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Introduction

A project management methodology is a way to assist project managers in guiding their teams, managing tasks, and fostering effective collaboration among team members. It comprises of a collection of principles, tools, and techniques designed to plan, execute, and oversee these projects. In this blog, we will take a look at the main methodologies in project management across the world and explore the best ways to learn these approaches in the field.

6 Key Methodologies in Project Management

• Agile model

Agile project management is a methodology emphasises on ongoing collaboration and iterative progress. It operates on the principle that a project can be continually refined throughout its lifecycle and can swiftly adapt to changes.

• Waterfall model

The waterfall methodology is a project management approach that emphasises a linear progression from beginning to end of a project. It is often used by engineers that rely on careful planning, detailed documentation, and consecutive execution.

• Critical Path Method (CPM)

The Critical Path Method serves two primary functions, identifying the essential tasks in a project that significantly impact its duration and helping project managers to create an efficient schedule ensuring the project is completed on time and within budget.

• Scrum

Scrum is an agile methodology used to guide teams through the iterative and incremental delivery of a product. Often described as “an agile project management framework,”. Scrum emphasises an empirical process that enables teams to quickly, efficiently, and effectively adapt to changes.

• Hybrid Approach

A hybrid approach leverages the flexibility of Agile with the structured planning of Waterfall, providing a balanced framework conducive to manage modern, complex projects.

• Lean Six Sigma Methodology

Lean Six Sigma is a process improvement methodology to eliminate the inefficiencies in the organisation’s workflow by identifying the causes of waste or redundancy and developing solutions to address them. It is a fact-based, data-driven philosophy of improvement that values defect prevention over defect detection.

Learn More About the Future of Project Management

Project Management methodologies are used by project managers to manage the projects in a structured manner. Any methodologies can be utilised as per the project’s requirements, complexities and organisational culture.

To learn more about it, check out our programme, Generative AI in Project Management at – Generative AI for Project Management in Financial Services – CFTE.

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In early 2020, FT Partners published a report titled ‘The Rise of Challenger Banks: Are the Apps Taking Over?’

Challenger banks—alternatively, neo banks—are known as such because of how their business models seek to challenge the status quo within the financial sector. By reinventing customer experiences and utilising inventive technology, challenger banks have effectively placed pressure on stagnant financial incumbents within this constantly evolving industry.

Undoubtedly, founding and running a challenger bank is no easy task. Inspired by our previous post about ‘Financial Incumbents vs. Challenger Banks’, we at CFTE decided to conduct our own analysis into the founders of renowned challenger banks and their respective backgrounds. 

In visual A, we have compiled a list of major challenger banks from around the world and the backgrounds of their founders. Our methodology in driving this research has been to focus on estimated valuation and total funds raised. Additionally, we have sought to include challenger banks from different parts of the globe, for a more holistic and diverse overview.

Interestingly, we noticed a pattern. As shown in visual A, 55.5% of the banks have at least one founder that comes from a ‘hard’ science education background. Namely, physics, engineering, computer science and such. In visual B, however, it shows that out of 9 of the challenger banks we compiled, 5 (55.5%) of them have founders that hail from a previous consulting background.

In a different vein, out of 9 challenger banks, there are 18 founders in total. 44.4% of the founders have a consulting background, while 33.3% of them have had former experience working in a bank/challenger bank. Notably, 38.8% of the founders come from a university background of business management and finance.

From the data we compiled, a university degree in STEM and a former work experience in consulting seem to be highly prevalent within the founders. Could this possibly highlight that there may be certain characteristics an individual possesses which may attract them to working at a challenger bank? This could be an intriguing topic for further research.

Obviously, this does not in any way suggest that entrepreneurs coming from different backgrounds will not be qualified in running and/or founding a challenger bank. Oleg Tinkov from Tinkoff— one of the world’s largest digital banks—and Chris Britt founder of Chime who studied History at Tulane University are great examples that underscore this. Chime is also currently considered the leader in the US challenger bank space.

After-all, the beauty of Financial Technology is that it is a merger between two highly innovative and driven industries. And the very philosophy that FinTech is built on—being agile, disruptive and limitless—indicates that it is a sphere that not only challenges, but also rebels against the status quo. Post the financial recession of 2008, Challenger banks and FinTech startups started out as underdogs in the sector, now they have transitioned to shaping the industry. 

Nothing is impossible!

