The case, ‘Santander Acquires Abbey: The Jack Project’, applies a general strategic management focus to an analysis of the ‘Jack Project’, the Spanish banking group’s IT centric project to acquire Abbey. The case focuses on Jose´ Marı´a Fuster, chief information officer (CIO) and his perspective in leveraging IT to integrate Abbey. The following issues are explored: (1) the value of IT; (2) the generation of synergies in M&A; and (3) the prioritisation of IT-related options comparing two different realities. At the end of the case, students will examine how Parteno´ n, Grupo Santander’s core IT system, leveraged this acquisition and made an impact on the bank’s long-term market position.
Keywords: IS strategy; IT architecture; merger
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Banesto served as a test-bed for new technology and a business model for GS’s pioneering
IT applications.
Analysts7 proclaimed that Parteno´n was ahead of its time in the banking world. It provided ‘a single customer view’ by integrating all information in a unique database: staff in any part of the business could easily access customer data from another division. This meant they could assess credit risks more efficiently, resulting in more efficient operations, more secure loan management, and greater commercial capacity. All of a customer’s relationships with the bank were automatically linked through a single view of customer data. The database showed a complete banking history: mortgages, deposits, cash management, cards, brokerage services, insurance products, and so on were linked and visible to employees. Staff in one part of the business could easily access customer information from other divisions.
This led to opportunities for cross-selling and up-selling and for much more accurate assessment of credit risks. Moreover,
Parteno´n provided fine detail regarding customer needs, facilitated customer segmentation, and enabled service provision through multiple channels.
In 2004, Banesto developed and launched Alhambra, a system that further automated front office applications
(Customer relationship management (CRM), portals, etc).
According
The purpose of this article is to illuminate the need for any organization to have its IT strategy and business strategy properly aligned. While many organizations view IT and business alignment as an event – it is actually an on-going process, or continuous journey. Therefore, the main problem is that many organizations of today still hold these two principles (business mission & IT strategy) as two separate entities. However, in the Information Age – collaboration is key to capturing and retaining market penetration. To not have alignment with the IT and business strategy together is not a matter of want it is a matter of survival. This report will expand upon the need for business and IT strategic alignment as well as examine what happens in lack of a comprehensive plan. This will be done by examining the Vermont Teddy Bear company prior to and after the arrival of Bob Stetzel, the Vice President of Information Technology. This document will view it findings and make recommendations on the immediate and future operations of the company.
This article makes up Chapter 1 of the free, open access book titled, Information Systems: A Manager's Guide to Harnessing Technology, by John Gallaugher. Please ensure that you read the entire Chapter 1 of the book consisting of 3 parts (Part 1 Introduction; Part 2 Don’t Guess, Gather Data; and Part 3 Moving Forward).
At Tesco information technology is right at the heart of their business, as it’s essential for the business to run effectively and it also helps them improve their customers shopping experience by faster tills and stock checking systems. The use of IT is helping them to know what to sell, and also to help deliver the product to sell. Many different areas in Tesco put it to good use for example
In This case we see the typical problem which affect big Companies : the conflict between old style and new school of thought. We analyze Zara’s information Technology strategies and the diatribe between Salgado, The Head of the Department and Sanchez , his assistant,s concern upgrading the operating system and the implementation of a new IT system to fulfill the needs of a fast growing retail chain. Despite the fact that Zara is over performing in their core business and that they are not showing big problems inside their structure, this shouldn’t be seen as a pretense to dodge updating the Software. Here we
Tracy Lynskey, a recent graduate of New England College of Business, started at Bristol County Savings Bank (BCSB) twenty-five years ago as a teller. She has since risen in the ranks all the way to her current position of Branch Supervisor, which she has held for ten years.
Ally Bank is the subsidiary of Ally Financial Inc., which is a different type of bank, unlike traditional banks, All Bank does not have a lot of branches and ATMs, and it just has only two offices. Ally Financial Inc. was mainly used for General Motor vehicle purchases as a independent department of General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC). In 2009, GMAC renamed Ally Bank, Ally Financial offer financial services for insurance and purchases for automotive department, while Ally bank provide the highest-level service to customers at the lowest cost. So this cooperation make the Ally bank become the best one in their industry.
Lloyds Banking Group PLC is a financial institution that was formed after the acquisition of HBOS in 2009. Lloyds PLC are one of the largest banks in the UK by
Briefly explain the rise and fall of LTCM. What was the moral hazard issue the fed was worried about? How did they try and get around the moral hazard issue? What specifically was the Fed's role in the bailout? What roles specifically did Bear play and not play in the LTCM's life and death?
RBC Royal Bank is the fastest growing financial institution in Canada. It has gained a lot of success over the past few years. It stands in the first position among the top five banks listed in order of market capitalization on Toronto Stock Exchange as of November 2015. According to Henry John Heinz, “To do a common thing uncommonly well brings success.” (Henry John Heinz, (n.d)). RBC is following the similar strategy in its business. Savings account, Chequing account, and other retail banking products are offered by other banks too, but RBC offers the same products in its unique way. RBC has more of a focus on clients; it builds very good business relations with clients. Recruitment of its well-skilled employees is also one of
In the market today, business is showing growing interest to partner with IT to make sure they get the value for investing huge in technology. But, still there is a gap between the two departments and the IT folks think that they do not have enough support from the business to ensure the value is realized for the organization. A good example of deep integration of IT and business is the recent firing of the Apple maps chief. The ill-fated Apple maps was the failure of both the IT folks who couldn’t develop an efficient app for maps and also the business who couldn’t gather all the requirements and couldn’t manage the project to achieve the desired output. As a result, the Apple exec Richard Williamson was blamed and fired for the disastrous project and humiliation for the organization.
National Computer Operations (NCO) was an internal, monopolizing computer support entity that was faced with a challenge which was presented by the new banks chainman. The change, which was to take effect in 2 years, was that NCO could now market externally and all the internal departments could buy computer services from outside firms (Spector, 2013, p. 73). How was the company leader, Gar Finnvold, going to overcome these changes? The following essay will discuss a step by step diagnosis for the organization, as well as, who and what tools will be utilized. Additionally, the essay will describe who and what tools will be utilized.
When the CEO launches two new strategic initiatives requiring integration across all business units, the organization – whose IT decisions have been largely delegated to its business units in proportion to their revenue generating capacity – now faces the dilemma of how to prioritize its IT projects in order to support the new strategic “enterprise” vision.
EDITOR’S FOREWORD This article differs from all the articles CAIS published previously in that it is a debate on the nature of IT written by practitioners from three different points of view. It deals with IT Doesn’t Matter, a polemic written by Nicholas Carr, then editor of the Harvard Business Review in which he argued that the days when IT offered strategic advantage are long since gone and that managers
Both Inditex’s Chairman, Amancio Ortega, and its CEO, Jose Maria Castellano Rios a former IT manager, believe that computers and technology are imperative to the execution of the company’s strategy. Inditex does not have a CIO. Instead, a technology steering committee, including Ortega and Castellano Rios, is responsible for initiating new technology initiatives. Even with this high-level attention to the opportunities offered by information systems, no cost/benefit analysis of IT projects is undertaken and there is no formal procedure for determining which projects will be undertaken.
To facilitate the process of achieving this goal, JKB has strategic partnered in different capacity with various organizations. A good example is the selling of its 4.8 million shares, an approximate 4.8% of its market capitalization, to Odyssey Reinsurance Company, a strategic foreign investor. The investor possesses financial capabilities and competence needed to push the bank forward. Similarly, its partnership with Microsoft Jordan was also another strategic move worth noting. The partnership guarantees the bank continuance support and consultation on key technologies that are effective in supporting the bank’s activities. Adopting, integrating and aligning technology with the business strategy of an organization has been regarded as an essential source of organization’s competitive advantage. The role of technology in IT has particularly been emphasized (JKB 2011; Zawya 2011; Betz 2001).