Nedbank yesterday evening opened the doors of what will be the first of many Innovation Labs for employees to explore ideas with a view to turning them into products for the bank's "clients of the future".
Nedbank CEO Mike Brown says the first Innovation Lab - situated in the heart of Johannesburg's business district, Sandton - comes after 24 months of planning and is a product of the bank's drive to leverage the digital era to improve its services and situation.
"The new offering will allow Nedbank staff to unleash their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to experiment with new technologies, trial their business ideas, and initiate product concepts," says Nedbank. The staff hub was launched to employees prior to the public opening yesterday and to date 1 500 staff members have used the facility.
The facility hosts some of Nedbank's latest technology investments, including Whispering Windows, a virtual queuing system, video banking, SmartBoards and broadcasting platform Microsoft Lync. "Banking is not as boring as most people think," says Brown.
Nedbank CIO Fred Swanepoel says the bank aims to spur staff to innovate better and faster. "By collaborating across Group Technology (GT) and Nedbank, and continuously improving processes, the goal was to find ways to land ideas sooner, better and faster."
Patricia Maqetuka, of Nedbank Group GT, says the ideas and products that stem from the Innovation Lab environment will eventually roll out to Nedbank's 500 branches countrywide. "We want this technology to eventually be available for all - and everywhere - whether you go to a branch in Pampoenstad or a branch in Sandton."
Initially, says Maqetuka, products like video banking will be taken into 35 branches as a pilot project for customer feedback - and then modified, if need be, accordingly.
Swanepoel says the initiative came about in 2011 - when GT started engaging with some 500 staff members in five technology workshops. "We identified three top focus areas to improve our execution and deliver on strategy, the key being innovation and creativity."
The staff "sandbox" also reinforces the bank's obligation to give its employees an empowering environment where they have the freedom to contribute to the bank's ultimate strategy and vision, he says.
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