Why Mobility Should Be the New Norm for Banks

As the world’s businesses and consumers migrate to the digital economy, banks and financial service providers are making their own transformational journeys, reappraising and reengineering their business models, service offerings and relationships with third parties. During Sibos 2018 our global partners and customers will gather to discuss how technology, regulation and evolving geopolitical priorities are part of the ‘Enabling the Digital Economy’ story.

The financial services industry, in common with most others, is undergoing a digital transformation, with new business models being introduced to improve operational efficiency and deliver a better customer experience.

I recently contributed a news article titled, “Banks to address mobile connectivity issues,” to bobsguide encouraging the financial services sector to rethink their approach to how mobility impacts work performance. Here are a few points I highlighted in the story:

• Build a case for 4G indoors. Despite the widespread availability of Wi-Fi broadband connectivity and fixed line or VoIP desktop phones, more than three quarters of office workers in the UK considered it important to be able to make calls and access 4G data services from their mobile devices, according to a CommScope report, “The overlooked enabler of productivity at work.” A similar number also claimed that poor mobile connection in their workplace had, at some point, proved a hindrance to their work efficiency. In fact, more than two-fifths claimed that a lack of coverage meant that, on occasion, they have had to step outside the office building just to make a call or access a 4G data service on their mobile device.

• Live the customer experience. Today, as visits to London’s High Street bank branches continue to decline, so mobile banking services and applications grow in popularity. With high-quality, in-building mobile coverage, a bank’s employees are able to ‘live the customer experience’ prior to the rollout of any new services and apps. When considering this improved customer experience, and the impact that mobile connectivity can have on an organization’s productivity, it’s clear that ensuring the delivery of first-class, in-building wireless coverage as part of a business’s digital transformation should now be a priority for businesses in the financial services sector.

• Invest early. Just as an organization’s IT team will investigate the best-of-breed technology solutions that will protect their broadband connectivity against downtime or outages, businesses and building-owners should do the same to ensure the provision of reliable and consistent mobile connectivity for their employees, customers and partners where it’s required. For businesses looking at a potential new property, for example, this might mean testing wireless connectivity before signing the lease.

As we’ve heard from our industry partners, employees want to work for organizations that not only consider themselves forward thinking but who are investing in workplace innovation. For businesses with a high volume of customers visiting their offices, the provision of mobile connectivity should be a baseline requirement.