P/S: if you would like to have your challenger bank included in the list, kindly send your details to press@cfte.education and we will see what we can do. 

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Latest Posts:

• From AI Experimentation to AI as Usual: What It Takes to Scale AI in Banking
• From AI Pilots to Responsible Adoption: What Financial Services Needs Next
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• What Singapore Gets Right About Building an AI-Ready Workforce
• AI Agents Are Getting Wallets. What Does That Mean for Payments?

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A LinkedIn post by Chad West, the Director of Marketing and Communications at Revolut went viral.

It is easy to understand why—in the battle of digital banking these days, customer centricity as a competitive advantage has been all the rage. It is a popular narrative, of course, namely that challenger banks are rapidly encroaching on the financial industry territory and leveraging the agility methodology to win.

As shown from the post in diagram A, with regards to the number of [online] clicks needed to create an account, the results are fairly self-explanatory. Revolut is in the lead with an impressive 24, followed by Starling Bank (38) and Monzo (45). In terms of high-street banks, Lloyds ranks at 4th place, beating Barclays by a mere 5 clicks. HSBC places at second to last (99) with First Direct bringing up the rear. (120)

A cursory overview of the results indicate that not only are the top 3 places dedicated to challenger banks, First Direct requires 5x more of what Revolut takes to open a bank account. 

The question is: Does this signal the death of the traditional incumbent?

While Diagram A was sourced from Chad West’s Linkedin account, the experiment itself was actually carried out by Built for Mars. You can read the original post here.

Undoubtedly, customer centricity in digital banking is important. The UX journey should be seamless, fast and intuitive. Being mobile-friendly is significantly important as well. Inspired by Built for Mars’ findings, CFTE has decided to put our own spin on it.

Being a global education platform started in London, we know that challenger banks are big in the UK. But we have also witnessed the importance of digital finance in Asia, so we decided to include banks from Singapore and Hong Kong. And we added France to see how UK banks would fare compared to their continental peers.

Let’s look at the findings. Overall, there were 24 banks from 4 different countries. The results are astounding.

Results

In Built for Mars’ experiment, Revolut seemed the clear winner, triumphing over Starling Bank by 14 clicks. However, as you can see in diagram B, Singapore’s OCBC bank has managed to shave an additional 3 clicks from its user experience, placing it as first place with just 21 clicks. In fact, YouTrip is also ranked tied with Revolut in 2nd place at 24 clicks with UOB and DBS claiming the 3rd and 4th place with 25 and 27 clicks respectively.

Let’s focus on the top 10 places—OCBC to Monzo. What’s amazing about what we found is that not all of them are challenger banks, on the contrary there are quite a few incumbents which fare much better than some challengers. 

And it’s worth noting that Singapore’s retail banks have been able to keep up with the rapid innovation in finance.

What needs to be said regarding the importance of customer experience has already been well-articulated by Built for Mars.

Customer experience is no longer just a competitive advantage, it is a business necessity. 

However, what our findings reveal is that—it is not only challenger banks that can have good customer experience, retail banks are equally equipped to not only compete but do better. Of course, with regards to Singapore banks, spearheaded by the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s’ efforts, the nation of Singapore has been channeling a large portion of their efforts and resources into creating a smart financial centre through FinTech and innovation. As a result of this, retail banks in Singapore have had to pivot, transform and continuously innovate to maintain their relevance during this digital-focused era.

This also proves that traditional banks should not be complacent and relegate themselves to being ‘invisible pipes’ as financial technology startups take over the reins. DBS is a great example of this. In 2008, DBS was known colloquially as ‘Damn Bloody Slow’, their ATMs often had a long line of disgruntled customers and their consumer ratings were at an all-time-low. However, in a very short period, DBS managed to turn the tide around. In 2019, it became the first-ever bank to be awarded with the title ‘Best Bank in the World’ by three major publications.

What was the secret to their success? Digital transformation, pure and simple.
The concept of FinTech startups—alongside PSD2 and Open Banking—was piloted on the idea of introducing competition into the financial industry and traditional banks need to start giving challenger banks a run for their money. After-all, healthy competition encourages innovation and innovation encourages further innovation. Win-win.

Li-Ann.

Leverage the opportunities of Fintech with CFTE’s online specialisation

Learn the Foundation in Fintech from industry leaders and start leveraging the opportunities of digital finance. Through the courses, you will gain an understanding of the new business models and emerging technologies to start implementing them in your own organisation.

