• Hausser
• | June 17, 2013
• | Global Payments Knowledge
• | 1 Comments
• | Payments Systems, platforms, Spanish banks

Consolidation is not Data Conversion

In the last Hellenic Management Association (http://www.eede.gr) Banking Forum in Athens there was a very important discussion and presentation from Mr.Francesco Conte, Senior advisor in Accenture, Mergers & Acquisitions Expert and Mr.Francisco Garcia, IBM Global Business Services referring the proper approach of Consolidating for Banking Payments Systems.

The story of the Spanish banks indicates that while the first priority was the elimination of the gap, eventually after two years spent in planning and analysis they stated that there was never a gap so the merger and consolidation was almost a “Big Bang” data conversion to the final common environment.

However all the banks/processors have to understand that this is the ultimate moment for taking the appropriate future decisions.

1. First is the redesign of the structure of the forthcoming common platform for all products and applications.

All departments involved they have to review the procedures, the strategy and the current development (CSMs, internal applications, local functionalities) from the future common usage perspective for the new Bank.

2. Second is the clearance of the current environments. We are all aware of the “messy” situations during on site presence, being unable to restore the clean data picture. We need a total decision of cleaning the old environment in order to uplift only the relevant data in the new system.

There is a common practice saying “if it works don’t touch it” but this practice increases files,sizes,reports of the old systems and at the same time decreases performance, stability and maintenance and mostly the “management” of the old product.

3. Last but not least is the adaptation procedure for any “new brick in the wall”.

From my experience in the consolidations completed there was always a success story of adaptation and development of a new functionality for the customers based on an existing product adjusted properly.

In PAYX all the consultants have been inspired with those rules trying to follow them for all our customers having in mind that the best for the customer is guidance, support and advice with all secret details instead of a blind and insufficient consolidation procedure. We are here to ensure all the banks with consolidation plans in progress that our on site presence, support and advices will be under only one scope:

Understand the current system requirements but most important is to understand the forthcoming functionalities adapted to the new market being able to follow all new products and help the customer to achieve this smoothly.

As mentioned in my current on site presence from a Senior IT Manager:

“You are the new blood that runs in our veins”

Do you want to feel the same?