10 years of behavioral innovation: What a decade of data has taught us about benefits design

The study:

Since 2016, Voya’s Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation has explored a fundamental question: How can retirement plans turn the way people think and make decisions into behaviors that support better financial outcomes? A new retrospective analysis explores this question using data from 310,931 participants across 877 retirement plans.

The results:

The findings show that behaviorally informed plan design was associated with stronger long-term saving outcomes. Participants in these plans experienced more than twice the improvement in savings rates seen in traditional plans. Even among participants who were not digitally engaged, plans pairing automatic enrollment with automatic escalation were associated with substantially greater savings-rate improvement.

Digital engagement added another dimension. Engagement grew from 57.5% of participants in 2017 to 76.1% in 2026, and digitally engaged participants in behaviorally informed plans were saving more than 11% of pay on average by 2026.

Key takeaways for plan sponsors:

• Make automation the foundation: Pair automatic enrollment with automatic escalation, while thoughtfully considering contribution-rate defaults, escalation amounts and timing.
• Design for participants who may not actively engage: Build beneficial behaviors into the plan experience so progress doesn’t depend on participants repeatedly logging in, seeking education or initiating changes themselves.
• Use digital engagement to reinforce strong plan design: Combine automation with accessible digital experiences that incorporate behaviorally informed framing, personalization, projections and timely prompts to encourage participants to take their next beneficial action.

Explore the research to uncover what these findings could mean for benefits leaders and plan designers looking to make it easier for participants to take positive steps toward retirement.

Access the Full Analysis

About the Behavioral Finance Institute (BeFi)

Dr. Ngnoumen is AVP of Behavioral Finance Research at Voya Financial where she leads behavioral science research and experimentation to help people boost their savings and benefits utilization.

Since its inception in 2016, the Voya Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation has conducted research focused on improving the financial well-being and outcomes of those it serves. The Institute works with leading scientists and organizations to advance knowledge in areas closely aligned with Voya’s workplace strategy, which is centered on addressing customers’ health, wealth and investment needs through the workplace and institutions.