Banking: News stories

IBM is reasserting itself and again setting the course in the IT market. The on demand vision has made the company more responsive to the needs of its customers. IBM executives make their case directly to CEOs of customer companies, emphasising the business benefits, not the technology specifics.

Korean firms need to focus on better management practices instead of investing only in product development. Korean pharmaceuticals, consumer products, and financial services firms all have tremendous opportunity abroad and should follow the lead of the electronics sector.

IBM has recently won several services contracts with financial institutions worldwide. HSH Nordbank, Plus Bank, Banco Guipuzcoano, Bank Boston in Brazil, and Venezolano de Credito have signed on with IBM for various IT infrastructure services.

Outgoing IBM Global Services group executive Doug Elix says growing the $40-billion organisation is a challenge that involves partnering with smaller integrators, a careful re-investment in the customer, and the creation of entirely new markets.

Banks understand the need for more business agility, but are inhibited by their rigid operational structures. To fully capitalise on new integration technologies and achieve an enterprise view of the business, banks should determine the business components that make their company tick.

The advance of CRM systems now enable companies to segment their customers based on their long-term value. While this will result in better service for upper-echelon customers, experts say the system will most likely benefit everyone involved.

Taiwan's financial services companies were told at a recent forum to consider outsourcing as the sector faces greater consolidation and competition. Banks should consider outsourcing non-core operations as a way to transform their business.

IBM Australia reported its financial results for the first time ever, after recently restructuring to become more aligned with its global parent. Analysts say that IBM has grown faster than the industry average in all three of its operations: hardware, software, and services.

IBM will grow faster than the industry average by expanding its market share and tackling new services opportunities, said CEO Sam Palmisano. IBM is specifically aiming to capture more large business process transformation deals with its large services arm.

Four new IBM Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) Design Centers in Austin, Beijing, Delhi, and Hursley allow customers to put together new SOA solutions for their specific needs. The goal is to make the business demands drive the technology.

Recent changes in IBM's executive structure emphasise its services and e-business on demand business strategy. IBM CFO John Joyce will take over as IBM Global Services (IGS) head, while Doug Elix, former leader of IGS, will now run IBM's sales and distribution operation.

Two new managed services for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that bring legitimacy to the market. The IBM Desktop Management Services and IBM Network Management Services are offered by IBM Global Services under the IBM Express portfolio.

IBM Global Services chief Doug Elix spoke with VARBusiness on the day before moving to head IBM's sales and distribution division. He said IBM's success is predicated on the success of its customers, and IBM Global Services' outsourcing business is growing strongly with that strategy.

A recent IBM Business Consulting Services global survey of 370 executives found more CRM success stories than in the past, as well as surprising attributes of successful CRM implementations. Employee concerns are actually the most important factor in CRM success.

Four new small- and medium-sized business (SMB) offerings from IBM simplify the maintenance and management of companies' back-end infrastructure. The services include network operation and management, infrastructure recovery, infrastructure management, and high availability.

A new IBM suite of managed desktop services for medium-sized companies brings the same on demand computing opportunities to smaller firms that larger enterprises can get. The new IBM Desktop Management Services constitute a total service solution, available on a price-per-seat basis.

Banks nationwide are moving rapidly toward digital check imaging, spurred on by cost-savings, customer service benefits, and government legislation. The elimination of paper copies promises to save billions of dollars in transportation, archiving, and processing costs.

In a new five-year contract, IBM intends to improve Sprint's customer service through customer segmentation, call routing, and handle times, IBM will also assume the management of many of Sprint's call centers. Sprint expects to save $550 million over the next three years.

IBM has new industry-specific software and services packages for the financial services sector, and plans to release similar offerings for other industries. The so-called Middleware Solutions target banking, insurance, and finance firms with offerings crafted in response to customer requests.

Deutsche Bank says it has done well in its infrastructure outsourcing agreement with IBM. The $2.5 billion, 10-year deal achieved its goals of reduced costs and access to new technology. Deutsche Bank is considering expanding the deal to cover software development and data centre infrastructure.

IBM has acquired Dresdner Bank's financial market database operation and is outsourcing to provide the bank with reference data on demand. The database was created for risk control purposes. IBM will resell the service to universal and investment banks, insurers, and asset management firms.

IBM and JPMorgan Chase are in year two of their IT outsourcing agreement, important because of its size and variable-pricing benefits. JPMorgan Chase is the largest beta customer for IBM's e-business on demand principles and technologies. In 2004, executing the integration strategy is primary.

Banco Populare di Milano has moved its branch platform to Linux and Web services architecture, a "calculated risk" that has paid off in lower costs, new scalability, and improved response times. IBM tested the feasibility of migrating to Linux, then developed a new Web architecture.

French bank BNP Paribas and IBM have formed a joint venture to manage the bank's IT operations, enabling BNP to retain access to key technical skills. The new arrangement will more closely match costs to demand, saving money as well as providing necessary capabilities.

IBM has won a Workplace outsourcing contract, which bundles together enterprise desktop services, from Zurich Financial. IBM will manage 65,000 "electronic workplaces." A Zurich spokesperson says the Workplace concept is attractive because employees are not tied to specific workplaces.

Small and medium businesses have a number of choices when it comes to CRM applications, and carefully chosen hosted solutions can provide significant benefits. SMBs were most interested in CRM and sales force automation software sold through the hosted model.

New IBM Online Business Management Services help large companies keep abreast of potential privacy issues. The services are targeted especially at the financial services industry to ensure the security of customers' personal information and to adhere to privacy regulations.

IBM and Fidelity Information Services will offer banks new IT infrastructure solutions. The new components fill a critical need in the financial services industry. New IT capabilities are necessary to provide customer-centric services, instead of account-based services.

IT departments in 2010 will look dramatically different than today, with operations focused on linking business units with IT outsourcing suppliers, according to Gartner research experts. Gartner vice president Ian Marriott says IT staff will be smaller in number and more business-savvy.