By Vikas Srivastava, Chief Revenue Officer, Integral
Being a customer-centric organization and keeping customers happy sounds simple. The reality is that although companies strive to put their best foot forward with their customers, the changing customer requirements and ever-evolving needs mean that the journey is never really completed.
In the banking industry common perception is that neobanks have disrupted the market by providing a great customer experience which mainly relies on the digital-first approach that they have built their businesses on. The question is, would they have been able to disrupt the market as much if the banking industry had been faster in adopting new technologies?
A recent survey of 1,000 senior executives of banks by Publicis Sapient’s shows that they have little choice but to adapt to the digital world. The findings show that almost two thirds of firms believe that rapid, fundamental change – rather than incremental progress – is needed to achieve their digital transformation objectives. Yet over half are yet to make significant progress towards executing their digital transformation plans.
The push for banks to implement modern technology infrastructure is upon us and the ones leading the digital transformation race will come out on top as customers’ choice.
What are the three crucial steps on the road to digital transformation? First of all, it’s using modern, cloud-based technology that ensures operational agility and innovation and is able to meet your customers’ requirements. Secondly, understanding the power of customer data and more importantly, having all your customer data in one place. Not only does this give you critical insights but it allows you to see trends and adapt to changing needs rapidly. Thirdly, it is about upgrading legacy systems without risking it all – being able to use tried and tested, fully configurable technology that is quick to deploy – at the fraction of the cost, time and risk it takes to build your own is a no-brainer.
While many unknowns loom on the horizon it’s clear that digital transformation with flexible infrastructure must be a top priority for banks heading into 2023. In today’s world where technology is accessible everywhere we go, it’s no wonder that the changing nature of the consumer is shaping how banks and the sell-side not only cater to their customers but also how they organise their back-office infrastructure.