Case 4 Benefit support service
- Last Updated:
The "Benefits Support Service" is a web service that supports benefits administration. In February 2024, Digital Agency started providing it to local government employees and residents nationwide with the aim of completing the process from application to benefits (transfer) digitally and realizing quick and efficient benefits. We have been continuously improving it in response to the verification test results of fiscal 2023 and opinions from the employees of the local governments that use it and the people of Japan. The "Low Income Support and Fixed Tax Reduction Supplementary Benefits" service has been used by a little less than 100 local governments, including the local governments that used it in the benefits implemented from fiscal 2023 to fiscal 2024.
Table of Contents
- [Problem 1] Consideration was required when providing common services to local governments nationwide
- Solution point 1 Grasp of the actual situation of benefit work in each local government
- Solution point 2 In order to identify requests and points for improvement, verification was conducted for a small number of local governments.
- Points to be resolved 3. Benefits that differ between municipalities Standardization of business terminology to make it easier to understand
- Solution point 4: Steady calls to local governments across the country
- Problem 2: Institutional constraints have prevented application procedures for residents from being simplified
- Solution point 1: Display an advance notice for duplicate work that occurs during procedures
- Solution point 2: Carefully visualize the flow when going through multiple services
- Solution point 3 Provide videos and manuals to local governments that convey the procedures for use in an easy-to-understand manner
- Interview
- Related Pages
[Problem 1] Consideration was required when providing common services to local governments nationwide
With the start of the Special Cash Handout System and other measures due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the number of benefits work has increased rapidly in local governments nationwide, and digitalization of benefits work has become an urgent task.
Therefore, Digital Agency has decided to develop a service that can be used commonly by 1,741 basic municipalities nationwide.
However, since each local government had different procedures for providing benefits and different tools to use, various considerations were taken when providing common services.
Solution point 1 Grasp of the actual situation of benefit work in each local government
In the development of benefit support services, it was necessary to make them easy to use not only for residents, but also for each municipality.
In order to grasp the actual situation of benefits work, we conducted interviews with employees seconded from local governments in Digital Agency. First, we understood how to proceed with work within the local government based on the knowledge and experience of employees close to us, and conducted interviews with local governments that were interested in using it.
As a result, it became clear that there are various differences depending on the local government, such as the process from drafting to settlement, the system access rights of local government employees and the conditions for granting them, and the management method of benefit recipients. Based on this understanding, we worked on the development of a benefit flow that is easy to use not only for residents but also for each local government.
Solution point 2 In order to identify requests and points for improvement, verification was conducted for a small number of local governments.
At the beginning of the development, we began providing the service to a small number of local governments in order to identify their requests and points for improvement. We conducted verification with two local governments, Mizumaki-machi in Fukuoka and Tosu City in Saga. We provided a system that allows residents to easily complete procedures online, and created a guide to explain the service and called for its use. We also identified points for improvement while listening to the practical consultations and requests of local governments.
One of the results of this was the centralization of the management of paper and digital application information. Prior to the verification of the benefits support service, Digital Agency thought that it would be good if there was a service that could manage only the information applied digitally. However, since most applications from residents were continuously made on paper, a situation arose in which both paper and digital application information were managed, and it was found that this was a burden on staff. Therefore, paper application information was also centralized so that it could be managed on the benefits support service, and support was provided to check for duplication of information and the existence of bank accounts, which reduced the burden on staff.
Points to be resolved 3. Benefits that differ between municipalities Standardization of business terminology to make it easier to understand
In interviews and verification test, we learned that the definitions of terms such as "Cashier" and "Accountant" and the definitions of application progress status such as "Under Review" and "Review Required" differed from one local government to another. This became a major challenge in creating a service that can be used commonly by local governments nationwide.
The idea of displaying all the terms used by each local government on the screen was also considered, but it was complicated and might cause errors. Therefore, different names and terms were examined for each local government, and the notation on the screen was standardized so that it would be easy to understand for all local governments [Figure 1].
Solution point 4: Steady calls to local governments across the country
A briefing session was held to promote the use of the benefit support service in local governments [Figure 2], and local governments that felt the benefits of the benefit support service and expressed their intention to participate were invited. It was also an important initiative to deepen cooperation with local governments by responding to all of the hundreds of questions received from local governments at the briefing session. Through repeated steady communication with local government employees who will be the users, we promoted understanding of the benefit support service.
Problem 2: Institutional constraints have prevented application procedures for residents from being simplified
In the application process using the benefits support service, there were situations in which it was impossible to reduce the required information input and processes, such as the need to hold the My Number Card over multiple times due to legal restrictions.
Therefore, improvements were made to reduce the input burden on residents and to realize smooth procedures.
In addition, there were cases in which multiple services were used, and measures were taken so that residents would not be confused by the differences in names, terms, and usage.
Helpful Documentation
- DS-671.1 Usability Implementation Guidebook - 3 Understanding Design Principles
Solution point 1: Display an advance notice for duplicate work that occurs during procedures
It is important not only to create services, but also to design how the services are communicated to users.
For example, depending on the content of the application, the legal system requires a process of reading the My Number Card multiple times in addition to entering basic information and confirming the identity. Even if such a procedure is inevitably complicated, we have prepared an advance guidance screen so that residents can use it with satisfaction [Figure 3]. During the procedure flow, we try to provide easy-to-understand guidance on the procedure by displaying the timing when the My Number Card needs to be held up with an icon.
Solution point 2: Carefully visualize the flow when going through multiple services
Depending on the content of the benefit application, it may go through multiple apps and web services such as Mynaportal, public money receiving account registration, and Mynaportal APIs. In doing so, we promoted the design by linking across the framework of apps and web services so that there would be no gap or confusion in the use experience of residents.
As a specific example, during prototyping, the flow of use when linked with multiple apps and web services was visualized with screen transition diagrams, etc. We cooperated across operations and organizations to identify where residents would stumble, what action they would take when they returned to the benefit support service screen after processing with other apps and web services, and so on, and to clarify issues.
We also conducted joint tests with developers of other apps and web services that work with the benefit support service. The developers provided us with a test environment, and we worked together to verify it.
Solution point 3 Provide videos and manuals to local governments that convey the procedures for use in an easy-to-understand manner
In the Benefits Support Service, a video explaining the procedure for using the Benefits Support Service was provided on a trial basis [Figure 4]. Many local governments said, "The video is easier to understand," and "When we receive an inquiry from a resident, we can now have a conversation with a common understanding while looking at the image on the screen." It became clear that the local government uses the video when it actually explains to the resident, and that the presence or absence of the video greatly changes the response of the resident, and the usefulness of the video became clear.
In addition, by preparing an easy-to-understand explanatory manual for residents on how to use the system, we were able to make local government officials realize the importance of how to show and convey it [Figure 5].
