The Art and Science of Tech Implementation in Financial Services

By Amrit Biswas, SVP and Head of Sales at Profinch Solutions

I’ve been in the financial tech world for close to two decades, and I’ve seen the industry change a lot. Back then, everything was built as big, monolithic systems. But now, it’s all about modular, intelligent platforms. It wasn’t just one big change; it was a series of small innovations that happened over time.

First, there was online banking. That was a game-changer! Then, mobile banking became a thing, and people started using their phones to manage their finances. Next came Open Banking regulations, which made it easier for different financial institutions to work together. And finally, there was the shift towards cloud-native architectures, which made it easier to build and manage software in the cloud.

Each of these changes brought new frameworks and point solutions. And they all helped to reshape how financial institutions operate. Today’s platforms are no longer just static assets; they’re dynamic, adaptive ecosystems. They’re built not just to perform a function, but to anticipate and respond to change.

A powerful product, however, is merely a blueprint for transformation. The true measure of success lies not in the technology’s promise, but in the human and operational infrastructure that brings it to life. The full value of any solution, whether a core banking system or a digital lending engine, is unlocked by a thoughtful, strategic implementation. The outcome is defined by how well a new technology integrates with an organisation’s culture, workflows, and objectives.

Without a well-defined strategy and disciplined execution, even the most sophisticated technology risks becoming an underutilised asset. It’s the alignment of product functionality with a client’s unique operational context that truly enables transformation. This is where the partnership between the financial institution and the implementation specialist becomes the most critical.

At Profinch, working with financial institutions in over 60 countries for over a decade, we’ve learned that successful tech implementation is not just about installing software; it’s about organisational change. We help shape new ways of thinking, workflows, and client-centric strategies. Our work continues beyond go-live, and a great implementation partner understands this.

This is why the right team and strategy are so vital; not just before and during go-live, but for the life of the solution. The modern financial landscape is a continuous cycle of updates, integrations, and optimisations.

The Science: Engineering for Scale, Speed, and Compliance

The scientific discipline of tech implementation in financial services is non-negotiable. In an industry where every transaction counts and regulatory compliance is paramount; precision is the difference between success and catastrophic failure.

Precision in Project Initiation: The Criticality of Early Problem and Requirement Identification

Methodical planning at the outset is the bedrock of any successful implementation. This requires a robust feedback loop that ensures all stakeholders, from IT to business leadership and end-users, are heard and aligned. For an implementation partner, this phase is about more than gathering data; it’s about translating disparate needs into a unified, actionable blueprint.

The implementation partner’s role is to ensure this loop is complete and robust. Siloed inputs or incomplete feedback at this stage can lead to costly rework and project delays down the line. To address this, Profinch developed a proprietary AI-based framework that analyses stakeholder inputs, cross-references them against industry benchmarks, and identifies potential gaps before they become issues.

We recently used this framework with a leading bank in the Middle East during an Oracle OFSAA implementation for financial crime and compliance. Our analysis identified glaring gaps between the bank’s business problem definition and the expectations of end-users. This wasn’t a failure of vision; it was a gap in communication that is all too common in complex, multi-jurisdictional projects. By proactively addressing these misalignments, we ensured all stakeholders were operating from a common, transparent foundation, saving significant time and resources.

Aligning expectations may seem straightforward, but it isn’t, especially in multi-country or multi-jurisdictional projects where compliance stakes are exceptionally high.

Architectural Imperatives: Designing for Success

Strong foundations matter whether you are modernising core banking or say, launching digital lending products. The technology architecture must align with both current systems and future direction for seamless (and sustainable) implementation. This alignment must be decided early, in close deliberation with business leadership—factoring growth plans, geographic ambitions, and scalability. Key considerations include integrations, data migration, compliance readiness, cloud strategy, and rollout with minimal disruption. Data governance and security must be mapped to local regulations. For instance, in a Tier I bank’s European digital rollout, payment systems were tailored for SEPA compliance. Our work has built extensive localisations across Oracle’s financial services suite, core banking, digital banking, compliance, and insurance; helping the institution go live on time and meet regulatory requirements.

Proven repositories, pre-built accelerators, and a design philosophy that keeps the customer at the centre of every decision leads to an effective implementation.

