Given the complexity of the financial sector, vulnerabilities to technology failures, third-party risks and cyberattacks are constant. In addition to investing time and energy to prevent these disruptions, organizations should prioritize building protective systems to mitigate problems if they occur. For financial institutions, operational resilience is key.
What is operational resilience?
Operational resilience describes an institution’s ability to adapt to and recover from unpredictable disruptions. This concept involves more than disaster recovery—it includes a strategic framework that anticipates threats and helps a company return to normal operations with minimal impact.
Operational resilience vs. organizational resilience
Operational resilience is not the same as organizational resilience. Where operational resilience focuses on maintaining critical operations during disruptions, organizational resilience refers to how a business evolves during change.
What does resilience look like in financial institutions?
A financial institution’s resilience is determined by its ability to avert, act, and recover quickly from a major event. Though the methods may vary on a case-by-case basis, the objective remains the same: to improve resilience across the organization and the financial sector at large. With the right tools and analysis, a financial institution can implement helpful plans and processes on what to do when such issues arise.
Tools for building operational resilience in banking
With the number of operational risks on the rise in the finance industry, leadership must put effort into their resilience efforts to continue to thrive, using methods such as:
- Rolling forecasts: Analyzing internal and external data with dynamic models to provide accurate updates in relation to ever-changing market conditions
- Liquidity visibility: Tracking cash flow across all entities to help treasury teams assess currency risks and funding needs
- Integrated compliance protocols: Introducing well-rounded protocols into finance workflows to ensure an organization remains aligned with updated regulations and policies
- Unified agility: Unifying processes, decision-making, and data across all involved departments to build a faster response
- Scenario testing: Continually testing plans against various scenarios to evaluate operational resilience and uncover potential vulnerabilities
How does operational resilience support growth in financial institutions?
Operational resilience does more than strengthen your business in times of trouble—it can be a key to support strategic growth. Where unprepared companies falter at the first sign of disruption, resilient companies take challenges or setbacks in stride. This frees up teams to focus more time and energy on innovation and future goals.
In the financial industry, continued progress is essential. Leveraging the technologies that support operational resilience can help streamline operations, improve efficiency, and enhance the customer experience. As banks consistently deliver on their commitments and strengthen their services, they build trust and foster greater customer loyalty.
5 ways to reduce the frequency of an incident in a financial institution:
- Architectural modernization: simplifying and updating outdated structures and systems to align with current standards
- AI-powered monitoring: artificial intelligence that changes how potential issues are detected and addressed before they impact customers
- Enhanced change management: adding more rigorous testing protocols to processes, automating tracking systems, and implementing comprehensive rollback plans in case of emergency
- Third-party risk management: treating third-party dependencies as branches of your own infrastructure by introducing regular audits and diversifying vendors.
- Comprehensive scenario-based testing: conducting frequent tests and simulations to identify possible vulnerabilities in operational resilience plans
How we help banks and financial institutions
Our expert business and management consultants support banks and financial institutions as they find new streams of revenue, bring innovations to market, and modernize their internal infrastructure. The original goal may be operational resilience, but our consultants always think long-term, creating strategic growth plans that unfold over time and evolve with your company. With our customer-centric approach, we help banks address and navigate their operational risks and position the organization for long-term growth.
Our operational resilience services for financial institutions
We’ve developed specific services to help you work through a financial institution’s operational risks and evolve as a business. When you partner with us, you’ll discuss the most relevant services to build your curated plan for resilience and strategic growth.
Operational resilience services and solutions:
CGI Credit Studio
If your credit management system is outdated, you may be experiencing drained resources and barriers to achieving goals. CGI Credit Studio seamlessly integrates with your existing systems to help modernize your credit operations. This cloud-based, event-driven software transforms the consumer’s credit journey using intelligent automation and real-time insights.
CGI Credit Studio for collections
CGI Credit Studio for collections directly impacts how an organization manages the entire debt collection life cycle, from the first intervention to end-result recovery. Using a combination of AI and automated workflows, this service is designed to streamline operations, enhance customer interactions, and improve efficiency throughout the process. In a digital-first world, this modern alternative to legacy systems is essential.
CGI All Payments
If you’re looking to add operational resilience to your payments infrastructure, CGI All Payments is a proven solution to support you. This modular, cloud-proven platform helps clients achieve their current and future payment goals, enables innovative payment services, and provides greater transparency at every step.
CGI Trade360
CGI Trade360 provides banks with software and infrastructure capable of powering their global trade business. Offered as a SaaS (software as a service), this service helps banks reach their full potential of traditional trade, receivables, and payables, all on a single, integrated platform that’s accessible around the globe.
Risk, regulatory, and compliance services
CGI’s Risk, regulatory, and compliance services empower banks to take proactive measures such as bolstering efforts against financial crime and fostering trust between customers, stakeholders, and regulators. Each framework is designed to keep pace with technological advancements and stay in line with updated regulations.
Improve your resilience; talk with a consultant today
Understanding operational resilience is the key to ensuring your financial institution is prepared for any challenge or disruption. Our business and management consultants use their experience and knowledge to better any banking business or financial institution in need of updates.
