From friction to flow: A DevOps journey in enterprise banking

Challenge: Implementing DevOps at scale

In 2024, a leading financial institution recognised that it needed to significantly change its strategy to elevate its IT products and services and transform its customer and employee experience. As things stood, the limitations of mobile apps and online banking platforms frustrated customers, and employees found delivering outstanding customer service difficult due to poorly performing internal service and sales tools.

The bank moved rapidly and began to implement Agile methodologies. However, it faced serious challenges adapting its workflows because it was still heavily reliant on traditional waterfall processes. It was clear the best route forward was a comprehensive transformational process to achieve an enhanced delivery pipeline and streamlined development processes that would boost customer satisfaction.

Putting customer value at the heart of this transformational programme, the bank was determined to make the best possible use of DevOps practices to revolutionise its entire Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). It evaluated every proposed change to determine how much it would benefit customers, shorten lead times, increase release frequency, improve quality and boost employee satisfaction. Leveraging Test & DevOps coaching to design and make this radical change was crucial to the bank’s success

Our approach: Three phases to DevOps success

We proposed a process divided into three key phases:

1. Assessment and planning

The initial phase involved a comprehensive analysis of existing workflows across various teams. This included mobile applications, mainframe solutions and internal support systems, to identify areas for improvement. Detailed plans enhanced each stage of the SDLC, from development to deployment.

2. Process redesign

Then, our experts focused on developing a tailored DevOps approach in close collaboration with all stakeholders, including C-level executives. The core objectives of this phase were to build cross functional teams, align business goals with technical objectives and embed Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) principles. During this process, our experts fostered and supported a culture of collaboration and shared responsibility. They knew how important this partnership approach was to any successful DevOps implementation.

3. Coaching and hands-on support

The final phase involved extensive coaching and hands-on support across all layers of the business. Our team conducted comprehensive training sessions and workshops, focusing on key areas such as Test-Driven Development (TDD), Behaviour Driven Development (BDD), Clean code principles, Agile principles and practices, DevOps principles and practices and test automation strategies. These sessions were designed to equip bank teams with the necessary skills and knowledge to implement DevOps practices effectively. Additionally, teams received coaching on essential soft skills such as collaboration, communication and creating short feedback loops, which are central to the DevOps mindset.

Results: How DevOps transformation boosted banking customer experience

Implementing DevOps practices delivered significant improvements across the bank, driven by more frequent releases and adjustments based on customer feedback.

Customer and employee impact: Faster delivery of features and improved loan processing boosted customer satisfaction, increased loan application conversion rates and strengthened market competitiveness. Internally, a more collaborative and transparent environment improved employee engagement, team morale, retention and overall stability.

Operational and technical benefits: Adopting CI/CD and XP principles increased release frequency, reliability, and time-to-market. Key improvements included shorter feedback cycles, focused work periods, higher quality outputs and reduced rework, resulting in faster results and stronger connections between staff and their products.

By systematically addressing each phase of the DevOps transformation- from assessment to hands-on implementation – the bank achieved not only technical improvements but also a lasting cultural shift that enhanced software delivery across the organisation.