The Co-operative Financial Services group is integrating the IT infrastructures used by its various brands, to improve services for customers.
Work has already been completed on integrating the Co-operative Bank’s web site infrastructure, its 119-strong bank branch network and its Smile online bank. The company is now working on the system used by its general insurance business.
The aim of the project is to achieve consistency of functions between different business areas, says Gerry Pennell, chief information officer at Co-operative Financial Services.
‘We are trying to separate the customer-facing delivery elements from the product systems so that we can mix and match products more easily between the different parts of our organisation,’ he said.
‘From an engineering perspective, separating the front from the back end will make it easier to make changes, such as introducing products and packages.’
The platform is being built in Java J2EE using IBM Websphere and MQSeries to link the customer-facing components and back-office systems.
Benefits include improved reliability, process efficiency gains, a wider range of services for customers, and the ability to cross-sell products across the company’s various business areas.
The new platform is part of a strategy to create a single Co-operative Financial Services IT infrastructure, covering the Co-operative Insurance Society, The Co-operative Bank and Smile.
‘Over a period of years we will need common delivery channels, including in our call centre,’ said Pennell. ‘We are not there yet but that is the path we are going down.’
Having customer information in one place allows banks to get a better understanding of customers, says Bloor Research analyst Philip Howard.
‘Integrating data from different parts of the business gives a better idea of customer lifetime value and how risky a customer might be to give a loan to, for example,’ he said.
‘There are technology benefits, such as increased storage capacity from not having to maintain five different versions of customer information.’
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