The document discusses the challenges and requirements of front workplaces in financial services, emphasizing that different user groups have varying motivations and attitudes toward these systems. A study indicates many front workplaces do not effectively support all users, particularly management and back-office staff, leading to underperformance in achieving efficiency and revenue goals. The integration of tools must be tailored to user needs and easy to learn to enhance effectiveness and user acceptance.

1. Front workplaces in
financial services companies:
an industry view
Stefan Leuthold | stefan.leuthold@stimmt.ch | September 17, 2009

2. Contents
Motivations and attitudes regarding front workplaces
Different user groups with different tasks, motivations and attitudes
can be efficient and effective with a single front workplace
Front workplaces study 2007
Roughly one third reach their goals, but certain user groups are not
well supported, and many front workplaces are rather hard to learn
Current front workplaces, their advantages and problems
Choosing the right depth of integration is key to efficiency and
effectiveness
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 2

3. Different users of front workplaces in the financial services
industry have different motivations and different attitudes
User Motivation in everyday work Attitude towards front workplace
 Data storage ok, but it‘s too slow
Relation-  Respected professional
 Makes me look (and feel) stupid
ship  Proactive for clients I know well
 Don‘t need the tool for CRM!
manager  Recognition
 Admin stuff hinders my work
Back  I see all client data
 No errors in execution
office  It‘s too slow
 Pile of work gone
employee  I don‘t need most of it
CA  «Focus on reaching your goals!»
 Optimise team output
head  My main work is not supported
As seen in a study with 16 financial services companies, most companies‘
front workplaces have the same history: Many different (expert) tools
were integrated into a front workplace that is the same for every user.
Will the same tool be able to make those different user groups efficient?
Source: 381 qualitative interviews with front employees, their heads, and back office employees in three different companies
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 3

4. Different users of front workplaces in the financial services
industry have different motivations and different attitudes
User Motivation in everyday work Attitude towards front workplace
 Data storage ok, but it‘s too slow
Relation-  Respected professional
 Makes me look (and feel) stupid
ship  Proactive for clients I know well
 Don‘t need the tool for CRM!
manager  Recognition
 Admin stuff hinders my work
Back  I see all client data
 No errors in execution
office  It‘s too slow
 Pile of work gone
employee  I don‘t need most of it
CA  «Focus on reaching your goals!»
 Optimise team output
head  My main work is not supported
As seen in a study with 16 financial services companies, most companies‘
front workplaces have the same history: Many different (expert) tools
were integrated into a front workplace that is the same for every user.
Will the same tool be able to make those different user groups efficient?
Source: 381 qualitative interviews with front employees, their heads, and back office employees in three different companies
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 4

5. To make the different user groups efficient and effective, a
front workplace has to present itself differently to every group
Push structured
products for
PCS.
Top CA Backoffice Relationship Call center
management head employee manager agent
Front workplace captures interactions, knows relevant data
Corporate
client Private Client
Switzerland
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 5

6. To make the different user groups efficient and effective, a
front workplace has to present itself differently to every group
Competitor is main bank: Lowest I can offer is
Goals 2009: 2.05% if you consider us as main bank, else
Call center ok. 2.25%... Rest of the money: Structured products?
CAs pushing the
right things. Tell you typical ranges –
Push structured or transfer you to an CA
Ah, I see another mort-
products for or specialist?
gage case got delegated.
PCS.
Top CA Backoffice Relationship Call center
management head employee manager agent
Front workplace captures interactions, knows relevant data
Corporate
client Private Client Doesn‘t sound
Switzerland bad. ..
We have mortgage to
refinance: Conditions?
Former CA left.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 6

7. To make the different user groups efficient and effective, a
front workplace has to present itself differently to every group
Competitor is main bank: Lowest I can offer is
Goals 2009: 2.05% if you consider us as main bank, else
Call center ok. 2.25%... Rest of the money: Structured products?
CAs pushing the
right things. Tell you typical ranges –
Push structured or transfer you to an CA
Ah, I see another mort-
products for or specialist?
gage case got delegated.
PCS.
Top CA Backoffice Relationship Call center
management head employee manager agent
Front workplace captures interactions, knows relevant data
Corporate
client Private Client Doesn‘t sound
Switzerland bad. ..
Why isn‘t my Often one and the same
company using We have mortgage to
this bank!? refinance: Conditions?
Former CA left.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 7

