The combination of open platform banking and open APIs will change the entire banking ecosystem as we know it, from the products and services offered to the delivery channels used and underlying partnerships that will shape innovation and customer experiences in the future. This new era will redefine expectations, impacting the way that consumer insight is leveraged, and the powerful lifestyle outcomes that result. As other industries are already showing, an ecosystem economy is already upon us. All Financial Institutions must explore Open Banking Options now. “An open banking platform future is within sight for all financial organizations. For instance, account aggregation is becoming much more commonplace, with firms like Citibank developing completely new digital-only products with this capability. Similarly, traditional banking functions like taking deposits or making payments could become integrated within non-traditional organizations (Starbucks, Amazon, etc.). In the end, all key managers in virtually all financial organizations should already be meeting to determine what their organization may look like in the future and how services will be created, marketing and distributed. Digital Open Banking – A Millennial’s View: “More Americans will become comfortable with online-only banks as more complicated services such as mortgages move online. The local branch experience will change substantially and even the way we think about banking will change. Millennials will be the generation that drives this change and the newer entrants in this space have the potential to leapfrog the incumbents.” Building ‘Open Banking’ on a platform of trust: “The adoption of open models in banking is a natural component for a consumer-oriented innovation strategy. This, however, does not come without challenges. Beyond security and data privacy, banks will need to consider compliance requirements, partner needs, culture differences and technology architecture. If banks recognize the opportunity to build on their inherent trust, they can take the next step to discuss the upside that open models can bring. Even if starting small by carefully curating the various third-party services to begin to share data, banks can begin to leverage these open frameworks to set a foundation for trusted innovation.” If Strategy is so important, why don’t we make time for it? “The responsibilities placed upon us are unlikely to diminish anytime soon. In fact, as we ascend in our careers — and as global competition further increases — it’s almost certain we’ll be expected to do more and produce more. Without a concerted effort, it’d be easy for strategy — yet again — to slip to the bottom of the to-do list, despite our protestations about its importance. By becoming aware of the disincentives to make time for strategy — and taking proactive steps to embed strategic thinking into your life and professional schedule — you can stand up for a goal that you, and 97% of other leaders, recognize as critical." Interesting way to improve work effectiveness: Smarter, not harder: How to succeed at work. “It's not about working harder to get better results. You have only so much energy to apply. Pick what matters. Eliminate the rest.” Risk? It’s probably that thing you’re ignoring. “One way to deal with risk, then, is to take a leaf from Whorf’s book: patiently observe how people act, without preconceptions; periodically compare our assumptions to those in other worlds; and then actively ask what we are ignoring in our lives because it seems dull and boring — or “empty”. Labels matter; particularly when we are trained to just focus on the ones that are most eye-catching.”