The summary

Robeco partnered with Ohpen to replace ageing core technology supporting its Dutch direct business with a fully integrated banking platform. More than 200,000 customers were migrated, legacy infrastructure was decommissioned and the transformation contributed to a 40% reduction in costs, while creating a more efficient foundation for digital investment and savings services.

 

The challenge

Moving beyond 25-year-old technology

Robeco needed to replace much of the core technology supporting its direct channel in the Netherlands.

Its back office relied on a 25-year-old, in-house developed COBOL system, while CRM ran on an older and heavily customised version of Siebel. The interfaces between the two created problems and contributed to a cost of ownership that had become too high.

At the same time, Robeco’s business was changing. Its direct operation needed to move away from a model centred around call centres and mail towards a more digital, online proposition.

Previous attempts to replace the legacy systems had not succeeded, largely because there had not been a sufficient business case for the transformation.

Robeco needed a new foundation that could address both sides of the challenge: modernising its technology while supporting a more efficient digital operating model.

 

The solution

A fully integrated and automated platform

Robeco selected Ohpen’s fully integrated and automated platform to support the renewal of its Dutch retail operation.

Ohpen took responsibility for accounts and savings administration and the execution of mutual fund orders on Robeco’s Dutch retail platform.

The implementation followed an iterative approach built around four-week sprints. Requirements were defined and designed, followed by development, implementation and testing.

Rather than approaching the transformation as one large change, Robeco and Ohpen worked through it step by step, with close collaboration between both teams.

“Ohpen’s infrastructure is state-of-the-art and we are very satisfied with the uptime of the system. The combination of strong leadership and very capable employees makes that Ohpen delivers up to its promise.”

– Karin van Baardwijk, COO, Robeco

 

The impact

Lower costs and simpler operations

The transformation delivered the IT cost savings Robeco had set out to achieve, largely through the decommissioning of its old mainframe.

The impact went beyond infrastructure. Robeco experienced fewer customer calls, allowing it to reduce call-centre staffing, while print and mail costs were also substantially reduced. Customers gained better insight into their portfolios, and implementing changes and passing on investment transactions became more straightforward.

The transformation:

  • 200,000+ customers migrated
  • Contributed to a 40% cost reduction
  • Lowered the cost base for IT and operations
  • Made implementing changes more straightforward
  • Simplified the processing of investment transactions

The wider Robeco legacy-modernisation programme did indeed involve replacing legacy applications and decommissioning mainframes, with Robeco reporting substantial IT cost savings from the programme.

Source: IBS Intelligence Case Study