8. Contents
Motivations and attitudes regarding front workplaces
Different user groups with different tasks, motivations and attitudes
can be efficient and effective with a single front workplace
Front workplaces study 2007
Roughly one third reach their goals, but certain user groups are not
well supported, and many front workplaces are rather hard to learn
Current front workplaces, their advantages and problems
Choosing the right depth of integration is key to efficiency and
effectiveness
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 8

9. Most company representatives believe their front workplaces do
not achieve their goals (more efficiency, more revenue, less cost)
«The front-workplace-related goals have been achieved.»
1. Efficiency gains in
marketing and sales 3 2 9 7
(n=18)
2. Increase in revenue
(n=16) 5 2 9 5
3. Less cost thanks to
IT synergies 10 1 4 5
(n=10)
Scale Neither disagree
No answer Disagreement Agreement
nor agree
Only a minority of company representatives say that the front workplace
really delivers on the originally intended goals.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 9

10. Most front workplaces provide good task support only for front
employees – management and back office are not well supported
«Our front workplace supports the tasks of our employees well.»
Front
(n=21) 1 7 13
Management
(n=21) 4 9 8
Backoffice
(n=20) 1 1 13 6
Scale Neither disagree
No answer Disagreement Agreement
nor agree
The front workplaces‘ potential is not fully tapped – although data would
be available, front workplaces lack data aggregation and/or functionality
needed on the management and backoffice level.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 10

11. According to study participants, the harder to front workplace is
to learn for front employees, the less it is accepted
Legend
Answers from
6
study
participants
«Acceptance 5
for our front
workplace is 4
r= –.7
(significant
high» correlation)
6: «fully agree», 3
1: «completely
disagree» 2
1
n=19
1 2 3 4 5 6
«completely «disagree» «somehow «somehow «agree» «fully
disagree» disagree» agree» agree»
«Our front workplace is hard to learn»
Resistance against changes and future developments stems in part from
users‘ fear of new features making the front workplace harder to learn.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 11

12. Contents
Motivations and attitudes regarding front workplaces
Different user groups with different tasks, motivations and attitudes
can be efficient and effective with a single front workplace
Front workplaces study 2007
Roughly one third reach their goals, but certain user groups are not
well supported, and many front workplaces are rather hard to learn
Current front workplaces, their advantages and problems
Choosing the right depth of integration is key to efficiency and
effectiveness
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 12

13. If one size does not fit all – how to build a front workplace that
is efficient, increases revenue, saves costs and is easy to learn?
Top CA Backoffice Relationship Call center
management head employee manager agent
Manage access and aggregation, provide the right user interfaces
Front workplace captures interactions, knows relevant data
Manage and track sales Store and track
and marketing effort Deliver customer needs
products or
services
Evaluate and display (or initiate delivery) Store and manage
real-time data customer info
Corporate Private Client
client Switzerland
Current front workplaces integrate five (for historical reasons different)
components into a seamless solution – often with a distinct focus on a
set of components that has its own strengths and weaknesses.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 13

14. Most current front workplaces have all/many of the necessary
components in place – but depth of integration does not fit
Manage/track
Scope sales/marketing
effort
Real-time
customer data
System
integration
for service
delivery
Store
and
track
Store and manage customer
customer info needs Time
Individual parts must «fit» together. This is very difficult to achieve and
needs consistent program management over five to ten years.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 14

15. Most current front workplaces have all/many of the necessary
components in place – but depth of integration does not fit
Scope
Manage/track Real-time
sales/marketing customer data
effort
System
Store and track
integration
customer needs
for service
delivery
Store and manage
customer info Time
Individual parts must «fit» together. This is very difficult to achieve and
needs consistent program management over five to ten years.
Stimmt AG | Front workplaces in financial services companies – an industry view 15

16. An efficient and satisfactory front workplace
does not happen by accident.
Stimmt.
Stimmt AG | Korneliusstrasse 9 | CH-8008 Zürich | +41 (0)44 562 10 10