This specialisation is not taught by traditional lecturers. But by true digital finance experts who lead the way in today’s finance. Our courses are “For the industry, by the industry.”

Methodology

In order to carry out the above presented research accurately, we followed the following criteria: 

Specificities per country: 

It was necessary to have someone who is a permanent resident or citizen of the given country to open the online account, in order for the research to be possible and to avoid any extra clicks potentially caused by opening an “international” online bank account.

Furthermore, opening an online bank account differs in each country when it comes to AML and KYC procedures. In order to open French online bank accounts, providing a valid address amongst others demands more clicks than the equivalent in Singapore, where the government regulatory system “MyInfo” provides permanent residents and citizens with an “online identity” that can be automatically input into their new online bank account (more info here).

Therefore, the regulation and digital advances of each country played an important role in the capacity of incumbents and challengers to offer faster services to their customers. 

Overall methodology:

CFTE based its methodology on 3 main criteria: 

First, we started counting the number of clicks from the online page where the account creation process begins. 

From there, all clicks required to complete the process were noted down. For example, the number of clicks required to enter passwords, full name and address, including the confirm and proceed tabs at the end of each submission. 

Secondly we made sure every online account we created was for someone who is currently employed, and thirdly, we requested a card to be paired with the online account in all cases. 

That allowed us to follow the customer journey from incumbents to challengers, across countries and outline the differences amongst them.

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2020 has thrown a curveball at organisations, businesses and individuals alike. As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, national quarantines have been implemented across the globe, forcing high-street retail stores to shutter down and companies retreat to a ‘working from home’ modus operandi. 

Inevitably, this situation has poised several challenges. The most significant being, how can companies pivot online whilst seamlessly continuing to serve their clients and consumers?

CFTE—short for, The Centre of Finance, Technology and Entrepreneurship—is a global education platform that aims to equip financial professionals with the necessary skills to remain competitive in a rapidly changing industry. With offices in different metropolitan cities around the world, CFTE partners with Fortune 500 companies to build their knowledge in Financial Technology, whilst simultaneously supporting their digital transformation process.

Despite the current systematic uncertainties, CFTE’s mission remains the same. Namely, to upskill learners and ensure that they are well-positioned to embrace FinTech 2.0. In order to maintain the standard of quality that CFTE prides itself on, our team has worked tirelessly to adapt. 

CFTE has achieved a lot since the start of March

Understanding that most of our community members and clients are also transitioning to an online set-up, CFTE has successfully moved our physical campus to a virtual campus. Beyond its signature online courses, by utilising digital tools CFTE has been able to offer Fintech conferences, keynote panels, workshops and live courses online during these uncertain times

We wanted to ensure that our learners are still able to access our content and connect to our ecosystem remotely, thus, we launched 2 weekly events—’FinTech Wednesday’ and ‘Inspiring Women Leaders during COVID-19’. Every Wednesday, from 1200 to 1300 hours UK time, CFTE brings together global experts to discuss topics that are currently shaping the financial technology industry. Some of the topics previously touched upon include: ‘How will Fintech be affected by COVID-19?’ and ‘AI in Finance: Use Cases and Applications’.

‘Women leaders during COVID-19’, on the other hand, entails a series of engaging presentations at CFTE’s virtual campus, where women leaders share about their experience of managing their teams and leading successful businesses while being at home. Taking place on every Tuesday at 1200 hours to 1300 hours UK time, the event will also include a networking session, allowing participants to mingle and connect. Some of the speakers that we have hosted include, Tan Ching Ching, Director of The Sandbox at Ngee Ann Polytechnic and Caroline Stockmann, Chief Executive at the Association of Corporate Treasurers.

In terms of online courses, we have our signature courses ‘AI in Finance’ and ‘FinTech Foundation’, we are also focusing on launching new programmes, catering to the current demand that we see in the industry. At the beginning of the year, CFTE began filming for our new courses that were scheduled to launch in 2020. Despite the geographical constraints we are currently facing, we have remained undeterred and will proceed with releasing ‘Open Banking and Platforms’ and ‘Regulation Technology’ as planned.

In the meantime, we are also currently accepting applicants for our Extrapreneurship programme, in partnership with Neat, a Hong-Kong based challenger bank. Designed for individuals looking to launch their own FinTech start-up or build a career in digital banking, participants will experience a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with a rapidly expanding start-up, whilst learning about innovation frameworks from successful FinTech founders. Perfect for those looking to join the exciting world of entrepreneurship. 

