DBS’ early adoption of cloud among financial sector players comes amid Singapore’s smart nation drive as well as a digital revolution that is redefining the banking industry. With the increasing threat posed by fintechs, the bank believes it must empower its people with a set of productivity tools that enable them to be more nimble and responsive to customer needs.
According to Michael Araneta, Associate Vice President for IDC Financial Insights Asia/Pacific, “Asia/Pacific super-regional institutions, like DBS, will set the pace. At least 80% of these FSIs[1] will run on a hybrid cloud architecture by 2018. These large players will clear the way for their peers and will set best practices in the location, control, ownership, and management of data in the cloud.”
Said DBS Head of Technology and Operations David Gledhill, “In the last few years, we have made good headway in creating a ‘fintech-like’ workforce that is focused on making the customer experience simpler and more seamless. Inculcating a digital mindset in our people aside, it is also important to give them work tools that break down silos, enhance collaboration, foster greater efficiency and facilitate working on the go. By leading the industry in adopting cloud technologies, our people can in turn deliver more customer value.”
Singapore is DBS’ testbed for Microsoft’s cloud-based productivity tool, with the bank piloting Microsoft Office 365 among about 1,000 staff today. The bank is targeting for its entire workforce to make a shift to cloud over the course of the year, when all 22,000 employees across 18 markets will be equipped with Office 365.
With Office 365, DBS is now able to empower its workforce to work collaboratively from anywhere, across PCs, tablets and smartphones. Across the organisation, meetings can now be conducted through Skype for Business, cutting down on travelling time. Enterprise social network, Yammer, provides a platform for employees to form closer communities and to collaborate across departments and locations. In addition, to encourage knowledge sharing across DBS’ network of employees, every individual will receive an increment of file storage capacity to 1TB per user on OneDrive.
Said Jessica Tan, Managing Director, Microsoft Singapore, “Microsoft is excited to partner DBS in its digital transformation as it leads the adoption of cloud technologies in the financial services industry here in Singapore. This leap will strengthen DBS’ mission to be Asia’s Safest and Asia’s Best as they build a more productive and collaborative workplace. In addition to discovering increased personal and organisational productivity, empowered employees connect and engage with customers in new ways as they gain new insights that will ultimately help the bank transform its products and services.”
Office 365 adheres to the highest security standards for cloud technology in Singapore and globally[2]. This is an outcome of Microsoft working closely with the financial industry – on both customer and regulatory fronts – for several years, as well as its commitment to the industry. Microsoft has listened to industry leaders and regulators about their requirements, concerns and desires for cloud-based services, and learned about the industry’s needs surrounding compliance, security, privacy and control. Through these, Microsoft ensured its cloud platforms and services provide a regulatory framework that meets those needs.
In recent years, DBS has been encouraging its employees to embrace a digital mindset through greater experimentation and experiential learning. For example, at DBS hackathons, staff work with startups to create prototypes that address business challenges. In 2015, more than 2,000 employees gained exposure to digital culture, agile methodology and other digital working concepts. Beyond this, DBS employees also get to work with research and analytics experts from A*Star and the Singapore Management University to develop innovative products and services.
Over the last five years, DBS has made significant investments in strategic technology initiatives to weave banking into the everyday life of its customers so that they can spend more time on people or things that they care about. For example, customers in Singapore can log on to digibank, a mobile app, using fingerprint and check their account balance with just one swipe. In April, DBS also launched India’s first mobile-only bank that is branchless, paperless and signatureless. Digibank in India combines a set of groundbreaking technology from biometrics to artificial intelligence.
1 Based on: IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Financial Services 2016 Predictions – APEJ Implications
2 Office 365 has achieved the Multi-Tier Cloud Security Standard for Singapore (MTCS SS) Level-3 certification for Office 365, the highest level of certification available, complementing the service’s global independent verification specified in ISO 27001, EU model clauses, HIPAA BAA and FISMA. To learn more about Office 365’s certifications in Singapore, visit https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/TrustCenter/Compliance?service=Office#Icons ”
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About DBS DBS - Living, Breathing AsiaDBS is a leading financial services group in Asia, with over 280 branches across 18 markets. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, DBS has a growing presence in the three key Asian axes of growth: Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank's capital position, as well as "AA-" and "Aa1" credit ratings, is among the highest in Asia-Pacific. DBS has been recognised for its leadership in the region, having been named “Asia’s Best Bank” by The Banker, a member of the Financial Times group, and “Best Bank in Asia-Pacific” by Global Finance. The bank has also been named “Safest Bank in Asia” by Global Finance for seven consecutive years from 2009 to 2015.
DBS provides a full range of services in consumer, SME and corporate banking activities across Asia. As a bank born and bred in Asia, DBS understands the intricacies of doing business in the region’s most dynamic markets. These market insights and regional connectivity have helped to drive the bank’s growth as it sets out to be the Asian bank of choice. DBS is committed to building lasting relationships with customers, and positively impacting communities through supporting social enterprises, as it banks the Asian way. It has also established a SGD 50 million foundation to strengthen its corporate social responsibility efforts in Singapore and across Asia.
With its extensive network of operations in Asia and emphasis on engaging and empowering its staff, DBS presents exciting career opportunities. The bank acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in all of our 22,000 staff, representing over 40 nationalities. For more information, please visit www.dbs.com.
