Pub. 5 2014 Issue 1

www.wvbankers.org 20 West Virginia Banker I hope it’s the latter, because that’s what big data will mean for those financial institu - tions that learn to harness its potential to track customer behavior—and marry it with activity. In doing so, they can take their volumes of existing data and drill down to discover many customer-centric ways of increasing profitability, whether bankwide or targeted to each individual customer. According to a September 2013 Gartner survey, 64 percent of business respondents either have already invested in big data technology, or will do so within the next 24 months—and the banking industry was among the top three spenders last year. Fur - ther, cumulative big data spending for the period from 2011 through 2016 is projected to top more than $232 billion. Clearly, big data has made the shift from a buzz term surrounded by lots of questions, to a mecha - nism for redefining the playing field. Financial institutions can leverage this new technology and its advanced analytics and predictive marketing tools to capitalize on big data, craft superior customer experienc - es and gain the competitive edge. Toward that end, automated solutions are emerging to help financial institutions draw powerful insight from their masses of customer data. Using such robust features as customiz - able dashboards and reporting functions, cross-application research capabilities, trend analyses and historical views, banks Big Data Reaps Big Rewards When You Harness It By Jason Young can gain a 360˚ view of their landscape and better predict which products, services and decisions will have the most positive effect on their bottom line. With big data solutions, the customer infor - mation is better organized and accessible, allowing users to analyze information— across functions and transactions, products and services—in any manner they choose. These tailored analytics can be saved, shared and accessed daily. In addition, dashboards provide at-a-glance views of an institution’s daily and monthly activities through trending reports and charts—and can even provide “what if” illus - trations. For example, a bank could deter - mine how its bottom line would be affected if 10 percent of its loans defaulted. But don’t expect these dashboards and analyses alone to increase profitability. Insti - tutions must implement them to their fullest potential and act upon the vital information gained to efficiently derive answers and make decisions that not only drive profitabil - ity, but also reduce costs. For instance, you can perform an analysis of your branches to determine when teller lines are busiest, and staff your branches accordingly. Or analyze whether a certain type of loan is likely to help—or hurt—your cost-to-income ratios. Big data can be your friend, or your foe. This year will set the tone for which institutions successfully examine their volumes of infor - mation to attract, retain and better serve customers—and rise above the competition. n When you hear today’s “it” term—big data—does it make you feel overwhelmed, or do you see an immense opportunity for growth? Jason Young serves as product manager for CSI NuPoint. He is responsible for overseeing CSI’s robust suite of business intelligence solutions, including Financial Dashboard and Rela- tionship Pricing. Jason holds a diverse banking background, having served as a credit analyst/underwriter as well as a commercial relationship manager prior to joining CSI. His experience gives him a unique perspective on the impact data and technology can have on profitability and success.