Join CFTE at our virtual campus today:

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Latest Posts:

• From AI Experimentation to AI as Usual: What It Takes to Scale AI in Banking
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• What Singapore Gets Right About Building an AI-Ready Workforce
• AI Agents Are Getting Wallets. What Does That Mean for Payments?

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As one of the largest Fintech hubs globally, Singapore continues to show great initiatives to both support players in the industry and to promote innovation and competition from digital banks and Fintech startups. 

Thanks to measures taken by governmental institutions and the collective Fintech community, Singapore continues to lead and set even higher standards for other hubs worldwide. Initiatives such as the MAS Green Finance Investments Plan, where up to US$2 billion will be invested in public market green strategies, or the internationally acclaimed Singapore Fintech Festival, with 60,000 participants and over 550 speakers in 2019, can give you a small glimpse as to why Singapore is ahead. 

With the accelerating disruption evidenced by new Fintech companies and innovative projects within traditional banks, an increasingly high number of finance professionals are seeking to expand their knowledge on all things Fintech. Here’s a list of some of the best Fintech courses to take in Singapore this 2021:

1. CFTE – Fintech Foundation Course

The Fintech Foundation Course is an introductory course to learn about Fintech and digital finance from CFTE: the Centre for Finance, Technology and Entrepreneurship. It targets finance professionals, entrepreneurs, and technologists – both company-sponsored individuals and/or self-sponsored individuals. It has been designed in collaboration with 4 senior lecturers and 16 industry experts from across finance, to give a comprehensive breakdown of main Fintech trends in a simple and concise way.

Advantages:

• Taught in an easy-to-digest manner by 4 senior Fintech lecturers who have lectured at Singapore Management University, Imperial College London, Oxford University and The University of Hong Kong.
• Industry insights from 16 top experts working in Fintech, including the Global Head of Bank Research at Citi, Global Head of Innovation at HSBC, CEO of Ping An Technology, and many more.
• The course is accredited by the Institute of Banking and Finance in Singapore (IBF), as well as ACT and CPD in the UK.
• Be part of a global community of over 70,000 professionals and entrepreneurs.
• Online events and free online lessons with key people in FinTech to stay updated.

Senior lecturers:

• Huy Nguyen Trieu (CEO – The Disruptive Group | Co-Founder – CFTE | Associate Fellow – the University of Oxford)
• Andrei Kirilenko (Director – Centre for Global Finance and Technology | Imperial College London)
• Janos Barberis (Founder – Supercharger | Head of Entrepreneurship – CFTE | Research Fellow – Hong Kong University)
• Dan Liebau (Founder – Lightbulb Capital | Instructor Fintech & Innovation – Singapore Management University)

Key Statistics:

• 40,000+ Learners Enrolled
• 4 Senior Academics
• 16 Fintech Guest Experts

Level: Beginner

Cost: SGD 28.89 for all Singaporean citizens and PRs, thanks to the IBF Standards Training Scheme (IBF-STS) which provides an extensive 95% subsidy to company-sponsored individuals and self-sponsored individuals. FREE as you claim the remaining amount with your Skillsfuture credit.

Certificate: CPD Accredited Certificate of Completion, IBF Accredited

Study Structure/Method:

• Course Format: 100% Online
• Course Access: 6 months access to content from the start date
• Course Model: Instructor-Led

2. CFTE – Fintech 360 Programme

Summary: The Fintech 360 Programme by CFTE is an online course designed for those hungry to learn, but with little time to spare. The programme is perfect for anyone from students, financial professionals, non-techies and those looking to learn more about fintech. Fintech 360 helps one build a fundamental understanding of financial technology with short 15-minute daily courses to fit the learner’s busy schedules. The programme will cover topics from Fintech, Payments, AI, Open Banking and RegTech, through a variety of formats, whether it be video lessons, interviews with experts, quizzes, real-life case studies or reading material.

