Final Tech Report HD - Flipbook - Page 28
Sometimes technology becomes a panacea. Companies,
especially in the banking sector, are often tempted to simply
‘throw technology at it’ but that's not the solution. This is
particularly true with some banks and insurance companies.
Many of these older, traditional businesses find business
transformations to be very difficult due to legacy technology
issues. These companies have their hands tied to a degree and
are not able to move as quickly as the nimble tech startups.
There are large financial and labour costs involved in moving
away from legacy systems so, again, the questions return. Is it
the right thing for our business? What's the return on
investment in terms of upgrading our technology? What does
that mean for us?
The financial services industry in Ireland has many tech
opportunities coming down the line with the development of
newer technologies such as artificial intelligence and
Blockchain. These technologies are becoming more readily
available and better understood in terms of how to best apply
them to financial products and services.
However, the place to start is always with knowing your
customers. Focus on them first and find ways to stay relevant
with your products and services and even with your business
models. Look for opportunities to put your company in
uncomfortable situations in order to grow, in order to learn.
Sometimes that means revisiting things that you had assumed
were to be true. You could assume that your customers are
happy whereas the opposite is true. Take time to revisit and
revalidate.
Get closer to your customers. What are they doing? What do
they want? What do they need? Ask these questions before
falling in love with the technology because, again, technology
is only the tool to help your customer.
Your main goal is your customer, not the technology.
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