Digital banking is more than the ability to move money on digital channels. At Scotia Digital, the experience itself is a software product. And we’ve set up shop in a unique way to build and reuse those products globally.
“I think about software development as a trifecta of design, product and accessibility,” said Pamela Hilborn, Scotiabank’s SVP & Head of Design and Product, Digital Banking. “We’ve converged these three capabilities to create software experiences that are inclusive of everyone globally — for people of all types of abilities and considering the full range of human diversity. Design brings a strategic problem-solving perspective along with critical and creative thinking. Product brings the knowledge and relationship to the business and a holistic market perspective. And accessibility is the generator of innovation and inclusion.”
The integrated team embodies a global software-as-a-service approach. This means they aim to build digital banking software products that any part of the Bank in any country can adopt cost-effectively and easily. “The team will build on behalf of the global community who can then customize to the needs of their customers locally,” said Hilborn.
This global approach means accessible experiences will be available to more customers around the world. “Accessibility is designed and engineered into the product from the ground up,” said Hilborn.
In the past year, the Bank launched Bank Your Way, a global online information hub to guide seniors through the world of digital banking, and translated Help Centre articles into American Sign Language so that deaf and hard-of-hearing customers don’t have to visit a branch as before.
A combination of design, product and accessibility will bring banking to the customer — not the other way around. “Customers have the choice and we will bring our services to them. They can use their preferred channel to transact with us,” said Hilborn.
Enjoyed this story? Stay tuned for more from our Innovation Spotlight series, which showcases our leading-edge technology along the journey from code to customer. See our previous stories:
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In this first feature, we share how the Bank is powering local innovation and scaling it across borders