Integrated Custom Research Services
With Sylver Consulting, there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to innovation. After analyzing a client’s objectives, we custom-design the best way to reach his/her goals. Often times a variety of techniques are necessary to get the answers you need. For example, Innovation Planning Workshop sessions need research to jump start ideation and solution development, while some research programs need workshops to help make sense of data gained in the field.
Our strength is in qualitative research methods, such as Design Ethnography, and innovation planning, yet we have an extensive partner network offering skill sets as vast and varied as quantitative research, product and system prototyping, on-the-fly sketching, operational planning and business analysis. This enables us to take any approach necessary to produce the answers you need. We’re also well connected to a variety of subject matter experts, enabling us to offer direct and knowledgeable feedback on any new direction you may be pursuing.
Case Study
Client: ABN AMRO/LaSalle Bank
Division: Transactional Banking
Assignment
Sylver was tasked with identifying opportunities for extending existing products or developing new ones to better serve the accounts payable and cash management needs of the bank’s middle-market clients.
Approach
Sylver began by exploring the accounts payables and cash management needs of middle-market organizations in the manufacturing, distribution and retail sectors. We conducted in-depth, on-site research with eight middle-market organizations, each of which was focused on understanding the spoken and unspoken needs of their clients as it related to daily processing of invoices and cash forecasting activities. In addition, we conducted a focus group of 15 additional middle-market companies to further validate and test emerging hypotheses. Then we held a series of workshops to translate customer insight gained from the research into new product development/service opportunities for the bank. Finally, we launched a quantitative online survey to a larger representation of the bank’s clientele, providing a statistically-based understanding of which opportunities emerging from the research had the most value to middle-market organizations.
Outcomes
Research insights led to a number of new offerings and educational efforts pursued by ABN AMRO. One of these new products was CashPro Accelerate®, which assists organizations in downloading cash reports from various accounts into a single Excel-based cash position worksheet, saving them a significant amount of time on a daily basis.
“Sylver Consulting went well beyond providing expert guidance on Ethnographic Research, strategically translating the research into results for the Bank and its customers. Sylver Consulting brings creativity, excellent facilitation skills and a strong ability to tailor their work to the unique needs of the client, which are key ingredients to ensure a successful outcome. On-time, on-budget completion of complex projects are achieved through the energy and dedication that Sylver Consulting brings to the table.”
- C.M., Executive Vice President, ABN AMRO/LaSalle Bank
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