To Partner or Not to Partner? That is the Big Banking Question

You’re a CTO at a bank and you need to rebuild your digital banking app. You ask yourself, “Do I hire an internal team of technology specialists or partner with an organization that’ll build the tech for us?”

What do you choose?

It may seem overwhelming to know which decision to make and, if you decide to go down the partnership route, who to partner with. Financial institutions are beginning to break out of the “you vs. me” mentality and are seeing that partnerships are actually just that, a partnership. They’re not a threat or a competition, they’re an opportunity for collaboration.

For this article, we’re going to focus on what it means to partner with an agile organization and how this type of partnership can benefit your financial institution.

First off, what do you mean by agile organizations?

Two words: Speed and results.

The banking industry isn’t traditionally known for shipping out products with agility, and understandably so. Banks have regulations and legacy systems in place, but establishing a partnership with an agile team will give you access to specialists who are accustomed to working fast and building something based on your customers’ needs.

A partner may be an external team, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a part of your team.

When considering partnerships, take both technical and team fit into consideration. 

You’ll be working closely together on potentially multiple projects and you want the same things: to do meaningful work, be a part of a team, have consistent communication on project updates, and make something that will cause a positive and impactful result to your organization. So why work like you’re two different groups when you’re working towards the exact same goals?

Should you ever hire an internal team?

Yes! If financial institutions are looking to create more enriched and engaging user experiences with their applications, they also need to hire the internal talent to work on this in the long-term.

The great thing about working with an agile organization is that they can look into what the next steps are for your app, see what you need to build and test, and make recommendations based on that. They’re not just an external team, they’re strategic partners.

Get over analyses paralyses and make decisions faster.

Working with external specialists gives you a new perspective on areas you may not have considered. When you’re working with many stakeholders within the same organization, it can be challenging to come to a firm decision in a timeframe that can get your project moving. Agile organizations are accustomed to making decisions fast and with data to back it up. Working with them will allow you to move along faster in your process to build a better application.

So, what do you choose? Hiring a team or getting into a partnership?

Both.

Partnerships with agile organizations give you the expertise and experience you need to find what direction to take your application. They can build it for you with speed, but you’ll need an internal team to work with the app on an ongoing basis.

If you’re thinking of taking the agile partnership route, at Aequilibrium, we work with companies to dig into what their customers truly want. We build a prototype around the customer research and test quickly to get real feedback directly from your users to incorporate into what we build, and fast. 

If you have any questions on if an agile partnership is the best route for you, we’d love to meet over a coffee and share more!

Aequilibrium is a digital design and software development studio. Speed, craftsmanship, and user experience are at the helm of our creations. Get in touch to work with us or to say hello—new friends are always welcome!

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