As such, when Western Union embarked on its technology transformation, it was keen to recruit personnel who could help achieve its vision. Hospitality, Waste Looking ahead, the Sales Cloud will be connected to the Marketing Cloud, which in turn is connected to our Care Cloud, so that whenever something happens across any of those products we are able to react in a way that suits that customer. The network upgrade will pave the way for Econet to deliver 5G connectivity in more . We built the Western Union Way team, or the WU Way team as we call it, with ten high-potential individuals from around the company. Poland followed later in 2022, while plans are at hand to launch Italy by the end of the year. ", Looking back to why Western Union chose OutSystems, Tom says, We serve millions of customers in over 200 countries and territories, and we want to give them the best possible customer experience. (2017) Monitoring Media Pluralism in Europe: Application of the Media Pluralism Monitor 2016 in the European Union, Montenegro and Turkey. An undisputed leader in the global payments space, Western Union is driving a company-wide technology transformation, underpinned by migrating its infrastructure from on-prem to the cloud. However, Western Union would be wise to form a new, separate unit for exploring blockchain services. Continue to partner with popular digital platforms to provide legacy C2C money transfer services. Microservices, Digital Process It&#39;s a physical branding and marketing component that few money-transfer providers can match but one that&#39;s of diminishing value in a digital world. As weve done that, everyone has started to speak the same language, whether its talking about going to huddles, doing process confirmations, conducting one-on-one coaching, or maybe doing floor walks. Why Do Companies Choose to Outsource Work? Our App has grown to become one of the industrys most widely used international money transfer apps and a Top 20 finance app in the App Store., Not at all. Western Union's Customer Journey Digital Transformation Fueled by NICE Companies like Venmo(PayPal) and Zelle(joint venture by several large U.S. banks) have deep pockets, but so far are mostly competing in domestic payment markets. From the earliest days of the pandemic, innovating the companys services to meet new patterns of consumer demand was an urgent matter. Western Union's digital services align with the UAE government's policy to create an economy driven by innovation and technology," said Salma Massoud, head of digital, Middle East and Africa . How did you evolve for digital convenience and safety? Manufacturing, Communication Thats the high performancewe rely on with OutSystems., Low-Code for Digital Financial Services Delivery. First, for continuity of services. And on our website, we added new support and wayfinding tools to ensure customers could quickly and easily access information. On March 1, Huawei held a "Digital Leadership Seminar" during Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, attended by more than 60 high-level customers from global carriers, government enterprises, and KOL. Western Union powers your pursuit. "As a digital enabler and a pioneer in the digital transformation, we aspire to play a vital role in the vision of the Saudi . Digital transformation in Western Union must be driven from the top-down. New-found agility delivers growth and improved Customer Experience for partners and customers. He also praises Snowflakes adaptability when it came to dealing with huge capacity increases. Since 2008, Huawei has offered a wide and expanding range of . So we had to figure out how to continue to show up for customers while also ensuring everyones health and safely. UnionBank: Blazing Digital Trails in the Philippines and Beyond These are things like rewards and recognition, top-down innovation, and consequence management. Western Union is also focused on the global remittance market. As a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments, Western Union has to comply with a huge number of financial regulations. Engaged in problem resolution of complex . A lot of our big data environment is still on-prem and the mission is to move that completely to the cloud by the end of the year. Western Union and Beforepay introduce 'send now, pay later' service Mazzaferro: Keep it simple. Western Union is a partner of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and is a leading voice in the conversation of how to build a global payments ecosystem, which is stable and where remittances can be made much faster. Its one of the most widely used platforms from a data perspective and were expanding our relationship with Talend to start using some of its data quality products as well. Western Union. And being with the people that are actually doing the work really helps the management get a better sense of where they can use their leadership and influence to make that process easier for the employee and better for the customer. As the figure below shows, five components are needed to execute an organization's digital transformation: 1. Africa, South But you say its about more than technology? Western Union must adapt to an increasingly mobile world: if Western Union doesnt develop low-cost mobile money transfers, Western Union wont be able to compete with new competitors like Ant Financial and Zelle. Furthermore, a chain of retail outlets is expensive. In the same way that they say it takes a whole village to raise a child, it takes an army of people with the right skillsets and approaches to undertake a challenge like this. Though its too early for results, the response from consumers has been positive, he says. [1] The first transcontinental telegraph was sent on October 24, 1861, from the Chief Justice of California to President Abraham Lincoln. Huawei believes digital talent is a key driver in achieving digital transformation, solid economic growth, and better quality of life. Digital transformation of journalism and media in Serbia: What has gone We teach employees, and then they execute. HELIX, Management The difference with OutSystems is that we can do that fast and at scale, deploying experiences that are fast to load, reliable, and