retaining and motivating employees.

Personal Group has a strong client base across a range of sectors including passenger transport, healthcare, logistics and food manufacturing. Clients include: Stagecoach, Four Seasons Health Care, Priory Group, Spire Healthcare, Bibby, 2 Sisters Food Group and Young's Seafood.   

For further information, please see personalgroup.com

About OutSystems

Thousands of customers worldwide trust OutSystems, the number one low-code platform for rapid application development. Engineers with an obsessive attention to detail crafted every aspect of the OutSystems platform to help organizations build enterprise-grade apps and transform their business faster. OutSystems is the only solution that combines the power of low-code development with advanced mobile capabilities, enabling visual development of entire application portfolios that easily integrate with existing systems. Visit us at www.outsystems.com, or follow us on Twitter @OutSystems or LinkedIn.