Core Demands in Swiss Private Banking

Table of Contents

• DATAMONITOR VIEW
  • CATALYST
  • SUMMARY
• ANALYSIS
  • Introduction
  • Advisor support tools must integrate and work with back office systems to provide full understanding of customers for all products / portfolios and drive the execution process
    • The relationship manager must combine the personal customer relationship with a complete financial understanding and advisory capability, able to act as the face across entire service range
    • Advisor productivity is achieved through focusing activity on the client and using advisory tools, not in origination, reporting and form filling
  • Rapid time-to-market and product innovation requires both flexibility and transparency of business workflows
    • To achieve flexibility and efficiency new product types (e.g. structured products, alternative investments) require core systems that can deal with product breadth rather than isolated or bolt-on systems
    • Product breadth and innovation demands will stretch the operational cost base unless processes are flexible, automated / IT enabled and controlled
  • Business processes should be constructed around optimum workflows that provide both speed and accuracy, increase customer service and enhance operational efficiency.
    • Enhanced customer service and operational efficiency can both be achieved through focusing on the speed of operational processes
    • Process workflows should not be hard-coded into core, but modeled by the business, with IT providing automation and monitoring as well as workload optimization support
  • Reporting must enhance the customer relationship - flexibility and customization are key, but the reporting process should be automated to focus analyst time on adding value
    • Reporting for both regulators and customers needs to be an integrated, automated process to increase speed, reliability and adaptability
  • IT needs to focus on supporting and aligning business strategy. This requires shifting IT spend towards development, with systems transformation and consolidation vital steps
    • Run-the-bank spend dominates IT budgets; however, best-in-class private banks are focused on development
    • Development should be focused on business objectives, not IT integration and/or process modification
    • Core transformation should bring the benefits of consolidation, driving both operational efficiency and business growth objectives
  • Key take outs
    • Business priorities
    • IT strategy priorities
• APPENDIX
  • Methodology
  • Further reading
  • Disclaimer
  • List of Figures
    • Figure 1: Brand and service remain top criteria for success, but must be matched with advisory capability and customer understanding
    • Figure 2: Lack of customer understanding and error levels drive customer dissatisfaction
    • Figure 3: Private banks need to increase time-to-market while lowering operational cost base
    • Figure 4: Business process flexibility and desire to consolidate application are key drivers for core renewal
    • Figure 5: Compliance has become key investment growth area, but mandatory spend should support be strategic rather than necessary spend
    • Figure 6: IT spend is focused on core systems, largely around dealing with the maintenance and integration burden starving IT spend for development
    • Figure 7: Legacy core system increase maintenance costs and also drive up development time & expense
    • Figure 8: Legacy core system increase maintenance costs and also drive up development time & expense
    • Figure 9: Best practice IT to meet core demands in Swiss private banking