Engineering Excellence: Development and Testing

In many of our largest projects, we’ve developed custom applications to facilitate layered integration, ensuring disparate legacy systems can communicate seamlessly with new platforms. Great implementation happens with rigorous design, development, and testing, with a robust user acceptance testing (UAT) phase. This is where a deep understanding of DevOps and Continuous Integration (CI)/Continuous Deployment (CD) techniques allows us to deliver within strict project governance frameworks.

Iterative Delivery: Sprints, Not Marathons

The era of multi-year, waterfall rollouts that exhaust teams and drain budgets is over. Profinch’s approach is a hybrid agile model focused on delivering quick wins through iterative releases and continuous feedback. Speed is everything for a modern financial institution that must outpace nimble FinTechs.

Structured implementation frameworks, built on reusable knowledge repositories from past projects, are a true competitive advantage. For a multi-country insurance core rollout in the Middle East and Africa, we not only cut significant implementation time by showcasing quick, phase-wise wins but also demonstrated how the client could optimise spending through a well-oiled infrastructure and managed services engine.

The PMO as a Strategic Enabler: Architecting Business Value

An effective Project Management Office (PMO) is vital to keep implementations aligned with plan and prevent costly deviations. A disciplined PMO drives clear reviews, escalation paths, continuous communication, and timely reporting. With AI and automation, project management gains added intelligence—strengthening governance, mitigating risks, and streamlining interventions.

Inherent Compliance: Building It into the DNA

Too many projects treat compliance as an afterthought. At Profinch, regulatory alignment is a foundational principle, not a band-aid solution. It’s built into the system’s DNA and ingrained in every team member. This is especially critical in an industry as regulation-heavy as financial services, where compliance is more than a checkbox—it’s a core business function. Having a team of subject matter experts with a thorough understanding of regulations across jurisdictions allows us to define a jurisdiction-aware implementation approach that balances business ambition with compliance discipline from a project’s earliest days.

The Art: Designing for Real People

Technology that works isn’t enough; it needs to work for the people who will use it. This is where the “art” comes in: the empathy, the experience, the trust-building, and the handholding that transform a successful project into a true partnership.

Investing in People

A team’s capability is directly tied to the value it can deliver. At Profinch, building an “A Team” is a deliberate, long-term process. We hire the best minds in the industry with people who are not just technically strong but deeply client centric. As in any services business, our people are our most valuable asset. We empower them to uphold one guiding principle: “How do we add value to the client at every stage?” It is this specific mindset that turns good implementations into transformation successes.

Leadership Alignment

Financial institutions are complex organisations with numerous stakeholders and power centres. As an implementation partner, our role is to articulate a clear program vision and demonstrate how a new solution will deliver tangible benefits and ROI to different lines of business. Gaining buy-in from CXOs and departmental heads through careful planning and clear communication is essential, and this alignment must be reflected in every step of the project. A good implementation partner pre-empts potential pitfalls and always has a Plan B.

Adapting to Local Context

What works in Singapore may not land the same way in Ghana. Global experience means little without local relevance. Whether it’s language, regulation, or cultural expectations, the onus is on the implementation team to understand these differences and collaborate to ensure success. Our approach of having regional specialisation within our teams ensures we start with a clear understanding of local expectations and leverage insights from past projects in similar regions.

The Said vs. The Unsaid

Understanding user needs goes beyond stated requirements. It’s about recognising the mental models that shape how people work. This comes from experience, collaboration, and awareness of the human motivations behind business goals. At Profinch, we aim to be an inclusive, consultative partner while staying firm on timelines and deliverables. By setting high standards and working closely with stakeholders, we ensure the end state remains clear and achievable.

Why the Art and the Science Matter Now More Than Anything

The world is in flux. With the rise of AI, ESG, open banking, and embedded finance, traditional models are being questioned, and newer adoptions are preferred. The winners in this new era won’t just be the most innovative; they will be the most adaptable, the ones who can keep pace with change without losing sight of the customer.

My Final Word

Technology implementation isn’t a box to tick, it’s a craft that blends logic with intuition, planning with agility, and code with collaboration. At Profinch, we treat it as such: building for outcomes, designing with empathy, and partnering for true transformation. Together, we can shape smarter, more inclusive, and resilient financial systems.