Questions that emerge frequently are: “What happens after we agree to a deal?” “What happens from there to when we launch?”
Happily, kicking off a new relationship and launching card programs is exactly where Highnote sets the bar. Let's take a look at some of the stages of this process, illustrated in this diagram.
Solution Consultation
During our solution consultation phase, we spend a lot of time getting to know your use case, and understanding what it takes to bring it to life. Your solution will have many implications with regards to product types, program types, funds flows and API flows. We invest time with you to ensure that not only can we achieve your goals, but that the program you want to implement will work with the banking partner.
Once we have formalized our relationship, that's when the partnership really begins! There's a flurry of activity that involves both technical and operational resources. Our technical implementation and program implementation processes occur in parallel.
Technical Implementation “Finalizing Discovery” for our technical implementation means that we achieve a detailed understanding of how your program goals translate into integration with the Highnote platform. Then we are ready to set up weekly syncs between your tech team and our technical implementation team. We move seamlessly into integration design, where we learn more about your environment, and can precisely articulate the integration points with our API. We then work with you to implement the solution. Our participation is hands-on, helping you actually set up necessary API calls and product and funding configurations. During technical implementation your team will have access to our industry leading simulation experience. This will allow your team to fully test end-to-end all of the unique use cases your card program may encounter in a safe test environment.
Program Implementation We run the program implementation in parallel with the technical implementation. The entire program implementation process covers three primary areas: Highnote due diligence, policy and procedure collection, and marketing collateral review. The first step is to finalize your application with Highnote for a card program. The application gathers all of the essential information about your business necessary to conduct due diligence and see the process through to approval. In our weekly syncs we will review due diligence items, as well as collect the policies and procedures that are required based on your specific program requirements. Our expert team is prepared to provide templates in areas where you may not already have documentation ready. We also review any information that cardholders will interact with, from marketing material to website content. Then off to the bank for approval.
It is important to note that we go to great pains to ensure alignment between the technical and program implementation efforts. That's why our customers never build something that varies from their business objectives. Instead, all teams involved work in lockstep towards an efficient technical build and program approval process.
Testing Once all of the technical and program implementation steps are complete, we can move into testing. This is the phase in which our teams work together to test production transactions on the live BIN for your card program. We have a set of test scenarios to ensure that everything that was configured in the test environment translates to production, and that transactions process smoothly. Running tests with live transactions among controlled groups completes the testing phase.
Launch While the program technically is ready to launch, one area in which Highnote goes above and beyond is with a concerted launch readiness effort. We connect the individuals that will be managing day-to-day functions of the card program with their Highnote counterparts. That way, at launch everyone is on the same page and ready for a smooth, efficient ramping of your card program!
But it doesn't end there. In a future blog we will explore ongoing program management and Highnote's commitment to customer success. For now, contact us to learn more about how Highnote’s groundbreaking platform can power your innovative card program!