Client Situation
Our client is an Istanbul branch of a bank based out of the GCC region established in 1985. Today, our client focuses on expanding its commercial banking operations while continuing to provide corporate banking services. Cedar has previously engaged with the client across multiple strategic initiatives. In the case of this project, Cedar worked with the client to assess the use of its business information systems and IT operating model to identify opportunities for savings on its IT spend and investments.
Cedar’s Approach
In this program, Cedar was mandated to conduct a quick diagnostic review of the IT investments and operating model and provide recommendations for reducing its overall IT spends.
- Assessed the current operating model of the IT function.
- Reviewed the client’s IT spend across four areas in the form of system, process, people, and technology and identified the area of fixed and recurring IT spends.
- Reviewed key contract and related commercial terms with major IT vendors and service providers.
- Conducted over 20 key interviews across the bank’s leadership team, IT team and supplier.
- Developed an understanding of key issues and potential opportunities to reduce costs.
Outcome
Recommend key initiatives to reduce cost of IT footprint, across both direct and indirect cost heads, from a strategic standpoint projecting 6-8% of potential savings in the short term with 16-20% in the long term spanning over 1 year.
- Ensured alignment of recommendations to COBIT (Control objectives for information and related technologies) framework for IT governance.
- Identified 20-30% of potential cost reduction by maintenance and upgrades due to consolidation of the application architecture.
- Identified an atypically high budget for the client, as opposed to industry practices.
- Recommended an IT organisational structure based on system/applications rather than IT functions.
- Suggested virtualization as an alternative to current physical applications to reduce costs and upgrades requirements.
- Laid out both quick wins and long-term steps to be targeted for completion.