Case study: Implementing large-scale agile working transition in the banking sector

In 2005, as part of its corporate real estate strategy and driven by a desire to realise property cost efficiencies, RBS started the process of introducing Intelligent Working, its own flavour of Agile Working, into its operations in the UK and around the world. While Agile Working had gained significant traction in technology industries over a period of 25 years, where there were positive commercial drivers and few technology barriers, its implementation within financial services has been limited. In financial services traditionally there has been an array of complexities which made introducing Agile Working more challenging and most forerunners of RBS have had limited success beyond pathfinder projects. Regulatory constraints, complex technology and information security and privacy policies are just some of the added complexities that need addressing before Agile Working can be introduced successfully. Possibly the biggest reason for a lack of traction has been the perception by some leaders that there have been no good business reasons to change. From the initial implementation of Intelligent Working which was limited to ‘in-office’ mobile working, RBS's most recent incarnation is now being adopted as a wide-ranging cultural programme embracing all varieties of working, both in and out of the office, facilitated by a true fusion between technology, human resources and real estate, which has given a real business purpose. From a standing start in 2005, well over 12,800 colleagues have adopted some form of Intelligent Working. The challenge now is to make Intelligent Working part of the culture for all RBS's global team of more than 140,000 people, and become simply ‘the way we do things here’.