IT outsourcing - a winning concept

Tieto has been helping Nordic financial institutions deal with changing times for decades. During the financial crisis in the early 1990s, it was Tieto which helped Finnish banks survive and later prosper. Tieto has helped banks develop their multichannel strategy, and has expertise in areas such as self service, mobile, contact centers, e-banking, payment cards and Unified Communications Services.

“International players will find it easier to compete against Nordic banks on their home turf.”

The European Union is the most integrated free trade area in the world, continually breaking down barriers to commerce and harmonizing regulations.

The drive to enhance competition has far-ranging consequences for Nordic banking, too. As the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) becomes fully established by 2012, and with increasingly sophisticated technology available, international players will find it easier to compete against Nordic banks on their home turf. So in the face of the threatened invasion of global players with deep pockets, how can these financial institutions both safeguard existing customers and target new clients in their own markets?

Evolve and prosper

Internationalization and technological development are here to stay. Unable to compete on price with global players, the pan-Nordic banks have to adapt their services in a way that makes them unique. The question is, how?

There are two ways to lessen the strain of change: collaboration and outsourcing. Tieto can help with both. With its experience of collaborating with banks and offering cost-effective and expert outsourcing solutions, Tieto is well placed to help firms face the realities of the new economic order.

Whether banks are offering their services via the phone, online or face-to-face, they know exactly what their customers are doing and can respond accordingly. This extra knowledge gives them the power to provide a service that is second to none. But this isn’t Tieto’s only area of expertise. With its history in the payments, asset management and trading markets, it is in a good position to help banks take advantage of some of the opportunities that it expects the industry to enjoy in the future.

Tieto can also help banks to focus on their key competences by assisting in application and infrastructure management. And it has the experience – and the evidence – to prove it.

Why outsourcing?

Cost, quality, risk and agility are four main reasons to outsource, though the indirect benefits extend beyond these. Almost every business sector can benefit from the wise use of outsourcing. Together with its customers, Tieto has made its mark by creating innovative ways to approach and implement outsourcing, providing the service layer that makes business and IT work together.

Growth and efficiency can be on the agenda at the same time. Economies of scale enable us to be cost-efficient and agile. When a company’s business development initiative requires changes to its IT infrastructure, Tieto can quickly make this happen with additional, flexible capacity, in the form of human expertise from our global delivery centres. This capacity can then be returned to the centres when the job is done.

Let the experience talk for itself

In 2008, OP-Pohjola Group, Finland’s largest financial services group, was eager to improve efficiency by centralizing the operating services of its banking and insurance branches. Tieto worked closely with the company to ensure the success of the project. The successful migration allowed OP-Pohjola to centralize the measurement and monitoring of both its banking and insurance operations. And with Tieto looking after the day-to-day running of the operating service, OP-Pohjola can now focus on providing the world-class banking and insurance services its customers have come to expect.

Ranked the best Nordic partner

With success stories like this, it is not surprising that a recent study conducted by sourcing advisor EquaTerra ranked Tieto as the best Nordic outsourcing partner. The 2009 research showed that 72% of respondents were satisfied with Tieto’s services. What’s more, the company was ranked top when it came to application management, with 67% of its clients saying that they’d willingly recommend Tieto as an outsourcing partner.

This helps explain why, time after time, when Nordic banks have required assistance to evolve and adapt their operations, they have turned to Tieto. As a trusted partner and advisor, Tieto clearly has the expertise needed to help banks face the future with confidence.

Tieto Financial Services offers value added IT services to banks, insurance companies and financial services providers. We are the leading IT services partner for the financial industry in the Nordics and one of the leading experts in capital markets, transaction banking and front end transformation areas. Our home market is the Nordic and Baltic countries, Russia and the UK.

We have 40 years track record of partnering with major Nordic financial institutions and helping them to meet the challenges of the market. We help our customers to run their business more efficiently, manage risks and boost growth opportunities. With 2400 dedicated employees we currently serve more than 400 customers within the financial industry. Those customers have chosen us for our deep industry knowledge and capabilities to deliver innovative solutions with a solid return on investment.

Tieto is an IT service company providing IT, R&D and consulting services. With approximately 16 000 experts, we are among the leading IT service companies in Northern Europe and the global leader in selected segments. We specialize in areas where we have the deepest understanding of our customers' businesses and needs. Our superior customer centricity and Nordic expertise set us apart from our competitors.

You will find us at:  financial.services@tieto.com
www.tieto.com/financialservices