Web Watch

Don't Overlook the Vendor's CFO

Feb. 7, 2007

***When I was called into Fiserv as an independent voice during a due-diligence meeting, I made a comment about [how] Fiserv had achieved a perfect record of buying solid companies. I felt an elbow in my ribs delivered by Fiserv's CFO, who said, "Art, we had one sour one." I have known two CFOs at Jack Henry & Associates. I once said that when these guys make their presentations to the securities analysts ... even the bad stuff comes out. Wouldn't it be great if the CIA followed the culture of bank tech vendor CFOs?

Techno-Complexity

Jan. 31, 2007

***Yesterday I bought a new car. I tried to buy a Ford, but the dealer didn't have the exact color or interior for me to look at. ... I went to a Toyota dealer and within 48 hours had the car of my choice down to the smallest detail. Ford doesn't have to hire McKinsey & Corp. to figure out why the company is failing. Technology is great only if you realize that using it is the goal, not the process of getting it.

The Depersonalization of Customers>

Jan. 29, 2007

***In the late 1970s, I worked on a contract on-site at Citibank. While standing in line at the employee cafeteria, I recognized CEO Walter Wriston. He turned to the guy behind him and asked why he was eating lunch alone. "Take a customer to lunch," he commanded. ... A few years later, Walter's successor, John Reed, proclaimed that Citibank was going to get 1 million customers, one at a time. Do you see the Citibank culture here? One at a time for lunch, for a credit card, for a DDA, for a mortgage, etc.

--Karen Massey, Senior Research Analyst, Consumer Banking and Credit Practice, Financial Insights, during the BS&T webcast, "Best Practices in Security, Compliance and Identity Management for Banks," available at www.banktech.com/events/ondemand.

"The terms 'business intelligence' and 'analytics' tend to be used fast and loose or interchangeably."

--Kyle Duckers, Senior Director, Oracle Financial Services, during the BS&T webcast, "Finding the Path to Profitability Through Corporate Performance Management," available online at www.banktech.com/events/ondemand.