EY's Agents of Change

Winning in the next wave requires a willingness to challenge the status quo and an appetite for bold action. Our latest Agents of Change podcast delves into the impact of digitalization on the financial world and the three primary predictions that will act as catalysts for change and lead to the reframing of the consumer financial services industry. Join EY’s Roger Park and Nikhil Lele, EY Americas Financial Services Digital Transformation Leader, for an in-depth discussion of key findings from EY’s NextWave Consumer Financial Services research report.

Recent research suggests that innovation isn’t necessarily at the top of most board agendas. For those of actively engaged in driving innovation and transformation both within firms and for clients, this may not come as a surprise. As companies focus more and more on their innovative and transformational journeys, and on incorporating technologies such as AI to facilitate those efforts, there is an even greater need to ensure that management and executive leadership are on the same page when it comes to understanding the strategic importance of these initiatives as well as the strategic risks associated with these efforts.

Episode 8: Diversity and inclusion as accelerators of innovation. Join EY's Roger Park as he and Trusha Mehta, EY Americas Financial Services Diversity and Flexibility Leader, discuss how a diverse workforce directly affects a company's ability to innovate, as well as its financial performance. As companies focus more and more on their innovative and transformational journeys, and on incorporating technologies such as data analytics and AI to facilitate those efforts, there is an even greater need to ensure that the teams and leaders working on these projects represent diverse backgrounds, generations and viewpoints in order for those systems to accurately reflect and serve their clients’ needs.

Episode 7: Marketing in the era of digital transformation. In this episode, EY’s Roger Park is joined by Amy Summy, EY Americas Financial Services Marketing Transformation Leader, to discuss how, fueled by disruptive technologies, the role of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) is transforming like never before.

In this episode, EY’s Roger Park is joined by Amy Brachio, EY Global and Americas Advisory Risk Leader and Cindy Doe, EY Financial Services Advisory Principal, for a discussion on digital risk and how financial services firms can leverage risk to their strategic advantage. Technologies such as advanced analytics and AI, robotic process automation and cloud-driven models have enabled firms to create new products and services, enhance access and experience for customers and strengthen controls and drive down costs. In this transformative age, how risk is managed will become the key to unlocking the strategic upside of disruption.

In this episode, EY’s Roger Park is joined by Kevin Koenig, EY Principal, Data & Analytics Leader, Insurance, Financial Services Advisory, for a discussion exploring key findings that emerged from a recently commissioned study by Forrester Consulting on behalf of EY. With banks, insurers and wealth and asset managers spending tens of millions of dollars on digital transformation programs, there is mounting interest in how they have managed success and the creation of value in vastly complex environments. The survey of nearly 250 senior-level executives in North America-based global financial services firms underscores the commonalities digital leaders share: multi-dimensional focus; customer-centricity; clarity of responsibility and an unwavering commitment to talent.

In this new episode, Roger Park is joined by William Beer, Principal, Cybersecurity Advisory Services, and Sundeep Nehra, Partner, Cybersecurity Advisory Services, for a discussion focusing on the importance of maintaining a robust cybersecurity plan within the financial services world, and beyond, in order to deepen and strengthen the trust placed within the firm by clients.

Episode 3: Breaking the Banks' Valuechain: The FinTech Revolution. In this third episode, EY’s Roger Park is joined by Matt Hatch, EY Americas Financial Services FinTech & Growth Markets Leader, for a discussion exploring how FinTech has disrupted the traditional financial services model and grown since the industry's beginnings, its evolution towards mass adoption, the future of FinTech and the promise of open banking, as well as the opportunities that FinTech offers around greater financial inclusion.

Episode 2: Evolution through revolution In this second episode, EY’s Roger Park is joined by Angus Champion de Crespigny, Americas Financial Services Blockchain Leader, EY for a discussion exploring the evolution of blockchain, its applications and usage, as well as cryptocurrencies, within the financial services industry.

Episode 1: What is Innovation? In this first episode EY’s Roger Park is joined by Jeff Wong, EY's Global Chief Innovation Officer, for a discussion exploring key themes around what it means to incorporate and adopt innovation and innovative approaches into every aspect of a firm's corporate strategy and culture.