Advantages:

• Bite-sized Courses: You can easily fit in 15 minute bite-sized courses into your your busy daily schedule
• Learn form top executives: You will gain knowledge directly from leading experts like Anne Boden, CEO of Starling Bank, Rob Frohwein, CEO & Co-Founder of Kabbage, Jean-Philippe Desbiolles, Global VP for Data, Cognitive & AI at IBM, among other leading experts.
• Gain all-rounder Knowledge: This programme will help you cover all the fundamentals of Fintech, AI in Finance, Open Banking, Payments, and RegTech
• Learn to apply technologies on real projects: The course will help you build the right skills to identify the technologies that influence the provision of fintech and financial services, and be able to confidently apply such technologies appropriately and effectively
• Detailed case studies: Be able to evaluate the applications of technology in financial services through relevant and detailed case studies

Key lecturers:

• Anne Boden, CEO of Starling Bank
• Rob Frohwein, CEO & Co-Founder of Kabbage
• Jean-Philippe Desbiolles, Global VP for Data, Cognitive & AI at IBM
• Shameek Kundu, Former Chief Data Officer at Standard Chartered and Head of FS & Chief Strategy Officer at Truera
• Ayesha Khanna, Founder & CEO of ADDO AI
• Mellisa Guzy, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Arbor Ventures

Level: Beginner/Intermediate

Cost: Start learning for free with a 7-day Free Trial on CFTE’s THINK platform

Certificate: On successful completion, you will receive a sharable badge that certifies the completion of the course

Study Structure/Method:

• Online self-paced with 30 days worth of learning content.
• On starting the programme unlock bite-sized 15-mins videos everyday.
• Go beyond traditional learning by interacting with experts and learners with forums and discussions. 

3. SMU Academy – FinTech: The Future of Money, Markets and Banking

This 2-day module will help learners understand how a design mindset can help to create new value in the financial services sector. Participants will be able to study new technologies that are shaping FinTech business models, and how these models can be set up within regulated finance organisations. It offers fundamentals of Design Thinking to be applied to creative problem solving. This module forms part of the SMU-CPA Australia Finance Game Changer Series.

Advantages: Participants will be able to earn 14 CPD Points awarded by CPA Australia when they attend this module

Trainers:

• Daniel Liebau, Founder of Lightbulb Capital
• Derek Ariss, Head of Innovation Education at Lightbulb Capital

Guest Speakers:

• Andrea Hadju-Howe; Partner, Antler
• Alexandre Kelch; CEO, Onchain
• Zennon Kapron; Founder, KapronAsia

Level: Intermediate 

Cost: SGD2140.00* (as low as SGD242.00* after maximum funding)

Certificate: Certificate of Participation issued by Singapore Management University

4. NUS – Leveraging Fintech for Business

This executive program will cover topics from emerging technologies to business model innovations, advanced analytics and digital strategies. You will acquire a better understanding of the rapidly evolving Fintech landscape and how new technology can impact pre-existing business models, through seminars, discussions, and case studies.

Advantages: Presential classes and designed for leaders and managers in financial institutions and related organisations

Programme Co-Directors:

• Jai Arya, Advisor to the Dean, NUS Business School
• Jussi Keppo, Associate Professor and Dean’s Chair, Analytics & Operations; Research Director, Institute of Operations Research and Analytics

Teaching Faculty:

• Neo Kok Beng, Adjunct Associate Professor, Marketing
• Tuan  Q. Phan, Assistant Professor, Information Systems, School of Computing
• Ernie Teo, Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Dept of Analytics & Operations, School of Business, NUS

Guest Speakers:

• Chris Boncimino; Senior Vice President, Head of Innovation & Design, Asia Pacific Visa Worldwide
• Sopnendu Mohanty; Chief FinTech Officer, Monetary Authority of Singapore
• Mikko S. Niemelä; Chief Executive Officer, Cyber Intelligence House
• Carlos Quaderi; Enterprise Director, Microsoft Asia Pacific
• Joydeep Sangupta; Senior Partner McKinsey & Company
• Robin Speculand; Founder & CEO, Bridges Business Consultancy Int

Level: Intermediate  Cost: SGD 3990 excluding GST. With GST, SGD 4,269

5. SP – FinTech Fundamentals Programme

This course is meant to provide a comprehensive understanding of some of the key concepts, business models and technologies of the FinTech and Blockchain sectors. It seeks to aid participants in pursuing a career or progressing their trajectory in  emerging areas in the Financial Services industry. Through exploring the necessary Fintech knowledge and set of skills, it will enable students to better understand the digitalised finance services industry. Some of the technologies studies will include Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, Cloud Computing, Big Data and Machine Learning.

Advantages: It will be imparted throughout 60 hours split into 12 sessions of presential classes and the final project consists of a hackathon to assess the knowledge gained across the different modules in this programme.

