Financial services companies are increasingly turning to cloud infrastructure and applications to support their growth and innovation while keeping costs low. This includes adopting new technologies that can help them meet customer needs and expand. Without a secure cloud environment, their success may only be short-term and lack a sustainable way to retain customers.
A study by BDO found that 97 percent of financial services firms were either creating a digital transformation strategy or had already begun their implementation. Of those 97 percent, more than 20 percent said that their company’s digital transformation was their top priority, but only 53% had completed the work.
Organizations that plan to leverage cloud software face challenges in their quest to grow and succeed, starting with selecting the right cloud provider. So, what are they really looking for?
Transparency in the Customer Experience
One of the biggest challenges financial organizations face is gaining the trust and confidence of their users. Now more than ever, customers have high expectations for their digital experiences and financial services organizations are expected to deliver safe, secure solutions. That said, financial organizations need their cloud providers to be transparent in their services and infrastructure capability—and this is non-negotiable.
In fact, 83 percent of financial executives note that improving their customer experience as the top priority in their long term business plans And the industry clouds the use will have a significant impact on their ability to do so.
Here’s how one project leader described it: “We were able to implement Workday in record speed without compromising on the quality of the build. Both parties of the project were very open and transparent in our communications and expectations, which led to a smooth rollout and a great level of trust throughout the whole process.” — Project leader with a global finance / banking / insurance organization implementing Workday with OneSource Virtual.
Financial services customers in Raven’s database have rated implementation partners who prioritize transparency as an 8.82 / 10 in comparison to the industry average of 8.44.
Scalability
Scalability is one of the primary drivers of digital transformation. The global financial services market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 26.87% through 2026, meaning that financial services organization will need infrastructure designed for growth and scalability. Fortunately, the cloud can do exactly that.
By taking advantage of industry cloud providers, financial services organizations have the ability to get to market faster, adapt their processes, and grow based on their customers’ needs without the barriers or unnecessary challenges involved with on-premise infrastructure. On top of that, the cloud opens up new integration capabilities that support growth and expansion for finance companies around the world.
One great example of scalability through the cloud is the implementation of UKG Time and Attendance for Driscoll’s with the help of Align HCM. Driscoll’s was previously using pen, paper, and motorcycles to deliver timesheets to account for work completed in its Mexico-based operations. After a successful implementation of UKG products, Driscoll’s is now able to scale its operations up and down to meet the seasonal demands of growing season—without the motorcycles.
Security
Any company with a financial product or offering needs to think about the security it provides to customers. Ransomware attacks rose by 62 percent from 2019 to 2020 and the monetary impact cost organizations over $29 million.
However, fewer than 24 percent of survey participants considered cyberattacks a top threat in their organization, indicating that financial organizations may need to revisit their existing security measures to understand their vulnerabilities and invest in solutions.
Ultimately, these security requirements will fall back to the financial organization itself, but industry clouds can take some of the burden off of the financial services organization by prioritizing security measures to exceed industry standards. This means ensuring there are strong processes and automation in place to identify malicious traffic and areas of vulnerability within the organization, along with plans on how to respond, should a malicious attack occur.
Building Trust
The most successful financial services companies in the digital age have learned to be customer-centric. And in simplest terms, financial services organizations want the same thing from their cloud providers as their customers do—transparency, scalability, and security.
It’s noteworthy that 68 percent of executives in financial organizations are prioritizing digital transformation, compared to 63 percent in non-financial organizations. That means cloud providers need to step up and make sure they’re checking the boxes of what’s most important to financial services organizations.
Putting a strong focus on transparency, scalability, and security will help build trust between the cloud provider and those who utilize their services, enabling both organizations to set themselves up for mutual growth and success.