secure. People. Digital Summit WB6 - Prishtina 2022 Its important to understand that business stakeholders are customers of our data. These initiatives will likely change Western Unions operating model, therefore they must be fully supported by CEO Hikmet Ersek and should occupy most of his time. Thank you for this great post, Hans. But new innovators are highlighting a problem for Western Union: multi-homing is high with money transfers. Western Union's platform provides seamless cross-border flows and its leading global financial network bridges more than 200 countries and territories and over 130 currencies . Western Union is working alongside Amazon Web Services (AWS) and AWS Partners to transform and expand its business, including the launch of a new digital bank. Western Union (NYSE: WU), a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments and Zain Cash, the award-winning mobile financia . [11] Western Unions footprint of retail locations gives it a worldwide laboratory for experimenting with blockchain applications. Convera. Looking back at the results of our work over the last couple of years across all of our deployments, you see some really impressive gains. The pandemics economic stressors created a situation where more people suddenly needed to send money to family and friends around the world, many of whom rarely use financial services. Jaffin: Digital was critical in a few ways. ; With the solution, Western Union launched a state-of-the-art digital . If Western Union tries to grow its blockchain capabilities within current operations, internal resistors may directly or indirectly sabotage the initiatives. Entertainment, Professional Seven months after Goldfinch Partners and The Baupost Group announced they were purchasing Western . Western Union reduced data warehousing costs by 50% and has saved millions through streamlined data engineering and administration after moving more than 30 data stores, including on-premises data, into Snowflake. Patrick Gauthier, CEO of Convera, formerly known as Western Union Business Solutions. We recently delivered a similar requirement to a higher standard using one OutSystems developer in just 15 days. Our leadership team remains true to our vision and values, putting customers' evolving needs at the center of our innovation and holding up trust and convenience as the hallmarks of our business. Business Unit Represents Approximately 7% of Company Revenue . . We believe in the work we do, why we do it, and who we hire to get it done. Western Union uses a central team to build new capabilities across the business. Western Union: Leading or Lagging Digital Transformation? So we established a set of what we call market-shaper practices that we wanted to focus on. Commenting on the advantages of development on OutSystems, Tom says, "We estimate that we're getting new products . Snowflake worked with Longitude to assess what it takes to lead in the data economy. The Foundation is supported by the Western Union Company, its employees, Agents, and business partners, working to support education and disaster relief efforts as pathways toward a better future. Services, Data It's a physical branding and marketing component that few money-transfer providers can match - but one that's of diminishing value in a digital world. Build customized, secure, and scalable mobile banking apps. Western Union Launches Two Digital Banking apps in 11 Months BWIRE: Support youths to enhance their digital skills Western Union agrees sale of Business Solutions division for $910m In 2011, Western Union opened an office in San Francisco to ramp up its digital operation. Inclusion, Bloomberg We are also launching new products into the market, including a pilot for digital banking services in select markets in Europe and a revamped loyalty programme, which require us to capture data from our central warehouses to drive decision making, marketing and customer acquisition. We developed the whole front-end for the app in less than four months., Western Union uses OutSystems for customer-facing apps, back office, and workflow solutions. That system is fine in a cash based economy, but is becoming increasingly cumbersome as digital payments take hold in emerging markets. Almost immediately, it was clear that with retail stores temporarily closed, digital would need to play a larger role in delivering service to customers. But for all its success, Western Union is undoubtedly a legacy player in a market that has been truly disrupted in recent years, with smaller and more agile outfits making waves in the increasingly digitised payments space. To that end, Singh has built on an existing relationship to forge a highly valuable partnership with Salesforce and oversee the roll-out of its industry-leading Marketing Cloud. Western Union's Customer Journey Digital Transformation Fueled by NICE - Innovative NICE Nexidia Customer Journey Optimisation provides powerful analytics to enhance customer experience. Migrants, who typically are the link between cash economies underserved by financial institutions, and highly bancarized, digital economies, benefit from Western Unions unique ability to combine the physical and the digital. NICE have announced Western Union, a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement, has advanced customer experience through improved . . Really understand the business stakeholders problem and how you can fix or enable it. We serve all customer segments: from digital natives who are never without their smartphones to the 4 billion people on earth the World Bank estimates arent online yet., Western Union is strongly committed to migrants and to refugees: migration is at the heart of our business. Whats really nice about that is that its so visually obvious. Policy . He shares his views on digital transformation and economic opportunities for all. Many CEOs are lured into spending too much time on legacy businesses, which dont need CEO oversight. And the new business model may require a very different RPP (traditional money transfer process vs. transfer via blockchain). Harveer Singh, Chief Data Architect & Global Head of Engineering, reveals how the initiative will give the organisation the speed