Topic: RBCs Technology and Operations; specifically their Payments and Cards applications.Royal Bank of Canada and its subsidiaries operate under the master brand name RBC. RBC is the largest Canadian Bank and one of the largest banks in the world, based on market capitalization. RBC is one of North Americas leading diversified financial services companies, and provides personal and commercial banking, wealth management, insurance, investor services and capital markets, products and services on a global basis. RBC employs approximately 79,000 employees with over 16 million clients in over 40 countries worldwide.
Found the above information at http://www.rbc.com/aboutus/index.html
RBC Vision:
Always earning the right to be our clients first choice.
RBC Strategic Goals:
In Canada, to be the undisputed leader in financial services.
Globally to be a leading provider of capital markets, investor and wealth management solutions.
In targeted markets to be the leading provider of select financial servicesValues:
Excellent services to clients and each other
Working together to succeed
Personal responsibility for high performance
Diversity for growth and innovation
Trust through integrity in everything we doFound the above information from http://www.rbc.com/aboutus/visionandvalues.htmlSustainable Competitive Advantages/Core Competency:
RBC competitive advantages can be broken into five main groups which include client focus; their size and scale in Canada with global reach; a diversified business model; financial strength & risk management; and their employees, brand and reputation.
Found the above information from Royal Bank of Canada Annual Report 2014 page 3
Stakeholders:
RBC has four main stakeholders which are clients, shareholders, employees, and the communities
Found the above information from RBC annual report 2004
www.rbc.com/investorrelations/ar_04/english/html/stakeholders/stakeholders.html
Customer Analysis:
It has shown that over three quarters of Canadians have used online banking over the past year and online banking has been shown to be the most popular method of banking over other forms. Over 30% of Canadians have reported using mobile banking in the past year, which has increased 5% since 2010. Based on these statistics, it is clear that customers have an increased want for electronic banking and the banking industry is pushing to (Alex will finish this section).
Situation Analysis (S.W.O.T.):
Strengths:
The convenience of the technological advantage that RBC has with the new payment methods provides consumers a faster, efficient and safe way to do day to day transactions. Security is RBCs top priority and this is a major strength that they have over other companies because it is their main focus. RBC uses a Secure Cloud where all of the information within the cloud is encrypted and stored securely. Everything is stored within your cloud and not on your phone so it is at maximum security at all times. The accessibility with this new technology is very easy for customers as it is very well put together and customer friendly for everyone. As trends continue to evolve and change, RBC has made an advancement within the technology world that will continue to impress us all.
Weaknesses:
As of right now RBC has a mobile banking application, however it isnt very user friendly or appealing to the everyday consumer. Their biggest weakness is that they dont have the right resources to make a leading application. A big issue for RBC is being able to recruit the top technology students out of school because they are more attracted to the non-traditional competitors such as Apple.
Opportunities:
RBC has tremendous opportunities for expansion within their cards and payments department in regards to payment through electronic devices. With the evolving technology of the cellular device this gives RBC an opportunity to evolve their services to suit the needs of its Canadian clients. A relatively new technology is the tap feature that has been implemented into cellular phones that enables users to pay wirelessly through their phones, free of any cards. This is something that RBC has already implemented into their phone app but due to the newer technology this feature is less utilized by their clients. RBC has the opportunity to capitalize on its investments in these types of technologies by increasing its marketing towards these useful features.Several companies have also implemented card services that have the capability of accessing all of an individuals bank, credit, gift, and membership cards with a single touch of a button. This single card has the ability to cut a persons wallet from a series of cards to a single card for all their monetary needs. An example of this service is offered by a company called Coin.[3] This is something that RBC does not have at the moment but this could be a great opportunity for them to increase their services to suit the technological advancements that are quickly approaching.
Threats/ Competitors:
The Interruption from technology companies offering mobile payments is one of the biggest RBC payment threats. Apple Inc. and Google Inc. can place RBC into an inferior position when consumers choose to use smartphones to make payments. Whats more, Tangerine, previously recognized as ING Direct Canada, introduced newly biometric tools for its mobile banking. The old way that people entering their credit cards passwords can be replaced into the fingerprint scanner. The Nova Scotia bank has recently released a new app, which allows customers to check their account balances by using Samsungs smartwatch.Key Issues:
Entry of foreign bank companies with newly implemented technology.
Non-traditional competitors such as Google and Apple are entering the market of electronic banking.
Competition with existing competitors and the race to develop new technology and methods of electronic banking
Changes in consumer behaviour in regards to their electronic banking wants and needs.
The research and development costs associated with designing and later implementing new electronic banking technologies.
Bibliography
1. Bank tellers facing an even more uncertain future with next wave of technology. (2015, January 22). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
2. Coin. (n.d.). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
3. How Canadians Bank. (2015, July 29). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
4. Too big to disrupt? Canadas banks fight back against the likes of Apple, Facebook. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2015.