Level: Applicants should have a Polytechnic Diploma or Degree in Information Technology, Business or any other relevant disciplines. Applicants should have working knowledge on FinTech and must have a Polytechnic Diploma or Degree in Information Technology, Business or any other relevant discipline.

Cost: Ranges from SGD387.20 to SGD3424.00 depending on applicable discounts  

Certificate: Certificate of Performance (electronic Certificate)

6. SUSS – Graduate Diploma in Financial Technology

Offered by the School of Business at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) this diploma aims to help finance professionals gain knowledge of Fintech and upskill themselves to be able to meet work challenges presented by emerging technologies, arising disruptive business models, and changes in processes, products and applications which are shifting the financial services industry. Please consider that applicants must be a Singapore citizen, permanent resident or a resident in Singapore (e.g., Employment Pass holder) in order to apply.

Advantages: Students who have graduated with GCFT are entitled to course credit recognition when they further enroll into GDFT and MFIN programmes, in alignment with the nation’s emphasis on stackable credentials. Also applicants with social outreach or volunteering experience have an additional advantage.

Level: Bachelor’s degree required  

Cost: $14,124 for Singapore Citizens and PR’s ; $16,948.80 for Other Residents 

Certificate: Graduate Diploma

7. IFF Training – Understanding FinTech & Cryptocurrencies Training Course

The course is designed to provide a comprehensive overview for people either working in or interested in innovating in this space creating products and access to services supported by technology. The course will also cover blockchain, digital signatures and cryptocurrencies and the underlying mechanisms. 

Advantages: Course module is completely virtual and will be uploaded weekly, so that learners can go at their own pace, whilst an instructor will still be available to provide assistance

Course Faculty:

• Petros Geroulanos

Level: Intermediate  

Cost: £1799 plus VAT = £2158.80

Certificate: CPD Certified

8. Nanyang Technological University – Master of Science in Financial Technology

This masters programme is hosted by the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences. The curriculum provides participants with the necessary FinTech skills for understanding the transforming finance industry landscape. Built on AI, data science, and information technology, the focus for this master is in the emerging technologies that are disrupting the finance sector, including automation and blockchain tech.

Advantages: 

• Prospective Singaporean students for this course are eligible for the Financial Specialist Scholarship (FSS), offered by the Institute of Banking & Finance.
• Includes an internship or research-based project as part of the curriculum

Level: Bachelor’s degree is required  

Cost:

• Singapore citizens: S$35,000 + prevailing GST
• Singapore Permanent Residents and International Students: S$ 55,000 + Prevailing GST

Certificate: Graduate Diploma

Which is the best fintech course for you in Singapore?

When choosing the right course for you, there are plenty of points to evaluate. It will truly depend on each learner, and the convenience, price range, level of education, and quality you are looking for. 

If you are more advanced and looking to further your higher education, the masters programmes would be the best option for you for a Fintech programme. If you are looking for something more short term and easily accessible to begin with, one of the online courses will be a better choice.

One thing is certain: it is vital to learn Fintech to progress in the banking and finance sector, and Singapore is supporting this training now more than ever with its COVID-19 care packages. 

If you want to begin learning today about Fintech and ensure you are gaining a solid foundation, waste no more time and check out CFTE’s Fintech Foundation Course. Subsidized by the IBF, participants are offered 95% off the original course value. You can also build your fundamental knowledge in fintech through short daily courses provided in CFTE’s Fintech 360 programme, which you can start learning for free by starting your free trial on CFTE’s THINK Platform.

Another CFTE course subsidized by the IBF, is our AI in Finance Course which is for anyone interested in AI applications in finance.

Start learning about Fintech today

When it comes to learning, there is no second to waste. Start learning about Fintech today with our expert-led course. Singaporeans and PRs get it almost for free!

The post Best Fintech Courses in Singapore in 2023 appeared first on CFTE.

Introduction

This article is based on the keynote speech presented by Jean-Phillipe Desbiolles at the CFTE’s Virtual Campus event, namely – “AI in a post-COVID world: Rupture or Acceleration?”. Jean-Phillipe is IBM’s Global Vice-President for Data, Cognitive & AI – Financial Services.

In light of the current unprecedented times, this article aims to assess the trajectory of AI adoption in the financial services industry, alongside shedding light regarding the process of which AI implementation is carried out within businesses seeking to digitally transform. 

