Challenge
There may be many reasons to come to the decision to look for a new IT system: New business, new regulatory requirements, envisaged efficiency gains, etc.
But then the trouble starts: Which is the right solution for MY bank, how big must the investment be - and what features are just "nice to have"? Which new skills do I need?
Business users are often not much of a help because they mostly want exactly what they are currently used to – just much better(!). IT is often of not much help either - technicians are too often focussed on technical features instead of business functionality. All this contributes to broadening the risk that is anyhow involved in any major change, especially when key IT systems are involved.
Solution
In order to minimise the risk involved in any change or implementation of an IT System many key issues need to be addressed in a systematic and structured way.
Firstly, and perhaps most importantly the bank must know (and clearly document!) what it wants. This seems pretty obvious but failure to do so is one of the most frequent reasons for project failures and massive cost explosions.
Secondly, good contracts are able to substantially limit risk. However, here banks face a big setback against their suppliers. These work with major IT contracts every day - banks only now and then.
Thirdly, purchasing and implementing a new IT system is not a purely technical task - rather it means implementing a change to business requiring proper preparation and change management.
Our Approach
Our approach is focussed on intensive co-operation with the customer resulting in an individual project plan and procedure. Our support during evaluation of IT solutions could therefore include several of the following activities and more:
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 | Requirement definition (RD) study for the automation of banking products and processes |
| Tender document preparation: Request for Information (RFI), Request for Proposal (RFP) |
| Evaluation criteria and evaluation methodology for evaluating proposals from vendors |
| Support during the contract negotiation together with international lawyers (e.g. Clifford Chance) |
| Support during the development of the budget for automation and assessment of required time frame |
| Support to reviewing and adjusting business processes to take maximum advantage of the new software and its capabilities |
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