and agility it needs to . Deloitte Collaborates With AWS to Put Enterprise-Class Banking Ericsson will help accelerate Econet's digital transformation journey. Western Union (WU) is a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments. In a report on ERP modernization, the global market intelligence firm highlights how Western Digital . And, Fellahi points out, When you look at customer acquisition on our digital channel, 80 percent of the customers we acquired in the past 12 months are new to usnot migrated from our traditional customer base., He expects digital money transfer and mobile technology to be the major driver of overall growth in coming years, adding, In the U.S., over 65 percent of WU.com transactions are initiated on a mobile device, and globally it is nearly 60 percent.. Reframe blockchain from a threat to an opportunity, by creating a new autonomous unit. Experienced and certified (ACAMS) AML and Learning & Development professional with a proven track of records in compliance, people management, learning areas. Western Union can leverage such physical presence to win this new innovative space. Theyve complemented each other really well and been able to almost mentor each other, as well as building great relationships with the product groups. According to the terms of the transaction . With a history of more than 170 years, the company has a presence in more than 200 countries and territories, connecting more than 120m people to one another and to the global economy, through cross-border money transfers in approximately 130 currencies. Africa's largest payment gateway, MFS Africa, has partnered with Western Union to enable individuals and businesses across the continent to receive money from over 200 countries and territories. Our digital-first crisis response is helping us evolve into the future. Analytics, API Economy & Western Union's digital transformation - Think with Google Guide for Suppliers, Select The company considers local preferences, as well, accepting about 10 payment methods, such as Apple Pay in the U.S. Profiles, Infosys Knowledge UnionDigital Bank is the trusted bridge between innovation and regulation. WU's platform provides seamless cross-border flows, and its leading global financial network bridges more than 200 countries and territories and over 130 currencies. Some changes that used to take a month, we now deliver in around 48 hours.. be to drive digital transformation and . For more details about how Western Union went from 34 on-prem data warehouses to pursuing a multi-cloud strategy based on Snowflake, read our case study. Experts at TCS and Western Union share the trends that are affecting digital transformation in financial services. [2] Westar 1, Wikipedia, accessed April 2018. The Baupost Group is a $31 billion Boston-based investment firm. But Western Union is missing the true potential of blockchain for its business. What are the biggest lessons you learned? Today, WU.com is available in 40 countries, with mobile apps in 18 of them. Reflecting on the transformation to-date, Singh is clear that it hasnt come without its challenges. Sector, Travel and Automation reduces development toil, were more productive, so we dont need so many developers, and we dont end up with orphaned code when developers leave. Us, Terms <br><br>My Leadership Philosophy<br><br>I am an . In the past several years, the Englewood, Colo.-based company has made a point to develop and [] We go where our customers go, says Khalid Fellahi, senior vice president and general manager for Western Union Digital, based in San Francisco. The partnership will enable funds to be sent from countries around the world to mobile wallets across Africa through the organization's licensed payment rails. Digital transformation starts with people, which is a useful reminder that . Its not done from the perspective of correction or a negative consequence. today more than 65% of Western Union's digital transactions originate on a mobile . This is just one example of how blockchain could be an opportunity for Western Union. There was a need to accelerate the process we wanted to undertake, I have that experience of transformation projects happening on a massive scale. Leadership. 2021. Western Union Google Pay Integration: Interview With Vice - Monito A hugely significant piece of the transformation has come from rethinking how Western Union communicates with its vast customer base. Society Updated: 01-06-2022 - 11:45. Having to maintain two sets of procedures on-prem and cloud for 18 months to ensure business continuity is chief among them, while teams have had to escalate a company-wide transformation during a pandemic. Western Union's digital transformation sprints to mobile . Prior to implementing Snowflake in 2021, Western Unions data spanned 34 on-premises data warehouses, resulting in latency and operational burdens. Western Union is renowned for its unparalleled international network, with over 500,000 agent locations spanning 200 countries and territories. Over the last two years, Singh has been accelerating Western Union's tech plan. . You have to recognise that youre taking a massive journey as a company because it has always relied on data centres. . Lean deployments are a big piece of our overall transformation program. & Distribution, Media and Digital transformation can refer to anything from IT modernization (for example, cloud computing), to digital optimization, to the invention of new digital business models. Marketing tactics evolved to attract digital customers, who have a different profile from traditional retail customers. They can include creating strategy placemats (one-page strategy overviews that are easily shared), frequent team huddles, one-on-one coaching, and process confirmation. Western Union also is uniquely positioned to explore blockchain applications in emerging markets by leveraging Western Unions retail footprint, regulatory compliance learning, and global brand. COVID-19 has brought countless challenges, but its also caused us to focus all of our efforts around customers and reground ourselves in our mission. Our research identified 10 attributes of an organizations data infrastructure that enable it to take