How to Choose the Right Technology Partner

“76% of Financial Services senior executives intend to prioritize digital transformation projects to enhance customer experience,” states a recent study by McKinsey.

Banking services have had to evolve overnight to adapt to changing circumstances due to the pandemic-induced consequences of nationwide lockdowns and curfews. People can no longer freely visit banks and financial institutions in person. Many small and medium businesses are financially crunched and are grappling to survive.

Offering quick access to funds, along with flexible and agile digital lending platforms, is the need of the hour. In a dynamic world where technology is evolving rapidly, it’s a daunting task to keep up with the latest trends in the banking landscape, changing statutory compliance norms and regulatory guidelines. However, the right technology partner can help banks and financial institutions optimize and implement a technology infrastructure that creates value and facilitates better customer interactions.

Here are some aspects you must consider before choosing the right technology partner:

Expertise

Technology for technology’s sake is redundant in today’s world. Businesses need the right technology solution that solves real-world challenges and is meaningful and easy to use for their customers.

Given this, it’s not enough if the development company has expertise in specialized technologies. The right technology partner must possess relevant industry insights into banking and lending processes and should be able to guide them to the best solution that meets their unique problem statement.

A few indicators of the partner’s expertise could be the years of experience shared by their core team in the related field, previous implementations, and client testimonials. You can also assess how up-to-date the potential technology partners are with the latest technologies like IoT, AI, and Blockchain.

At Veefin, we have expert bankers on board with a deep understanding of lending businesses who design unique solutions that leverage cutting-edge technologies to serve clients of all sizes.

Time to Market

Time is of critical essence for all businesses today. The right technology partner should have solutions that have competitive time-to-market cycles. The development process should be transparent, efficient, and prompt to implement and launch.

Clarity on estimated timelines, visibility on backlog drafts, and pending scope of work can help lenders manage customers effectively in the transition. The right tech partner should provide banks with real-time access to a task-tracking system and other project administration tools to provide regular feedback on the implementation of sprints.

Credibility

The credibility of the partnering development company is vital especially given that banking systems work with sensitive data. Hence, before choosing a technology partner, banks and fintech must study the past work of a potential partner and validate references by reaching out to their previous clients.

Pricing

A product’s price shouldn’t be the only deciding aspect while choosing the right technology partner. However, it’s advisable to select the most cost-effective one.

An initial cheap deal might end up being pricier if there’s a constant need for fixes and maintenance. It’s crucial to choose a company that offers value and higher returns on investment in the long run.

At Veefin, we offer several flexible pricing structures for financial services companies to pay for the technology infrastructure as they reap returns from the latest technology instead of investing the entire capital upfront.

After Sales Support

A good technology partner would take ownership of the platform performance post-product delivery. They would have a dedicated support team to respond to all the queries and support requests even after go-live.

Banks and Fintechs can’t afford to pay the price of downtime as it may lead to severe repercussions beyond just revenue losses. Robust after-sales support is crucial to manage short fixes and reduce response time.

Beyond support and maintenance, it is vital to invest in flexible solutions that permit modifications as businesses progress and scale. The right technology partner should offer configurable solutions that evolve with growing companies by adopting an agile methodology for development.

Data Security & Compliance

In the financial services industry, data security and compliance are of top priority. As the technology gets older, it becomes more susceptible to security threats. Businesses should ensure that their technology partners add security patches to their code packages to ensure utmost safety.

Moreover, the right technology partner must provide confidence in protecting the data from cyber threats and keeping company databases safe.

Conclusion

Financial Institutions must take the time to evaluate potential partners before choosing the technology partner.

At Veefin, we can help you simplify your search. With over a decade of expertise in leveraging technology to scale various businesses, we can help you automate and transform your business processes and operations. Whether you’re looking to update your legacy technology infrastructure or invest in brand-new systems, our experts can guide you with the best solutions.

Written by Sreejith Nair, VP Growth Strategy, Veefin Solutions.