Lara Müller
ERNI Switzerland

 

It is true that 9 out of 10 of the banks and insurance companies interviewed for a worldwide study are convinced of the necessity of digital change. And 61% of the financial service providers participating in the survey also plan – in response to new technologies, growing competition and changing customer expectations – to move away from their traditional business model and the exclusive sale of their own financial products.

 

Determining the current status

But such surveys do not reveal much about the current status in each individual company and where it needs to take the leverage to successfully tackle and continuously deepen the digital transformation. A target/actual analysis is nothing unusual. But given that banks and insurance companies are subject to special regulatory provisions and conditions and must observe strict compliance rules, the change here is even more complicated than in other industries. At the same time, the widespread bonus systems encourage lone fighters in financial sales and most traditional companies have rigid hierarchies that need to be broken down first. In addition, IT systems that have often grown over many decades are no longer up to today‘s requirements. The industry is also sometimes a little hesitant to implement new technological developments, while at the neobanks – whether young start-ups or digital giants such as Google and Amazon – digitization is already in their DNA.

 

Compensating for a lack of experience

Most conventional banks and insurance companies, which are now becoming software companies themselves and have to build digital business models, lack experience in this area. This is why we at ERNI have developed a Digital Maturity Fitness Check, which can help with an initial assessment. It can be individually adapted and carried out for each customer and their requirements. This analysis of the digital maturity level is basically based on five pillars, which we look at in detail. Starting with the basis of the business, the status of the IT systems and up to the most important: market and customer orientation. However, we also examine existing digital activities, the market and the value chain as well as the corporate and management culture. We consider this holistic and customer-centric approach to be extremely important. After all, many companies think that they have already done enough by using a tool for agile working without changing their business processes and mindset at all levels.

However, that’s not the case. We know and see best practices from the industry and can therefore compare where our customer stands and where there are still areas of action where change is necessary. Overall, banks and insurance companies worldwide have already tackled a lot in this area, but there is still a lot to do. On this path of digital transformation, we consider ourselves experienced
travel companions and coaches for our own change management.

Nothing is imposed on the customer

How do we proceed? Above all, we do not impose anything on our customers, but advise them individually. Let’s bear in mind that not all five pillars are always equally important. For example, if a company has only ever sold its products from a stationary location, but now wants to improve its web presence and sell them digitally, then customer focus and digital initiatives will have a higher priority in terms of analysis and consulting. Or if a certain level of maturity already exists, for example, if insurance policies can already be taken out online, but problems arise in developing this approach, we focus more on corporate culture and leadership.

We conduct our Digital Maturity Fitness Check on the basis of structured interviews. Since we interview different people in the company, we get reliable results and the customer receives a comprehensive overview of his digital maturity level as an evaluation. As a Swiss consulting firm, we at ERNI are not committed to any particular method or tool and are therefore completely neutral. Our customer engages us in order to develop further – in this way we want to help him and show him how he can go his own way. Since the financial services industry today has many challenges to overcome – you often cannot see the forest for the trees. Our job is therefore to make the entire forest and every single tree visible again.

 

Would you like to examine your digital maturity?

Get in touch with us.

News from ERNI

In our newsroom, you find all our articles, blogs and series entries in one place.

  • 27.09.2023.
    Newsroom

    Unveiling the power of data: Part III – Navigating challenges and harnessing insights in data-driven projects

    Transforming an idea into a successful machine learning (ML)-based product involves navigating various challenges. In this final part of our series, we delve into two crucial aspects: ensuring 24/7 operation of the product and prioritising user experience (UX).

  • 13.09.2023.
    Newsroom

    Exploring Language Models: An overview of LLMs and their practical implementation

    Generative AI models have recently amazed with unprecedented outputs, such as hyper-realistic images, diverse music, coherent texts, and synthetic videos, sparking excitement. Despite this progress, addressing ethical and societal concerns is crucial for responsible and beneficial utilization, guarding against issues like misinformation and manipulation in this AI-powered creative era.

  • 01.09.2023.
    Newsroom

    Peter Zuber becomes the new Managing Director of ERNI Switzerland

    ERNI is setting an agenda for growth and innovation with the appointment of Peter Zuber as Managing Director of the Swiss business unit. With his previous experience and expertise, he will further expand the positioning of ERNI Switzerland, as a leading consulting firm for software development and digital innovation.

  • data230.08.2023.
    Newsroom

    Unveiling the power of data: Part II – Navigating challenges and harnessing insights in data-driven projects

    The second article from the series on data-driven projects, explores common challenges that arise during their execution. To illustrate these concepts, we will focus on one of ERNI’s latest project called GeoML. This second article focuses on the second part of the GeoML project: Idea2Proof.

  • 16.08.2023.
    Newsroom

    Unveiling the power of data: Part I – Navigating challenges and harnessing insights in data-driven projects

    In this series of articles (three in total), we look at data-driven projects and explore seven common challenges that arise during their execution. To illustrate these concepts, we will focus on one of ERNI’s latest project – GeoML, dealing with the development of a machine learning algorithm capable of assessing road accident risks more accurately than an individual relying solely on their years of personal experience as a road user, despite limited resources and data availability.

     

  • 09.08.2023.
    Newsroom

    Collaborative robots revolutionising the future of work

    The future of work involves collaboration between robots and humans. After many years of integrating technology into work dynamics, the arrival of collaborative robots, or cobots, is a reality, boosting not only safety in the workplace but also productivity and efficiency in companies.

  • 19.07.2023.
    Newsroom

    When the lid doesn’t fit the container: User Experience Design as risk minimisation

    Struggling with a difficult software application is like forcing a lid onto a poorly fitting container. This article explores the significance of user experience (UX) in software development. Discover how prioritising UX improves efficiency and customer satisfaction and reduces risks and costs. Join us as we uncover the key to successful software applications through user-centric design.

  • 21.06.2023.
    Newsroom

    How does application security impact your business?

    With the rise of cyber threats and the growing dependence on technology, businesses must recognize the significance of application security as a fundamental pillar for protecting sensitive information and preserving operational resilience.