Get a guarantee for export finance
The report for the Get a guarantee for export finance beta assessment on 21 September 2022
Service assessment report
Get a guarantee for export finance
| Assessment date: | 21/09/2022 |
| Assessment stage: | Beta |
| Result: | Met |
| Service provider: | UK Export Finance |
Previous assessment reports
Service Description
The ‘Get a guarantee for export finance’ service allows delegated banks to share the risk of export finance with the UK Government (up to 80%).
In 2017 the service was launched and through bank delegation supported:
- Bond Support Scheme (BSS)
- Export Working Capital Scheme (EWCS)
In 2021 a new short term business product; General Export Facility (GEF) was launched.
The service allows banks to apply for finance (through BSS/EWCS/GEF) on behalf of exporters. The entire service comprises two digital products:
- the front-end - the Digital Trade Finance Service (DTFS) - portal which allows delegated banks to apply for finance on behalf of their customers (exporters), submit the application and manage facilities against the deal if the application is approved by UKEF.
- the back-end - Trade Finance Manager (TFM) – an internal service for UKEF staff to manage the processing of new deals, facilities, and amendments to deals that have already been processed (for both delegated banks and non-delegated banks).
Service users
The public facing portal is used by relationship managers, makers, checkers and the operations team within banks.
The case management system is used by underwriters, credit risk analysts, export finance managers, post-issue management officers, inputters, approvers, and due diligence officers within UKEF.
1. Understand users and their needs
Decision
The service met point 1 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has undertaken a large amount of useful work despite the challenge of repeated staff turnover. Although it would have been good to see more research sessions taking place in this phase, the team demonstrated a solid understanding of all user groups
- there is a good grasp amongst the team of the differences between banking organisations and how that impacts their use of the service
- the team has iterated and refined their user needs and personas to make them clearer. It was evident how these were used in the team and for the benefit of the wider organisation
- there were multiple examples shared of how user research had positively impacted the design of the service
- despite the challenge of users with access needs being difficult to find, the team has mitigated this well with a series of useful activities
- the team has shown good creativity in terms of research methods and this needs to continue. It’s a good way of avoiding research fatigue when working with a smaller user group. It also exposes the team to new users. Conducting face to face research will be highly beneficial and should be prioritised
- the research plans for the next phase were well thought out and thorough
- the team are sharing their artefacts and ways of working with other teams in the organisation. They are setting a very positive example of how services should be designed and developed and should be applauded for it
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- provide evidence to demonstrate the development of the service is having a positive effect on end users and their goals. Is it making it easier for exporters to move their goods? How is that being measured? What needs do exporters have in the context of the service and how can these be met?
- undertake the planned research around the support model to demonstrate whether it’s working in terms of user needs and business requirements. It would be helpful to see this journey mapped with pain points, opportunities etc
- continue efforts to recruit users with access needs. The panel acknowledges the reasons people have been hard to find. Undertaking more contextual research in offices may increase exposure to those with additional needs. They could also consider changing the language they use, e.g. talking about needing help, or using special tools rather than accessibility
- provide further evidence the service is working for everyone, including users who are new to the work. The panel appreciates these people will have already had training and exposure to the process, and the service uses GDS design patterns. But it is content heavy and much of it hasn’t been transformed from what’s used in the old service
- continue to vary their recruitment methods to work with new people, especially internal users. Going through team leaders could result in them ‘cherry picking’ the most compliant or able staff
2. Solve a whole problem for users
Decision
The service met point 2 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team is working in a complex landscape to complement rather than compete with the private sector to provide security for exports. The introduction of the General Export Facility (GEF) process was a policy change and whilst it has driven volumes away from the existing service, it was clear that there was a value add
- the team has created a front and back end system, and has a clear understanding of their user groups and their individual needs
- the team has great working relationships with the banks, with DIT and with other stakeholders. They are therefore able to see the full process and solve it
- the team has iterated and improved the service to minimise the number of times users have to provide the same information. An example is the clone functionality allowing users to copy details across to a new deal
- the use of other API’s to reduce the question set is excellent. As an example, the Companies House API has been used to reduce the question set as well as reduce potential errors when submitting a new application it is encouraging to see they have been working in the open getting design feedback through the cross-platform Slack channel which is a positive step
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- it is worth reiterating that this is a complex service due to the taxonomy of the industry and the legal challenges. The team should consider using feedback from the digital services to understand whether the end to end service can be simplified any further, and keep reviewing service blueprints to this end
