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Celent Model Bank is awarded for best practices of technology usage in different areas critical to success in banking, and is the main award that a financial institution (FI) can receive from Celent. It is an annual program celebrating its 14th anniversary in 2021.

We announced our 2020 Model Bank Winners at Innovation & Insight Day in April 2020.

For 2021, we are again looking for initiatives across all areas of banking, from improving customer experience to transforming legacy, and from new product ideas to innovations in operations and risk management. We do not ask nominees to select a specific category for the submission – the initiative will automatically compete for the most appropriate award as identified by Celent.

The nomination must be submitted by a Financial Institution (e.g. bank, credit union, card issuer, etc.). We welcome technology vendors to encourage their FI clients to participate, but vendors themselves are not eligible for an award.

The FIs are welcome to submit multiple nominations, but they must be substantively different. Do not submit the same initiative more than once.

There is no fee to submit the nominations.

The deadline for submitting a nomination is 11pm GMT on October 16, 2020. The winners will be announced publicly March 9-11, 2021.

We plan to recognise one institution as the overall Model Bank of the Year and up to 25 winners of specific awards. We reserve the right to change the number and types of the awards. The FIs do not have to specify which award they are applying for.

We judge the initiatives on three evaluation criteria: demonstrable business benefits, degree of innovation, and technology or implementation excellence.

Celent will work with each winner to publish a case study of their winning initiative, which will be available for Celent Banking research subscription clients. The FI will have the opportunity to review and approve the draft before publication.

For more information, please review our extensive FAQ section. If you still have any questions, please contact us at modelbank@celent.com.

Model Bank

Celent Model Insurer is awarded for best practices of technology usage in different areas critical to success in insurance, and is the main award that an insurance carrier can receive from Celent. It is an annual program, celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2021.

Celent Model Insurer is awarded for best practices of technology usage in different areas critical to success in insurance, and is the main award that an insurance carrier can receive from Celent. It is an annual program, celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2021.

We announced our 2020 Model Insurer Winners at Innovation & Insight Day in April 2020.

For 2021, we will be accepting nominations in five categories: Data, Analytics and AI, Digital and Emerging Technologies, Innovation Execution, Customer Experience Transformation, and Legacy and Ecosystem Transformation.

Data is now a key source of competitive advantage for identifying profitable niches, managing risk, and improving service. External data sources, data derived from devices, and new techniques for interpreting data are pushing the competitive boundaries for insurers at an accelerated rate. This theme recognizes projects such as:

Predictive analytics (claims fraud, underwriting, pricing, climate analysis)

Prescriptive analytics (triage, sales automation, “next best action”)

Virtualization (dashboards and heat maps, catastrophe management, network analysis, geopolitical risk analysis)

Innovative functionality enhancements for consumer digital platforms (e.g. mobile apps, online)

Artificial intelligence techniques used to achieve the next level of benefits (in underwriting, claims processing, fraud identification, propensity modeling)

Digital transformation is moving from person-to-person interaction toward person-to-machine or machine-to-machine. Integrating and coordinating among disparate and siloed delivery channels will be critical to satisfying ever-increasing customer expectations. Using the definition that digital automates complex tasks, allowing them to be mastered, then reproduced and distributed at no cost, this theme recognizes projects such as:

Celent defines innovation as fundamental changes to products, services, or business models that break existing tradeoffs and provide value to the customer. New hardware, software, and network technologies feed insurance innovation. This theme focuses on how insurers implement innovation and recognizes projects such as:

Programs aiming at innovation idea generation and prioritization

Partnerships or investment in innovation accelerators or incubators

Development of an innovation culture within an IT organization

Change management program to foster innovation

Transforming the customer experience is increasingly important to insurers who are looking to differentiate themselves and drive sustainable growth. This category looks at the work insurers are doing to improve the experience for prospects, policyholders, distributors, vendors and other constituents. This theme recognizes initiatives such as:

Simplification of the new business application process – e,g. data prefill, new UI, computer vision etc.

Implementation of new technologies to improve the customer experience – e.g. video communication, augmented reality for claims natural language processing, etc.

Implementation of new tools or services to provide new capabilities for customers e.g. connected home solutions, advice engines, social pay, etc.

Other initiatives that transform the customer experience.

