1. Ideation A GATE 1 Scoping STAGE 1 GATE 2 Build Business Case STAGE 2 GATE 3 Develop- ment STAGE 3 GATE 4 Testing & Validation STAGE 4 GATE 5 Product Team Marketing Team Ideation B GATE 1 Creative Develop- ment STAGE 6 GATE 2 Partner Editing STAGE 7 GATE 3 Legal STAGE 8 GATE 4 STAGE 5 Explain product to Marketing for campaign development Launch STAGE 10 Fulfillment STAGE 9 GATE 5 DISCOVERY SH (1) Note: Parallel processing is not possible due to Marketing Team needing full product specs before beginning campaign development. Voice of customer is built in to Ideation, and Scoping stages (and Post-Launch evaluation). Ideation is top-down (very directed, solving a business problem uncovered by research/up- front predevelopment homework). The team approach is cross functional, involving department VP in Ideation A and the Chief Marketing Officer in Ideation B. STAGE 8.5* Testing & Validation *as appropriate, see explanation following

2. Ideation GATE 1 Scoping STAGE 1 GATE 2 Build Business Case STAGE 2 GATE 3 Develop- ment STAGE 3 GATE 4 Testing & Validation STAGE 4 GATE 5 Product Team (PT) Fits income product suite? Can be sold in large Ee market? Unique in market? Complements non-category products offered by company? Multi discipline task force includes marketing, sales, legal & marketing research Brainstorm Inputs include competitive intelligence & target market data YESYES Explain product to Marketing for campaign develop- ment DISCOVERY PT refines design, features based on Concept Exploration PT determines sales potential compared with competitive products Focus Groups*: -Target market understands & is interested in product? -Employers willing to offer it to Ees? -Positively received, fitting in with corporate brand/image? YESYES YESYES YESYES YESYES PT delineates concept & positioning and submits name choices for trademarking PT determines brokers’ willingness to sell based on Concept Test PT officates product specs and seeks legal approval and multi-state licensing PT defines operational support needs (call center, website) PT tests product with in-house focus groups of company Ees similar to target. PT sets operational support needs (metrics & routes) PT revises/ confirms sales training & sets $ projections for business plan One-on One Indepth Interviews*: -Brokers willing to sell? -Brokers believe product is simple in design-- yet stands out in crowded market? Design legally approved? Licensing obtained in >5 states? Call center capacity for predicted initial interest? Capacity to develop website (online application process)? Focus Groups: -Product understood by company Ees ? -Likely to buy? Systems ready to go if customer should call/ login for application/ information? Salespeople trained on product specs? *attended by Marketing, run by Marketing Research SH (2) Note: Consumer/Client focus groups are part of the Scoping Stage in this process due to their input being crucial to refining the design before presenting a realistic product to sales for evaluation. Ees= employees

3. GATE 1 STAGE 6 GATE 2 STAGE 7 GATE 3 STAGE 8 GATE 4 STAGE 9 GATE 5 MT consults with PT to determine big picture look/feel of materials & number of items to produce (creative briefs) MT explains brand standard consistency needs & target market communication requirements LAUNCH marketing campaign to support product release STAGE 5 MT selects & works with external ad agency to develop pieces (competitive bidding rules) MT ensures agency creative approach is unique vs competitors MT works with PT to edit pieces MT submits edits to ad agency and then submits finalized pdfs of all pieces to Legal for approval. MT works with Creative Services to get item number assigned per piece. MT gets printing specs from ad agency per piece. MT ensures pdf is housed properly for print on demand. MT ensures minimum supplies are printed and stored. IdeationCreative Develop- ment Partner Editing LegalFulfillment Marketing Team (MT) Product design absolutely finalized? Creative briefs approved by PT? PT timing demands realistic for MT to complete pieces? YESYES YESYES YESYES YESYES YESYES Pieces approved by PT point people? Printing complete? Salespeople introduced to pieces? Call center reps given materials to fulfill phone and web requests for information? Pieces meet brand standards and are consistent with overall look of product suite materials? Pieces accurately reflect product specs? Approved by Legal? Item number per piece obtained? Printing specs (paper type/weight) received? SH (3) Note: Stage 8.5 would consist of testing in-house (focus groups) for effectiveness depending on how many pieces in the campaign. If campaign is nothing more than a few promotional sheets, this would not be appropriate. If it is development of a series of brochures and ads, it would be.

4. Launch STAGE 10 Marketing Team Product Team After launch, the product team monitors sales performance and commissions a quantitative study assessing why potential buyers did not purchase the product. Product team also monitors support system performance through satisfaction studies (call center, on-site enrollment) Similarly, the marketing team determines effectiveness of communication material via focus groups and makes any adjustments budget-allowing. Post- Launch Review SH (4)