- continue exploring the broader journey of the steps banks and in particular, exporters take when exporting goods outside of the UK. Consider how and where this service fits alongside other GOV.UK services and content and work with other departments to continue making exporting goods outside of the UK simpler and easier
3. Provide a joined up experience across all channels
Decision
The service met point 3 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the user facing and internal case management systems are joined up. The team has put extensive work into the internal system making sure it meets the needs of the internal user and the interface is similar to what the user sees when using the external service providing a single view of an application
- the team have worked together to reduce the number of systems used to manage incoming queries which has resulted in positive benefits for managing the service going forward
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- once the analytics are operational continue reviewing the analytics and making changes where needed based on user feedback and quantitative data
4. Make the service simple to use
Decision
The service met point 4 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the service team is working with front line operations staff to make continuous improvements to the service
- they have made sure the service is consistent with other GOV.UK digital services by using the cross-government Slack tool, using the GOV.UK Design System and working with GDS
- the team are aware that users might not have all the information to hand when completing the service and have provided options to return later
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- continue reviewing the process of onboarding new users and making the process simple to achieve as well as showing how users are removed from the platform to reduce risk of users that have left an organisation but may still have an active account on this service
5. Make sure everyone can use the service
Decision
The service met point 5 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has completed a range of tests to ensure the service is accessible
- the team has undertaken an accessibility audit and has fixed outstanding issues. They have also conducted their own internal testing using automated tests
- the team has identified an internal need for an empathy lab and is in the process of setting one up
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- review the content across the service with a content designer. There needs to be a dedicated content designer when designing services to make sure content is consistent, inclusive and accessible for everyone
- continue testing the service with a focus on the lower end of the digital inclusion scale
6. Have a multi-disciplinary team
Decision
The service met point 6 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has stood up the first agile team in the Department, and has made great strides in training up colleagues in digital roles, and leading the culture change needed
- the team has transitioned from a contractor heavy team to a team of civil servants
- the Service Owner is clearly embedded in the team, and a strong supporter of them
- there is a high risk of single points of failure that the team have worked hard to overcome through documentation, knowledge share and working in the open
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- reflect on the fact that a live service should be continuously iterated based on user needs, and that the ideal business model is to fund products, not projects. The panel understands the constraints the team are working under, but feels that the point is worth making
- as a general point, the panel felt that further content design skills would have been useful and would recommend this in future teams
7. Use agile ways of working
Decision
The service met point 7 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team continues to use various tools for communication, collaboration and documentation and has coached other teams on the use of these
- the team is working in sprints and using agile ceremonies such as show and tell to share their work with a wider audience
- the team was cognizant of the fact that the traditional project governance model wasn’t giving them the right time with the right people, and so have introduced a working group that gives that what they need in a timeous manner
- the team has and continues to blog, work in the open and share their challenges. This openness to be vulnerable is to be lauded
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- continue to do what they’re doing, both in terms of ongoing stakeholder relationships and with taking UKEF on this journey to digital and agile working
8. Iterate and improve frequently
Decision
The service met point 8 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team were able to clearly show areas where they had iterated and improved their service, and the future areas that they wanted to look at
- the team is working in the open and sharing what works and what hasn’t. Whilst this should be congratulated on a normal service, as the first DDaT team this is also role modelling culture (fail fast) and the panel wanted to call this out
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- the team needs to reflect on the fact that a live service should be continuously iterated based on user needs, and that the ideal business model is to fund products, not projects. The panel understands the constraints the team are working under but feels that the point is worth making
- as the service expands to cover more banks, measuring the success of iterations by holding 1-1 sessions with users will become infeasible. It is essential that the team uses its new Google Analytics function to measure the success of iterations. Metrics such as time on page, error messages, exits of journeys, and looping through pages will help the team understand the interactions on each page and help them identify issues that had not been witnessed in user research sessions. This GA data should be used as a source of information to allow the team to identify problems, and investigate potential iterations: set baselines and measuring whether improvements have been made
