Nomination for BT's Agile Bank

BT’s agile bank has been nominated in the category of “most innovative financial services solution” at the Financial Innovation Awards 2008.

According to BT Design senior technical professional Iain Monteath, the award is the “icing on the cake” for the pan-BT team from BT Global Services and BT Design who have have been working together for the past seven years at Adastral Park customer centre in Suffolk.

Agile Bank is a key area for the finance customers who visit the Adastral Park Customer Centre, with more than 76 customer events including the bank in their agenda since April 2008.

“The best way for a customer to appreciate what technology means for them is to see it in context, so we built a bank,” said Iain.

“It’s more than a showcase - it’s not all about kit and gadgets. It’s about helping financial institutions see what a customer journey could be like if they employed technology to solve legitimate business problems.

“For some time now we have known that senior management in the financial sector help justify their decisions based upon what is in the BT agile bank. Being nominated for this award is the icing on the cake for us.”

Hot topics in the bank currently focus around video conferencing, biometrics and contact-less technology.

“We’re showing these innovations, sometimes years in advance - but that’s how long it takes to develop these things in to something you or I can use as a product,” said Iain.

The team now plans to build upon the success of the past seven years. Iain said: “We’re always improving the bank - nominations like this help to raise awareness and I hope that our internal and external partners reap the benefits.”

BT’s agile bank sits alongside other experience areas at Adastral Park’s customer centre - aligned to a number of market sectors including retail, manufacturing and local government.

BT Design customer facilities manager Rob Mayhew said: “We have found these ‘environments’ to be very beneficial in the context of a customer visit to the Park. Customers come to Adastral Park on a daily basis to speak directly to the experts that make it happen - these environments complement this activity beautifully.

“I would recommend to any BT person with a customer to contact the Adastral Park customer centre and see what we can do for you.”