There’s no getting around it: new disruptive technologies are here to stay and for investment banks, it’s never been more important to take notice. The question banks face this year is not if they should embrace innovators, it’s how they should embrace innovators to further growth at their organizations. In my last post, I introduced you to one of the top 10 challenges we identified for investment banks in 2014—new disruptive technologies. Now, let’s look at how banks can respond.
Three strategies for success
Embracing innovation requires bold leadership and an appetite for change, and I believe there are three keys to successfully seizing the opportunities new disruptive technologies bring:
- Reach out to the new start-up community. Start-ups bring energy, ideas and a positive attitude that is often lacking in more established businesses. It will be important, however, to understand that regulatory, security and resilience requirements may make it difficult to enter into a contractual relationship with a start-up that has only a few employees.
- Foster innovation. Don’t lose sight of the big picture. Always combine innovation and experimentation with strategic insight and direction.
- Be part of the change. If banks want to seize the opportunities available, they need to be part of the movement. Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Lab, for example, brings together start-ups with executives from the world’s largest investment banks. This move enables banks to experiment, test technology and share knowledge over a three-month period.
The bottom line is, for banks to gain the competitive edge this year, and in years to come, they’ll need to look beyond traditional banking methods. Banks will need to inject a fresh perspective to their operations to get—and stay—ahead.
Stay tuned for upcoming blog posts on some of the other challenges investment banks face this year. To learn more, visit: