Preparing for the Next Surge: How GCC Contractors Need to Adjust Their Operating Models

As contractors in the GCC face shifts in the type, complexity, and size of contracting projects, they must adapt their overall strategies and operating models to the demands of the new environment. download (332kb, PDF) >

GCC Private Banking 2010-2011: Successful Growth Strategies After the Perfect Storm

To seize the $1 trillion opportunity in GCC private banking, banks will need to choose their cornerstones for growth, articulate sources of competitive differentiation, and select a distinctive strategic play. download (1.4mb, PDF) >

Opportunity amid Turmoil in Asset Management: Spotlight on Business Model and Capabilities

Asset management is facing a challenging and turbulent period. In this unsettling landscape, two characteristics are critical for success in asset management firms: a clear business model, and a robust set of underlying capabilities that go well beyond having a strong investment management team. download (300kb, PDF) >

Rapid Restructuring: How Banks Need to Respond to the Financial Crisis

The crisis has shaken society's trust in the financial system and has changed the banking landscape. Several factors led banks to take unprecedented risks. In addition, performance management systems did not always align rewards with long-term value creation. There are seven steps that banks must take to emerge from the downturn more resilient. download (376kb, PDF) >

Keep It Simple: How Banks Can Do Less and Deliver More

Banks have become overly complicated. This complexity has resulted in varying levels of customer service and inefficiency. In addition, complexity has undermined cost-cutting efforts. End-to-end simplification and a focus on activities that add value can help banks cut costs, enhance customer service, and improve customer retention. download (273kb, PDF) >

The High Performance Sales Center

Most banks have yet to take full advantage of the profit potential of their customer service centers. Banks can and must do a better job of molding their customer service employees into an effective revenue-generating sales force. That means rethinking the entire customer service center operating model. download (244kb, PDF) >

Redefining the Mission for Banks’ Call Centers

In an environment of falling revenues and profits, banks are looking to redefine the mission for call centers. Some are looking to reduce this channel's costs; others are aiming to make it a profit center; a number of banks are doing both. Either approach requires a deep understanding of and strategy focused on customer needs. download (266kb, PDF) >

Competing Successfully In Islamic Banking

In many markets, Islamic banking has evolved from being a niche offering into being part of the mainstream financial services landscape, with more Islamic financial institutions in the marketplace than ever before. Incumbent banks and new market entrants are facing vastly different market conditions and need to develop new sources of differentiation beyond compliance with sharia (Islamic law) to compete or remain successful in the future. download (985kb, PDF) >

Rebuilding the Operating Model for Credit Card Companies

U.S. credit card companies are being forced to consider changes to their operating models. Reactions that were common in past downturns will not suffice. Instead, these companies and the banks that own them must reduce excess capacity across functions, create shared capabilities with other card issuers, and provide third-party services. download (191kb, PDF) >

General Insurance: Getting Back to Basics

The credit crunch and resulting bank failures have created new worries for general insurers, with regulators demanding higher levels of capital. Insurers that manage to succeed in this challenging environment will be those that get back to basics: focusing on risk selection and pricing, slashing costs, improving effectiveness, and carefully managing capital. download (90kb, PDF) >

The Future of Life and Pensions: Lifesaving Solutions

Doomsayers are claiming that the life insurance industry is set to become the next victim of the credit crunch, but the outlook is not as poor as it may appear. Players that manage to reposition themselves in response to these six key trends are likely to benefit disproportionately from current market discontinuities. download (534kb, PDF) >

Thriving Amid Change: A Playbook For the Securities Processing Industry

Investment managers need securities processors to help them keep their costs under control and to handle services apart from the core management job. That investment managers are increasingly looking for help means securities processors should be improving their offerings in three ways: reengineering processes, automating services, and optimizing the use of their global facilities. download (293kb, PDF) >

Bringing Back Best Practices in Risk Management: Banks’ Three Lines Of Defense

At a small number of banks, a focus on basics prevented many losses. They benefited from a strong risk culture combined with a sharp focus on three lines of defense: top management and the front office, the risk management function, and audit. These lines of defense, staffed with capable individuals, are at the heart of effective risk management. download (250kb, PDF) >

Dipping into the Bear’s Honey Pot: Opportunities and Risks in The Russian Banking Market

Russia's financial sector is rife with risks: regulatory, political, economic, financial, and operational. For foreign banks that are able to navigate these risks, however, Russia represents a significant opportunity. Indeed, the opportunity may be greatest for foreign players that establish their footholds now, while the sector's uncertainty is at its height. download (375kb, PDF) >

Leading Through the Financial Crisis: Three Opportunities For the Chief Information Officer

Financial institutions are facing an unprecedented set of pressures, brought about by the recent upheaval in global markets. Those pressures have, in turn, created a new set of imperatives for IT departments in addition to their current priorities. To manage this balancing act, IT will need take a strong and distinct leadership role. download (264kb, PDF) >

Mind the Gap: Finding Where IT Skills Fall Short In Financial Services

Recruitment alone is not the answer to IT talent shortages: To address these issues, Booz & Company has developed a framework that can identify shortfalls in IT skills and capability targets based on the overall business strategy. This framework also provides a road map for improving IT teams' efficiency, value, and return on investment. download (353kb, PDF) >