Rapid Low Cost and Low Risk IT Implementation Projects

with ‘FIM’ (FERNBACH Implementation Method)

What Makes the FIM Approach so Unique?

  • FERNBACH delivers a preconfigured system. The application can therefore be put into operation with very little effort (‘off-the-shelf’).
  • The standardised process provides customers with project security while minimising the risk of overshooting the project.
  • FIM uses a functional business case approach, i.e. projects are run from a functional, not a technical point of view.
  • Aligned project tools, i.e. project team support at FERNBACH and at the bank.
  • Simplified integration into existing systems.
  • Reduced implementation cost: Projects are planned in such detail that the bank always has an overview of what resources are needed and when. This ensures low implementation costs.

FERNBACH’s IFRS solution and its implementation method amazed us right from the start. Over 20 years of experience running IT projects for financial service providers and bestpractice experience with IFRS projects prove that FERNBACH is the right partner for us.

Jae-Sik Kim, partner of Samil PwC

With the FERNBACH Implementation Method, FlexFinance solutions are introduced in-time and in-budget, enabling customers to implement them quickly. This not only considerably reduces the time and effort a bank has to invest in implementation, it also greatly simplifies project coordination.

Mr. Hoon Chae, Director Financial Division, KT FDS

By considering the experience gained by other banks that have implemented the FERNBACH Implementation Method, we can work together with our customers to reduce the risk of overshooting their projects and don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

Jae-Sik Kim, partner of Samil PwC

FERNBACH’s Implementation Method Enables Banks to Integrate New Regulations Seamlessly Into their Existing System Without Always Having to Reinvent the Wheel

When new regulations are introduced or existing regulations changed, banks have to invest time and money in adapting their IT infrastructure. This is a constant challenge for the banking industry and makes it all the more important that implementation projects run smoothly. When they do, banks can utilise the solution they need for their business operations quickly, efficiently and without any restrictions. To minimise the project risk and ensure a maximum return on investment (ROI), banks need a well-planned, tried and tested implementation method.

The aptly named 'FIM' (FERNBACH Implementation Method) is a standardised method used by FERNBACH for implementing IT projects. This method was developed with an emphasis on effectively implementing (IFRS) projects across our extensive partner network and on achieving the maximum degree of scalability and knowledge transfer at low cost. In addition to projects in which a FERNBACH partner leads the implementation, the FIM is also used in all implementation projects in which FERNBACH carries out implementation itself.

FERNBACH Implementation Method (FIM) Standardised Project Development – The Key to Success

The FERNBACH Implementation Method (FIM) minimises project risk and assures the quality, timeliness and cost efficiency of all software implementation projects.

The FIM is the product of a wealth of experience gained from numerous customer projects and covers all relevant areas including trainings, support services, tools and best-practice methods. This means that FERNBACH customers and project partners not only benefit from an efficient implementation method, but also from the sum total of FERNBACH’s indepth industry experience.

Standardised Implementation Approach Reduces Risk

Practical example: FERNBACH’s successful cooperation with KT FDS and with Samil PwC in implementing IFRS at South Korean financial institutions.

FERNBACH and South Korean partners Samil PwC and KT FDS cooperate closely on implementation projects and use the FERNBACH Implementation Method.

FERNBACH have been continuously expanding their international presence for FlexFinance IFRS in the Asian-Pacific region since the beginning of 2008 through partnerships with leading companies throughout the region. In South Korea, for instance, FERNBACH has an agreement with PricewaterhouseCoopers Korea (Samil PwC) and with KT FDS.

The FIM approach

When a project begins, the project team first goes through training that includes all aspects of implementation. The implementation training session allows customers and partners alike to begin implementation directly following project initialisation without having to depend on delivery systems or interfaces that have yet to be developed.

An important aspect of the FIM approach:The functional analysis is first performed with the department in question and the technical interfaces are not defined until the very end.

The first phase of an implementation project begins with the creation of a sample portfolio. It comprises practical examples for typical business transactions in a bank and can be accessed by the customer on any compatible reference system. The deals are described in great detail and provide the customer with the necessary parameters for compiling the bank’s own individual sample portfolio.

The next phase (Business Case Concepts) begins with the creation of the sample portfolio, i.e. the bank portfolio. Here, the customer compiles the characteristics of their own deals and outlines the sample (portfolio) deals and their projected results. The necessary functions and data delivery are both defined during this phase.

The bank portfolio is then implemented while the sample portfolio is compared to the Business Case Concept. This comparison is followed by coordination of the cash flows, results and ratios.

With this information, the software configuration can be adapted to meet the bank’s requirements. The customer can then see if the projected results have been achieved. If the customer agrees with the results, the interfaces are programmed using the sample deals that were compiled in Excel sheets as a guide. The newly-created interfaces are used for the import tables, which also contain the delivered data.

The data created by the interfaces are then automatically processed in the prelive environment (see figure:Implementation Prelive).

In the final step of the process, the results are compared with the results of the transactions that were compiled manually (in the previous step). Following this final alignment, it is ready to go live.

Characteristics of FIM

A Tried and Tested Method

  • FIM has proven itself in a number of implementations thanks in part to the ready-to-go business templates. In essence, these templates are preconfigured solution packages that enable banks to adhere to legal requirements and standards quickly and efficiently.
  • For instance, the approach’s predefined system has already been approved by IFRS auditors and is considered to be a best practice at a number of other banks that FERNBACH has worked with in the past. The accounting templates that are delivered with FlexFinance cover more than 90% of a bank’s requirements. The FERNBACH templates not only reduce the time to implementation, but also the risk associated with it.

Standardisation

  • Through its predefined project structure, which contains clear specifications, the FIM essentially provides banks with a blueprint for implementing IFRS, Basel II etc.
  • Checklists and example data are available for every step of the standardised process.

Complete Transparency

FIM stipulates the responsibilities for each and every step of a project (participation of different profiles, expected results and effort etc.). Project activities are planned down to the lowest level, enabling the bank to monitor resource allocation while assuring that implementation costs are contained. Before the project begins, FERNBACH delivers a checklist for each task as well as details on how implementation at the bank may differ from that of a representative bank. This checklist makes clear from the very beginning the resources that the bank will have to reserve and provides transparency on the cost of the project and the time that will be required for implementation.

Scalable Implementation

Financial products are largely implemented independent of each other. As a result, their respective implementation processes can run in parallel, thereby ensuring rapid implementation.