full advantage of the data economy, the global supply and, Editors note: This is part of a series about the data economy. How did you navigate those early moments? Infosys accelerated Western Union's digital transformation by harmonizing agent operations, implementing billing and collection standards, enabling modular growth, accelerating new product launches, enabling digital on-demand procedures, designing global accounting solutions based on one single template, supporting highly complex pricing and multiple business models, and massive management processes as a strategic technology partner. Western Union Advances Its Digital Growth Strategy With - Wire19 The executive team has done a great job of making it really clear across the company that this is something thats expected of you. Business Application Services, Service Experience Jaffin: We engaged with tech partners like Google almost immediately to refine our go-to-market strategy. How Western Union achieved Digital Transformation with Infosys and Oracle But theyve been hugely supportive and as weve hit milestones, such as moving significant infrastructure completely to the cloud or achieving significant savings with the Marketing Cloud, we have built that business case. Experience in leading digital products from either the financial services, payment, or fintech industries. Start Time: 16:30 January 1, 0000 5:32 PM ETThe Western Union Company (NYSE:NYSE:WU)Q3 2022 Earnings Conference CallNovember 01, 2022, 16:30 PM ETCompany ParticipantsDevin McGranahan -. Today, our omnichannel platform places Western Union in a unique position where our physical network and our digital efforts combine to provide customers with a host of options to transfer money, whether in cash, card into billions of bank accounts, online, using our App or one of our 17 mobile wallet partners. Western Union digital integrates UAE Pass - Gulf Business What Ive tried to do is look at each of the groups and find out who the strong players in each of them are, the leaders that are vocal and very straightforward in conversation. Definition of Digital Transformation - IT Glossary | Gartner Alonso Calderon - Enterprise Technology Operations Center Manager Singh was brought in to help facilitate that leap, drawing on his expertise with business transformations, technology management, data architecture and collaborative working, backed up by various consulting roles at Deloitte, IBM and Accenture. In Austria our employees have put in place numerous initiatives such as German courses and mentoring programs, and we celebrated in March the first anniversary of SEED, a project supported by the Western Union Foundation in collaboration with the Austrian Ministry of Education and Teach for Austria Alumni Association. 22 Companies Spearheading Digital Innovation in Their Industries in Divestiture Will Support Western Union's Strategic Focus on its Global Cross-Border Payments Platform and Digital Capabilities The transformation of Western Digital to a Live Enterprise Modernization of legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications provides an opportunity for a technical upgrade as well as a transformation of the core business, according to IDC. So its a real imperative across the top of the organization. From apps that save lives to those that process loans in a Automation, Microsoft Western Union Embraces Digital Transformation - BaselineMag.com Three things were front-of-mind as we evaluated OutSystems, explains Tom Mazzaferro, Chief Data and Innovation Officer at Western Union. 2023Western Union Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved. I have successfully directed virtual teams working on Mastercard integrations, Western Union and MoneyGram. Consumers can 'Send Now, Pay Later' by borrowing up to AUD 2000 through Beforepay's wage-advance product on Western Union's digital channels. Anil Santhapuri - Director of Skills Solutions, Global Talent Swanback said a . Youre starting to see that happen culturally. Increasingly, digital technology and mobile devices play a key role in these transactions. Thats changing. Thats not to say cloud is always cheap, it can be expensive but we have a very stringent Review Board to keep our costs in check, so cost reduction is something about which we are confident.. In the latest step in its digital journey, Western Union recently launched a bot that enables Facebook Messenger users in the United States to send money to more than 200 countries, across 130 currencies, from within the messaging app. The pilots help get buy-in across the organization, and then once we have that buy-in, it provides the resources necessary to scale. Its created a need for financial sector brands to step up and help by democratizing access to their services via mobile phones. Jay Jaffin was just starting his role as Western Unions chief marketing officer when the pandemic arrived. Beyond the public health crisis, COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on personal finances, causing poverty levels and inequality to rise globally. Its more about having the manager understand how the work actually gets done on the floor. Revenue from Western Union's digital money transfer services spiked from $600 million in 2019 to over $850 million in 2020. Western Union Announces Agreement to Sell Western Union Business Korea, United We have a lot of great ideas in terms of investments to drive that topline revenue growth, but we needed ways to fund those. Western Union is to shed its Business Solutions unit, with investment firms Goldfinch and Baupost set to acquire the business for $910 million in cash. Western Union. Digital transformation in the EU. In just 11 months, we delivered a full-service digital banking experience that expands our relationship with customers.. And when you have that, it becomes easier to have a stronger level of influence than you might otherwise expect with a small team, because everyone in the organization is clear that, whether youre working directly with the WU Way team or not, your job is to find ways for continuous improvement. Accelerating Digital Transformation in Western and Central Africa But it becomes more self-driven, and that really enables the scale.