Finance

Agile Transformation and Risk Management for a Banking Institution

Focus Areas

Agile Methodology

Digital Transformation

Risk Management

Business Problem

A prominent banking institution, which had always used the waterfall methodology, was facing substantial issues while implementing Agile methodologies in its asset management division. The banks faced internal reluctance to change and delayed product delivery. This limited their ability to meet market demands and provide customers with timely financial products.

Key challenges:

  • Absence of Agile Culture: The Waterfall methodology promoted isolated and slow, inflexible teams. Delays and inefficiencies followed.

  • Product Delays: The bank’s inability to offer financial products quickly was caused by a misalignment between development teams and business objectives. This affected its competitive position.

  • Risk management: As the bank carried out digital transformation initiatives, it became increasingly important to manage the associated risks.

The Approach

Curate’s consultants provided the bank’s asset management division with Agile coaching and Scrum practices to help the transformation to Agile. The project required intensive stakeholder management to address issues with operational disruptions, cultural shifts, and resistance to change, due to which Curate team continuously worked closely with the bank’s internal teams, current vendors, and external consultants. 

Key components of the solution:

  1. Discovery and Requirements Gathering: The Curate team began by thoroughly examining the client’s current processes and challenges by holding workshops to evaluate the present status of product development, risk management, and cultural preparedness for Agile adoption by collaborating with the bank’s internal project management office (PMO), IT teams, and external vendors.

  2. Agile Coaching and Implementation: Customized Scrum procedures and Agile coaching were implemented to guide the asset management division through the Agile transformation.

    • Agile Coaching: The benefits of Agile techniques, especially in enhancing cooperation, transparency, and product delivery were introduced to cross-functional teams. Team alignment on key Agile principles was ensured through workshops and training sessions.

    • Customized Scrum Practices: Scrum procedures were put into practice that were specially designed for the asset management division, including daily standups, sprint planning, and iterative development. These procedures decreased bottlenecks, increased team pace, and promoted better communication.

  3. Integrating Risk Management: Integrating operational risk management into Agile methods was essential given the bank’s strict regulatory environment. Curate’s team collaborated with the client’s compliance and risk teams to integrate risk management procedures into the Agile workflows.

    • A risk assessment framework was implemented to guarantee that risk reviews were included in every sprint. This enabled the customer to monitor hazards in real time and make necessary modifications on time.

    • Ongoing Risk Monitoring: Curate assisted the bank in creating dashboards and risk-tracking tools that were integrated into the Agile workflow. These techniques gave insight into possible hazards and enabled proactive problem-solving before the issues escalated.

  4. Tracking Progress with Metrics: Curate’s consultants employed key performance indicators such as team velocity, burn-down charts, and sprint completion rates to track how well the Agile transition was working. These indicators enabled the leadership team to assess progress and make informed decisions.

  5. Change Management and Training: To guarantee long-term success, the team created a change management strategy, which entailed training the internal teams on risk management strategies, digital transformation tools, and Agile best practices. Training materials, practical workshops, and frequent check-ins were offered to reinforce the Agile culture change.

Business Outcomes

The transition from Waterfall to Agile, led by Curate Consulting, resulted in transformative improvements for the Banking Institution:

Quicker Product Delivery


The bank was able to shorten the time it took to build new products thanks to the Agile transformation, with the product delivery cycle (in days) being cut down by half. The bank's capacity to provide new products to the market that aligned with consumer and competitive demands improved significantly.

Decreased Operational Inefficiencies


Agile techniques improved team cooperation, reduced manual interventions, and streamlined the bank's internal procedures by eliminating pointless steps.

Better Risk Management


By incorporating risk management into Agile processes, Curate made sure that the bank's adherence to legal and regulatory obligations was maintained during the transition. The time to address identified risks was reduced from 30 to 10 days and the number of risk incidents during development was reduced by 66%. As a result, operational and strategic risks were effectively managed.

Sample KPIs

Here’s a quick summary of the kinds of KPI’s and goals teams were working towards**:

Metric Before After Improvement
Product delivery cycle (days) 90 days 45 days 50% reduction
Sprint completion rate 70% 95% 25% improvement
Operational inefficiencies High Moderate 40% reduction
Risk incidents during development 15/year 5/year 66% reduction
Team velocity (story points/sprint) 20 35 75% improvement
Time to address identified risks 30 days 10 days 67% faster
**Disclaimer: The set of KPI’s are for illustration only and do not reference any specific client data or actual results – they have been modified and anonymized to protect confidentiality and avoid disclosing client data.

Customer Value

Curate Consulting’s expertise in Agile methodologies not only improved operational efficiency but also enhanced the banking institution’s ability to serve their customers more effectively:

Improved Customer Experience


The bank improved customer retention and satisfaction levels overall by increasing the pace of product delivery and providing its customers with quicker access to new financial products and services.

Conclusion

The bank was able to seamlessly transition from Waterfall to Agile thanks to Curate’s Agile coaching and risk management services. The team drove digital transformation and ensured long-term operational efficiency by bringing about a culture shift and improving risk management in a complicated regulatory environment while accelerating product delivery. The team’s dedication to providing customized solutions helped the bank meet market demands as well as its business objectives.

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