Legacy technology can hinder innovation, since insurers must typically offer backward compatibility. Insurers must not only modernize, but also transform their internal systems and how they interact with customers, counterparties, and regulators. This theme recognizes projects related to core system replacement or transformation including:

Model Insurer

The Model Wealth Manager awards recognize best practices of technology usage in different areas critical to success in wealth management, and is the main award that a financial firm in the industry can receive from Celent.

The Model Wealth Manager awards recognize best practices of technology usage in different areas critical to success in wealth management, and is the main award that a financial firm in the industry can receive from Celent.

The deadline for submissions is 11pm GMT on October 16, 2020. Winners will be notified in November and announced publicly March 9-11, 2021.

For 2021, we will be accepting nominations in three categories: Client Experience, Products / Platform, and Emerging Technology.

Initiatives aimed at enriching the client journey and experience, across digital channels (e.g. online, mobile, social, etc.) and physical channels (e.g. branch, etc.), for wealth management clients. Example initiatives include:

Functionality enhancements for client platforms that enrich the client experience (e.g. mobile apps, seamless onboarding, online portal, etc.).

Enabling the self-directed client through social collaboration forums, hybrid advisory solutions, robust education portals, navigable digital layouts, and/or comprehensive reporting.

New products and/or platforms (or significant improvements to existing ones) for retail, HNW and family office clients, as well as innovation in their delivery. Example initiatives include:

Initiatives aimed at improving the capability to innovate and experimenting with new technologies that demonstrate promise to transform the business. Example initiatives include:

Implementing experiments/ proof-of-concept with emerging technologies, such as blockchain, robotics, machine learning, voice/language processing, artificial intelligence, etc.) and/or demonstrating support for emerging technologies (i.e. innovation labs).

Initiatives aimed at improving the bank’s capability to innovate and bring innovation culture into the organisation – e.g. collaborating with/ investing into Fintech, developer hackathons, etc.

Model wealth manager

The Model Risk Manager Awards recognize best practices use of technology in different areas critical to success in financial risk management, operational risk management, cross risk, and financial crime.

The Model Risk Manager Awards recognize best practices use of technology in different areas critical to success in financial risk management, operational risk management, cross risk, and financial crime.

There are three Model Risk Manager Nomination Categories, as below. Submissions to these categories may focus on any function or functions within financial and operational risk management and multiple winners are possible for each category.

Data is now a critical source for managing risk. Previously unused internal data as well as external data sources, data derived from devices, and new techniques for interpreting data are pushing the boundaries of risk management at an accelerated rate. This theme recognizes projects such as:

New or alternative sources of data for risk management

Data analytical techniques such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), and natural language generation (NLG)

Big data analysis tools, processes, and infrastructure

Digital transformation is moving from person-to-person interaction toward person-to-machine or machine-to-machine. Integrating and coordinating among disparate and siloed business lines and operational processes will be critical in managing risk efficiently. This theme recognizes projects such as:

Automation and robotic process automation (RPA)

Blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT)

Legacy technology can hinder innovation, since risk managers must typically offer backward compatibility. They must not only modernize, but also transform their internal systems and how they interact with internal users and stakeholders, customers and counterparties, and regulators. This theme recognizes projects related to system replacement or transformation including:

Financial crime – fraud, AML, trade surveillance

Examples of risk management functions are indicated below; this is not an exhaustive list.

Anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC)

Model risk manager

Every year, we recognize excellence in the usage of technology through our Model Insurer, Model Bank, and Model Wealth Manager Awards. This year we are also excited to announce a new category of Model Risk Manager. 

The awards recognize a financial institution’s effective use of technology in different areas, often representing a best practice, and are designed to answer the deceptively simple question: What would it look like for a firm to do everything right with today’s technology?

Of course, no firm is a “Model” firm across the board. Therefore, we focus on specific real-world examples of individual technology initiatives. Case studies for the winning initiatives will be presented through our annual reports detailing how and what they did to succeed.

The nomination process runs from June 2020 through October 16, 2020. Winners will be announced March 9-11, 2021 at Innovation & Insight Week.

For information on participating in any of the four award programs, simply click on the appropriate logo below or contact us at pr@celent.com

Every year, we recognize excellence in the usage of technology through our Model Insurer, Model Bank, Model Wealth Manager Awards, and Model Risk Manager.

CELENT Model Awards

Model Bank

Model Insurer

Model wealth manager

Model risk manager