What is AI?

To recap, let’s first look at the concept of Artificial Intelligence. It is difficult to pinpoint exactly what the definition of AI is—everyone has their own variation.

According to a Deloitte report, the non-technical definition of AI includes the following.

Artificial Intelligence is a suite of technologies, enabled by adaptive predictive power and exhibiting some degree of autonomous learning, that dramatically advance our ability to: 

1. Recognise patterns 
2. Anticipate future events
3. Create good rules 
4. Make good decisions 
5. Communicate with other people 

Alternatively, a technical definition that we can offer is that artificial intelligence most resembles a Neural Network is system software that works similar to the tasks performed by neurons of a human brain. In other words, Artificial Intelligence refers to the ability of a computer program or a machine to think and learn. 

To illustrate, we can look at the AlphaZero study that showcased an AI algorithm that was able to beat the strongest available chess engine (Stockfish) after only 4 hours of self-play. 

AI in Finance: Rupture or Acceleration?

Pre-COVID 2020 predictions

In 2019, a report by IBM: Roadblock to Scale identified that 2020 would be the year that companies scale to scale their AI and data capacities to further transform their business processes. Namely, the industry has matured to a certain point of growth, bypassing the former stages of experimentation and initial adoption. 

For this to happen, there are 3 factors that need to be achieved:

1. Organisations have to redesign and build the necessary operating models to scale their AI and data capacities. 
2. Organisations have to transform and adopt the appropriate data foundations by redesigning robust DataOps and a data platform. 
3. AI needs to be trusted, transparent and explicable.

The report states that 75% of EU businesses are already implementing AI and 47% of them plan to have AI deployed across the business. However, organisations have stumbled upon a range of barriers in their AI adoption, namely, a lack of skills (37%), data complexities/silos (31%), a lack of the right technical tools (26%). 

Further, trust has also become a critical issue. For a seamless integration of AI with business processes, 78% of respondents state their need to be able to trust that their AI outputs are reliable and accurate whereas 83% require an explanation behind every output produced by AI. 

Post-COVID predictions

On an AI and data perspective, this global health crisis impacts banks and insurers on 3 levels:

1. Client experience
2. Workflow
3. Culture

Of the late, we have been bombarded by advice from health experts regarding ‘the new normal’. Namely that, prior to a vaccine being completed, individuals are advised to adapt to the new normal of increased hygiene, social distancing and wearing face masks in public. 

On the other hand, however, for AI in a post COVID world, the new normal will largely consist of acceleration.

For example, for client experience post-COVID, consumers would expect an increased end-to-end digital user journey, which leveraged AI and data to improve seamlessness, simplicity, personalisation and security.

In terms of workflow, COVID19 has highlighted the need for operational continuity and resiliency. Thus, this has made AI and data redesign of intelligent workflows the latest business process re-engineering. Some examples include: robotic process automation (RPA) and learning process automation (LPA).

Post-COVID culture on the other hand, will witness an increase in remote working and/or working from home. Following this, there will be a demand for remote work guidance and governance, as well as additional tooling and training to cope with the changes in client experience and workflow. 

Real-case examples of scaling AI and data capacities include: machine learning models increasing accuracy for OCR, insurance claim and credit scoring by 20-40% and AI chatbots for an enriched CRM.

Thus, COVID has only served to accelerate the adoption and scaling of AI in finance.

Roadmap 

Operating model to scale AI and data within an organisation

1. Innovation: Identify, assess and prioritise new use-cases
2. Industrialisation: Training and development of new AI solutions
3. Assets: Identify reusable blocks and facilitate the acceptance of these solutions by users
4. Continuous improvement: Accelerate and industrialise the creation of cognitive solutions
5. HR: Attract, retain and reskill talents. Enable adoption and change management

Acceleration key points

1. Rethink the whole user experience: Be holistic, don’t think in silos and prioritise simplicity
2. Integration is the true value: It is only through true integration can there be an effect on business performance
3. Place human beings at the centre of everything: Continuous learning for employees is a priority. If organisations’ employees do not reskill themselves accordingly, the digital transformation will not succeed fully.

Looking to future-proof your organisation?

CFTE’s bespoke programmes are crafted with leading experts from the largest global universities, organisations and startups – curated for the industry, by the industry. We specialise in digital transformation, and our signature programmes include AI in Finance and Fintech Foundation. They cover topics of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), data analytics, Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and more. CFTE is also currently working on developing new programmes on Open Banking and Regtech, get in touch to learn more.