9. Create a service which protects users’ privacy
Decision
The service met point 9 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- security was clearly considered, especially when it comes to the privacy of data stored
- pen-test was done which covered both the application and the environment in which it is operated
- cloud services used were evaluated with security in mind
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- the need for two-factor authentication should be considered as well as the risk of not using it
- Single Sign-On (SSO) should be considered again and if deemed necessary scheduled to be implemented during the next phase of development
- re-evaluate their position on SQL Injection. While the team’s statements about the inapplicability of ‘SQL’ element in a NoSQL database are true, it doesn’t mean that code injection is not possible during querying. NoSQL databases suffer from very similar problems and care should be taken to ensure potential vulnerabilities cannot be exploited by users of the system or external actors
- files uploaded pose a significant risk not only to the service but also to the service users. Security measures around it (file scanning) should be implemented
10. Define what success looks like and publish performance data
Decision
The service met point 10 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has a Performance Framework that starts at the top with the benefits of the service, and users’ needs, then looks at hypotheses and how they will know if the benefits are being realised
- the team is not measuring just the mandatory 4 KPIs but has their own tailored metrics too
- the Helpdesk data is used to help understand pain points for users
What the team needs to explore
When entering the next phase the team must:
- use data to investigate user behaviour and measure whether iterations are making things better for the users. In a larger service, the lack of Google Analytics (GA) (or other monitoring data) as a source of data would have been a blocker to moving to public beta. However, the service is small-scale, that has specialised users who log in, so the feedback, user research, and Helpdesk tickets have formed a good source of data so far that the team have used to make decisions
- use this GA data to identify issues, not just to verify what is being seen in user feedback
- share the insights from this GA data, and the PowerBI data with your stakeholders on a regular basis
11. Choose the right tools and technology
Decision
The service met point 11 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team has considered available technology and chose a consistent set of tools that meet their requirements
- the choices are well known and do not introduce unnecessary risk
- where the wider strategy led the team to adopt technology which potentially is exposing the service to vendor locking appropriate techniques have been used to contain and limit the exposure
- although the team had to use existing technology which is not in line with wider GDS recommendations there is a plan on how to get out of those over the life-time of the service
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- ensure the team has the necessary capacity to meet the commitments of improving the technological choices
- ensure the decisions are clearly documented especially where compromises were necessary to ensure that as the team service team changes over time the ‘as is’ architecture doesn’t become perceived as ‘to be’ one
12. Make new source code open
Decision
The service met point 12 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- all code is open source, liberally licensed and published on GitHub
- there are detailed instructions on how to start the service should anybody choose to do so
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- currently, the solution is in a single repository and is deployed as a single unit. Splitting the project into smaller deployable might help with the maintenance of the system but also increase the chances that individual components are of use to others
13. Use and contribute to open standards, common components and patterns
Decision
The service met point 13 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team is using standard, open technology choices. Not exclusively, but showing clear preference and choosing those over closed, proprietary solutions whenever practical
- the UI is designed using the GOV.UK Design System and MoJ Pattern Library
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- continue looking for opportunities where data standards can be used in service to service exchange or data modelling
14. Operate a reliable service
Decision
The service met point 14 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team’s service is built using appropriate automation patterns which allow for reasonable deployment cadence, currently at least once a week
- the testing pyramid looks healthy with a good number of the unit, API and end-to-end tests
- accessibility testing is automated and covers testing progressive elements of web applications
- the cloud architecture allows for resilience
- the team was able to evolve from contractor-led to a team of civil servants which should help in long-term knowledge retention
- code quality analysers are used in the automated processes, and the technology choice (TypeScript) reflects the team’s commitment to the quality of the service they provide
What the team needs to explore
Before entering the next phase the team must:
- deployment as a single unit should be reconsidered. More granular deployment would improve the time to deploy, and time to recovery and at the same time reduce the risk of accidental changes
- currently, alerts are sent to the tech lead’s email address. A better alerting system for a production system is needed to ensure the service can operate and be supported continuously and not depend on a single person