Banks’ digital transformation progress is vital to the retention of their product teams, it has been revealed, with 94% of product managers admitting they would leave their current position to work for a competitor bank with better technology and 92% claiming they would leave for a bank with more ambitious transformation goals.                                                             

These figures, revealed as part of a comprehensive research report by 10x, the transformational cloud-native SaaS core bank operating system founded by former Barclays CEO Antony Jenkins, provide insight into how imperative true digital transformation is for the survival of traditional banks. 

10x’s research has made it clear that banks must realign their focus on digital progression, driving transformation that not only attracts and retains valued customers, but ensures ambitious product managers are motivated and incentivised to stay.

Surveying more than 150 senior decision makers and more than 150 product managers, business analysts and project managers, across eight markets (UK, South Africa, the Nordics, Australia, New Zealand Germany, India and Vietnam), 10x’s study sought to understand the decision-making process within the world’s leading banks when it comes to digital transformation, specifically their ability to adopt new technologies, respond to market change, roll out new products, and prioritise resource appropriately.                                                  

Commenting on the findings, 10x Founder and CEO Antony Jenkins said: “The core aim of financial institutions should be to securely and responsibly take care of their customers. In order to do so effectively, banks require market-leading talent. As our findings reveal, institutions resistant to digital transformation have committed a significant oversight, as a lack of perceived innovation has rendered them vulnerable to talent shortages. It seems clear that those on the ground recognise the opportunities to be gained by adopting digital processes and can quickly acknowledge when progress is minimal. If banks don’t align with these expectations, employees in their masses are willing to seek roles at banks that do.”

These findings follow previous revelations unearthed by 10x’s research that found 63% of bank managers believe they have lost out on winning new customers due to slow digital transformation. Further, banks admit to losing 20% of their customers due to poor customer experience, a factor closely associated with agile new technologies designed to increase UX and customer satisfaction. Combined, research into customer and employee retention highlights the very real impact that slow digital transformation is having on financial institutions’ ability to remain competitive.                                                 

“In an environment where technology is shaping sectors faster than ever before, and upskilling workforces remains a constant challenge, banks must understand that they cannot compete long-term without powerful technology and the skilled workforces able to use it effectively”, continued Jenkins. “Digital transformation in the financial sector is no longer a preference, but a key to survival.”