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Experian: Ideas from EMERGE We’re Embracing as an Organization

Attendees leave EMERGE each year full of ideas. Financial Health Network Member Experian explains how they shared those insights company-wide.

By Financial Health Network

Thursday, October 1, 2026
Experian: Ideas from EMERGE We’re Embracing as an Organization

Many EMERGE Financial Health moments are hard to replicate: conversations over coffee, shared nods of understanding during a powerful speech, or moments of recognition when someone’s story mirrors yours. But the impact of EMERGE can also deepen as one person’s experience ripples across their entire organization. 

In May, Jose Ortega, User Experience Researcher at Experian, joined fellow financial health champions at EMERGE 2026 in Atlanta to explore how to turn bold ideas into scalable financial health solutions. While Financial Health Network Member Experian was able to send team members to EMERGE this year using its Member passes, the event fueled organization-wide learning after Jose shared what he learned in an internal Experian blog. 

The response was overwhelmingly positive. Several colleagues shared that the piece “reignited their fire,” Ortega says, highlighting the mission behind the company’s day-to-day work.

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“I wanted to make sure the insights didn’t stay with the people who attended [EMERGE.] There were so many valuable ideas that could influence how we think about research, design, content, and product, so sharing them felt like a way to help more teams connect their work back to the bigger goal of improving financial health.”

Jose Ortega
UX Researcher, Experian

Here, Jose revisits a few of the insights he brought back to Experian.

1. Financial health is more than products or features.

Helping people thrive financially goes beyond better products and features. It means enabling them to work, live, and handle unexpected expenses without losing the progress they’ve made. 

“The conversations kept coming back to trust, empathy, and helping people feel more confident and supported over time,” Ortega says. “EMERGE gave me a renewed perspective on how the work we do every day can have a real impact on people’s lives.”

2. Lived experience makes insights more meaningful and actionable.

Behind every financial data point is a story. EMERGE puts this kind of storytelling into practice, inspiring attendees while equipping them with relatable insights they could bring back to their organizations. 

The takeaway for Ortega? “Ground your takeaways in real customer stories!” he says. “The lived experiences shared at EMERGE made the insights more meaningful and actionable.”

3. Thinking across disciplines accelerates progress.

Financial health challenges don’t arise in a vacuum. Whether someone can sustain a job, for example, shapes whether they can pay rent, build their emergency savings, or plan for retirement.

Our thinking should be equally cross-cutting. Collaborating with others—whether that’s another department, an industry tastemaker, or the Financial Health Network’s Member community—can help ideas take shape, grow, and make a real difference in people’s lives. “Visibility is truly key,” Ortega says.

4. Creating safe spaces encourages innovation.

Sharing both challenges and solutions requires vulnerability. People can have differing, and often conflicting, experiences with finances. 

“Creating that space [at EMERGE] for honest conversations, shared experiences, and different perspectives made it easier to see where we’re making progress and where we still have opportunities to do better,” Ortega says.

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“The Financial Health Network brought together people from across the industry who all care deeply about improving financial health. That pushed me to bring these sentiments back to my organization.”

Jose Ortega
UX Researcher, Experian

Start Planning for EMERGE Financial Health 2027

EMERGE Financial Health is the can’t-miss-event of the year for leaders to share ideas and take action on financial health. Every Financial Health Network Member receives complimentary EMERGE passes, so representatives from Member organizations can meet real people, spark actionable ideas, and bring back insights that will drive change long after EMERGE ends. Become a Member now to secure your seat at EMERGE 2027.

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