Key issues:

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• Key insights from Forrester Research on “The Future of Data Agility in The Financial Services Industry”

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• Technology-based personalisation of customer experience
• Fostering a culture of customer focus in businesses
• Streamlining complicated procedures by practising a design-first strategy
• Creating customised goods and services
• Machine learning and artificial intelligence in customer experience
• Data and technology infrastructure for seamless services

During a recent Radio Finance session, panellists shared their insights and analysis on how financial institutions improve customer experience, and explored future trends to expect. Industry experts on the panel included Martin Buchholz of CIMB Thai, Dipen Mehta of Microsoft and Frankie Wai of Temenos. The session was moderated by Chris Kapfer, director of research at The Asian Banker.

The session opened with observations that banks are enhancing customer experience in a more disciplined and holistic way. Mehta said that the focus is on human-centered design that prioritised customer journeys across different business lines, and that customer engagement involves the entire organisation.

Bucholz stressed the need for a diverse, non-banking customer experience team to spark innovation. He said that while the initial focus was on improving user interface and user experience, the scope of customer experience has expanded.

He said: “The team that we built is responsible for more than just digital user interface and user experience, and the tools for turning us into a more customer-centric organisation. Digital isn’t digital only. You always have the human interface in the customer journey.”

Wai explained that a design-first approach is all about simplifying complex processes. The Temenos Design Center of Excellence adheres to seven principles: customer centricity, intuitive design, human interface guidelines, visually-appealing designs, functional capability, innovative thinking, and consistency. He said: “These principles aim to enhance user engagement and foster customer loyalty.”

The panel also talked about the importance of having a unified data lake that consolidates data to enable effective analytics, and the need to combine structured data—such as risk appetite, and account details—with unstructured data from interactions across multiple platforms to achieve hyper-personalisation.

Wai added: “The platform needs to be able to capture all forms of financial and non-financial information available for a customer and make it ready as insights in a digital format to front-end users.”

The panel also discussed the potential of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) to further enhance customer experience. Mehta explained that Generative Pre-training Transformer or GPT-based AI technology, often used for chat interfaces, can also be used internally in business operations. Generative AI can provide financial advisors with summarised and actionable insights from extensive data, including from external sources, enhancing rather than replacing their job functions.

Mehta also talked about using AI for hyper-personalised marketing, combining transactional data analysis and campaign creation, and even customising email imagery based on customer profiles that can deliver a highly personalised user experience.

Guests include:

• Manohar Chadalavada, MD, Global Head AI, Ecosystems and Open Banking, Standard Chartered Bank
• Rottapron Ekabutr, EVP, Head of Consumer Digital Solution Division, Bank of Ayudhya
• John Howard D. Medina, Chief Operations Officer, PBCOM
• Lucose Erali, Executive Vice President, Head, Enterprise Technology & Operations, Security Bank
• Queenie Chan, Executive Director, Head of Strategy and Transformation, Standard Chartered
• Boon Khee LIM, MD, Group Head of Consumer Banking Technology & Core Banking, DBS Bank
• Sharon Khua, Head, API Technology Platform, OCBC Bank
• Daniel Li, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) – Personal Banking, Bank of China (Hong Kong)
• Melissa Craig, Head of Digital & Innovation, HSBC