AN AGILE TRANSFORMATION
Stephen White
AN AGILE TRANSFORMATION
To continue its legacy of supporting communities as well as being proactive in competing and innovating across a new market , it ’ s important YBS puts the proper foundations in place . White has led a significant restructure to streamline operations and foster a culture of innovation and teamwork . “ It was about ensuring we had the right structure to take the organisation forward in an agile way ,” he explains . White has taken his learnings from five years in Asia and Australia earlier in his career and used this experience of innovation to lead the culture transformation of YBS .
White is joined at the Leeds office by a cardboard cut-out called James . James is YBS ’ ‘ customer in the room ’, present in meetings to ensure teams remain conscious of the impact their ideas and decisions will have on the customer . Even for a C-level exec , it ’ s an important reminder . “ We ’ ve done all this change – branch closures , brand closures , system migrations , investments – while still maintaining or improving customer satisfaction ,” he says . “ That ’ s why we ’ re here : to have 21
EXECUTIVE PROFILE
Stephen White
Stephen White is COO and Executive Director at Yorkshire Building Society Group ; he is also the Chairman of the YBS mortgage broker Accord . Having joined the company in February 2016 he has been involved in a significant culture shift surrounding the group ’ s technology transformation journey to promote innovation and better serve its customers . Prior to his role at YBS , White was Group Chief Operating Officer for Allied Irish Bank ( AIB ). He also brings a plethora of experience from the innovative Asia Pacific region , with eight years at National Australia Bank under his belt .
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