6 reasons every financial institution should improve their managed mobility strategy

Not very long ago, it was the post-crisis wave of regulatory reforms that served as the catalyst to disrupt the status quo. Today, the dizzying pace of advancing technology — blockchain, AI, wearables, cryptocurrency, IoT — is the new force driving change across the financial services industry.

From banking and capital markets to investment organizations, insurance and brokerage firms, financial services companies of every flavor and profile are looking to the latest technology innovation as the savior for improving efficiency, boosting profitability and controlling risk. Executives recognize the strategic potential offered by digital technologies to enhance the customer experience, attract and retain new business, improve employee and process efficiencies, and even create new business models.

Increasingly, mobile technology is considered the critical enabler for success in the current landscape because it serves as the connector between customers, employees, businesses and machines. That means creating, implementing and supporting a robust, reliable managed mobility solution must be on the forefront of mobility initiatives.

Not convinced? Here are six compelling reasons to consider investing in bolstering your managed mobility services strategy — or risk getting left behind by customers and the competition.

1. Wide-ranging efficiencies across people and processes.

All C-suite executives actively seek opportunities for increasing operational efficiencies. In fact, CIOs worldwide named improving business processes among their top three operational priorities this year, according to the latest Harvey Nash/KPMG CIO survey.

An effective managed mobility solution can have bottom-line impact, helping to control facilities management costs by efficiently supporting remote workforces and lessening travel expenses by reducing the need for in-person team meetings. With the number of remote employees growing, managed mobility services allow team members to work securely from anywhere. For your organization, this translates into a more seamless customer experience, enhanced employee productivity and stronger talent retention because you’re offering the flexibility and work-life balance highly valued by today’s workforce.

The implementation and/or improvement of a managed mobility solution very often is part of a larger analysis and benchmarking of back-office processes to uncover and address opportunities for further efficiencies such as increased use of electronic documents, automated routing and processing, and process automation via AI or machine learning.

2. Making data more accessible.

Financial institutions generate reams of valuable, mission-critical data. Depending on your organization’s focus, that data might include:

•Personally identifiable customer information

•Transaction data, such as time to complete

•Customer service call center volume

•Account balances

•Customer risk profiles

•Compliance data

In addition to securing that data (see #4 below), it must be accessible to those who need it for strategic decision-making purposes. When considering a managed mobility provider, ask how your prospective partners can facilitate more efficient capture, storing, reporting and sharing of important data to drive efficiencies, product or service innovations and organizational growth.

3. Creation of high-value customer experiences.

Thanks to both consumer powerhouses and disruptive digital natives, today’s financial services customers have had their expectations for customer care set quite high. Your organization is no longer being judged solely against other financial services providers. Instead, you’re competing against every recent brand interaction had by a client or prospect — which means your customer experience had better be simple, seamless and rewarding.

Delivering on these elevated customer expectations requires a significant, ongoing commitment to a robust technology infrastructure that is often driven by managed mobility services. If your organization is still rooted in legacy technology, your IT department is certain to have its hands full — and unlikely to have the resources to fully deliver on the additional challenge of an optimized mobile strategy.

4. Secure protection of sensitive data.

Financial services organizations are highly attractive targets for cyberattacks due to the nature of the data collected: credit card numbers, bank and investment accounts, and personally identifiable information (PII) such as social security numbers. What’s more, the continuing growth of interconnected devices, systems and networks creates new vulnerabilities almost daily and makes it difficult to detect data breaches.

A diligent corporate security policy only works if it’s actually enforced. Managed mobility services provides centralized governance of devices and applications, which simplifies an organization’s ability to apply, manage and enforce the rules it has in place — from passcode length and containerization to permitted and prohibited apps — without hindering workforce mobility, productivity and efficiency. This centralized approach also aids in maintaining regulatory compliance, housing the necessary reporting data organized in one easily accessible location.

5. Reduction in costs across the enterprise.

Communications services continue to be the largest IT spending category, according to the latest Gartner forecasts. The same data also suggests a shift in how budgets are spent: more on mobile solutions and software for enterprise applications and infrastructure and less on on-premise data center systems and associated services.

Managed mobility services can facilitate cost savings in several areas:

•Supporting the prevalence of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) programs, allowing employees to use their personal devices with the same advanced applications, experience and security as an employer-provided device.

•Streamlining the deluge of monthly mobile telecom invoices. Commonly, 10,000 devices can generate at least 5,000+ invoices depending on your carrier agreements and billing setup. At that volume, it’s next to impossible to track billing accuracy and correct errors. Global organizations must also factor in local currencies, taxes and other variables, which makes calculating true mobile spend inefficient and time-consuming at best.

•Allowing end users the flexibility and efficiency of self-service, while ensuring predictable costs and appropriate usage.

•Addressing proper usage and other issues throughout the lifecycle of the mobile device itself. Managed mobility services should incorporate best practices for device usage, including processes for ensuring security and dealing with technical issues such as upgrading, timely repair or replacement of a malfunctioning device.

6. Automation of certain compliance and risk management requirements.

Financial institutions live and breathe compliance and risk management; however, the conflux of changing rules and emerging technologies can make it difficult to keep up, creating a dangerous and potentially costly situation.

Rather than simply adding to your departmental headcount, mobility management services can help incorporate compliance and risk management requirements into employees’ daily workflow. When designing a managed mobility solution, consider automating tasks such as compliance tracking, data gathering, controls monitoring, data validation and risk monitoring.

Insourcing vs. outsourcing managed mobility services in the financial sector

Well-executed managed mobility services can deliver nearly everything a financial services operation needs to drive a competitive, customer-centric growth agenda. Naturally, these organizations typically look to their IT departments to make it all happen, while simultaneously reining in costs and supporting dated legacy systems.

To provide true visibility, efficiencies and savings, a managed mobility solution requires a substantial amount of resources and domain expertise — two items often in short supply at over-extended internal IT departments. Why is managed mobility such a demanding undertaking? Consider its end-to-end scope: device procurement and configuration, carrier account activation, tracking of use and expense, user help desk support, device repair and/or replacement, end-of-lifecycle tasks, and more.

Comprehensive outsourced managed mobility services from a trusted provider such as Samsung SDS are designed to free up internal resources, align IT and finance teams, and optimize mobile spend while controlling operational costs. Together, these benefits reduce total cost of ownership by driving immediate and significant cost reductions. The latest Harvey Nash/KPMG CIO survey found that 46% of CIOs already use outsourcing to fill skills gaps, which makes an outsourced managed mobility solution even more attractive because it doesn't burden an already-overwhelmed internal IT team.

Managed mobility services: Suddenly, an organizational imperative

Faced with increasing competition, compliance and regulatory mandates, financial services organizations must be prepared to move quickly if they expect to meet today’s customer, workforce and industry demands.

Having the right mobile infrastructure in place is critical, especially for those with global business operations. Beyond the infrastructure, these organizations also need an action plan for mobility management services to achieve the full range of mobile-related benefits. Find out how Samsung SDS can help your organization embrace its full mobile potential.