It seems that we hear of new SaaS tools for financial institutions being introduced on a daily basis. There is no shortage of new products that are sure to improve a financial institution’s performance and customer satisfaction. Before you sign the next contract here are a few things to consider; which tools will fit my strategic objective, how will we implement them, and how will I get the most value from them.
As most of you are aware, we have been partnering with technology firms and working for financial institutions (FI’s) for some time. A common complaint we hear from the tech companies is that the FI does not understand how to leverage their particular tool, while the FI says that they are not getting the value from the tool that was presented to them. A recent comment really brought this point to light; “it is one thing to say you “own” a bit of software, it is another to say it works, and it is quite a completely different animal to say that is works well”.
You bought it, but why? What are your expectations from the product? It starts with defining the problem you are trying to solve. In some cases, the problem you are trying to solve may be your customers’ problem. Several tools may do an adequate job of filling your need and a couple may do a great job, but to determine the right choice you need to know what you expect as the end result. The end result is not that it achieves expected ROI and hurdle rates. It is much deeper than that, what do you expect will be the tangible benefits. It will help us or our customer do “x” better than we can today. This is of critical importance throughout the next steps.
It works! Often, the software firm will provide baseline implementation support and guidance. Even with this support the FI needs to consider the impacts on ancillary services and how they will utilize the information provided or leverage the tool. The FI purchases a tool and relies on the vendor to provide implementation support and thinks that is where it ends. In actuality, that is just the beginning. Putting the software under the “tools” section if not enough, in fact that is probably the wrong thing to do with it.
It works WELL! If it a software product for your website, it should be integrated within the problem you are assisting the customer in solving. If they are authenticated, does it populate based on the data you have about the client? Now, it is time to revisit the “why” in why you purchased it in the first place. Who should be leveraging the data? Has it been integrated into their processes and mindshare so that it is leveraged to improve decisions? Have you looked at all the ancillary functions that could be impacted and improved by this purchase? This is when the real value begins, but also involves that most amount of analysis and design.
The opportunities abound with all of the new tools available to create a solution centric experience that provide your staff with deep insights and the ability to make smarter decisions. It is time to fully maximize utilization to realize the full benefits they can have on customer satisfaction, productivity and revenue.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