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Latest Posts:

• From AI Experimentation to AI as Usual: What It Takes to Scale AI in Banking
• From AI Pilots to Responsible Adoption: What Financial Services Needs Next
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• What Singapore Gets Right About Building an AI-Ready Workforce
• AI Agents Are Getting Wallets. What Does That Mean for Payments?

The post AI in Finance: Rupture or Acceleration appeared first on CFTE.

You asked, we answered! CFTE is partnering with Gillian Cribbs, an Executive Coach, to launch an online course on Coaching for Personal and Professional Development.

Just a few weeks ago, CFTE hosted a session in partnership with Gillian, which touched on the importance of personal development and leadership during crisis situations. After the event, we received some valuable feedback from our community members about the structural uncertainties that many of us are currently facing in our professional careers. 

Achieving your leadership potential

From the insights we received, one thing seems clear. In times like this, many people are looking to find their purpose, learn to develop themselves, and coach others. Undoubtedly, personal development is a lifelong process and it is even more important now than ever before. It is a way for individuals to assess their skills and qualities, consider their aims in life and set goals in order to realise and maximise their potential. 

In the midst of the COVID19 chaos as well as the subsequent large-scale social and economic uncertainties, there is a very real need for people to be able to manage their teams well. Further, this is a time that thoroughly tests our personal resilience and inner strength we need to be adequately prepared on how to weather through this. Not only is there a need for strong leaders, but people also need to be able to lead themselves, and you can only be a good coach when you are able to coach yourself.

At CFTE, we believe that great leaders are made, not born. Inspired by our mission to empower professionals, we have partnered with Gillian Cribbs to design ‘Coaching for Personal and Professional Growth’. This course has been curated for those who seek to improve their leadership skills and develop themselves holistically. This course will enable participants to learn how to leverage uncertainty to their advantage. In times of crisis, there are always opportunities to grow and develop. If you’re looking for opportunities but unsure about where to find them, this could be the moment you to step up and accelerate your career. 

Tram Anh Nguyen, Co-Founder of CFTE has said: “We are thrilled to launch this course e with Gillian to help people to develop their leadership skills. We are creating this course in line with CFTE’s mission to empower professionals and we hope that it will help them with dealing with the current challenges”.

Taught by a leading expert

With a Masters in Organisational Psychology from the University of London, Gillian Cribbs is a seasoned Executive Coach with 18 years of coaching experience in the banking, financial and professional services sectors. Her research focuses on leadership during crisis situations and how organisations respond to disruption. Her clients include The London Business School and Said Business School, University of Oxford. She also sits on the CFTE Academic Board.

Huy Nguyen Trieu, CFTE’s Co-Founder has said: ”It’s an amazing privilege to have Gillian on this course. When I was in banking, she was my coach, and that truly changed my life. This is thanks to her that I had the right mindset to be a Managing Director at Citi, an Associate Fellow at Oxford, a blog writer – all at the same time.

I hope that others can benefit from the same experience.”

“Having Gillian as a coach truly changed my life. I hope that others can benefit from the same experience.”

Huy Nguyen Trieu, Co-Founder of CFTE and a Former Managing Director at Citi

This is a weekly course with 4 online sessions which will include interactive peer coaching sessions. Through a practice-based approach, participants will learn about coaching from a holistic perspective, alongside up-to-date coaching methodologies and best practices. Through this, learners will be able to extend their management styles and build a personal roadmap to coach themselves, their team, and their peers. 

This course has been developed specifically for senior leaders and managers who want to increase their ability to coach their teams effectively. Alternatively, individuals considering career changes might also find this useful, as learners will develop a keen sense of how to empower themselves and the people around them. Course participants can expect to grow their leadership skills to embrace new career opportunities as well as become a trusted ally by honing interpersonal skills.

For more updates, follow us on Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter.

Latest Posts:

• From AI Experimentation to AI as Usual: What It Takes to Scale AI in Banking
• From AI Pilots to Responsible Adoption: What Financial Services Needs Next
• What Do Payments Professionals Need to Know About Agentic Payments?
• What Singapore Gets Right About Building an AI-Ready Workforce
• AI Agents Are Getting Wallets. What Does That Mean for Payments?

The post CFTE partners with Gillian Cribbs to launch new Online Course appeared first on CFTE.