Introducing Scenario Thinking
To help our clients beat the curve Valentia Partners continually test ourselves by asking what might come next.
Authors
Things change quickly in Financial Services.
The industry is buffeted by changes in government policy and regulation, developments in technology and flux in the wider economy. The pivotal role of Financial Services organisations in helping individuals and businesses to navigate these, sometimes stormy, seas mandates that they are able to anticipate, adapt and overcome. Valentia Partners use Scenario Thinking to make sure we can stay ahead.
We confront scenarios like:
What could the advent of artificial intelligence mean for non-performing loans?
What might changes in data legislation mean for how banks engage with their customers?
How could we harness social media to deliver better products, services and outcomes for customers and shareholders alike?
These scenarios force us to look to the media, industry publications, academic literature, our clients and our imaginations to deconstruct the challenges they create. Once per month a team of our junior consultants, with whatever support they ask for, put together a response and set of recommendations to present back to the firm. What follows is an, often lengthy, discussion of the firm’s views on the topic that helps us to come to a consensus on how we feel this situation is best addressed, or at the very least a set of considerations and parameters that need to be evaluated further.
The challenge of dealing with nuanced scenarios and constructing coherent recommendations on a subject that is outside of the immediate client delivery encourages our junior consultants to remain abreast of developments in the industry. This is a major factor in the feedback we get from our clients that Valentia consultants are willing to and capable of delivering analyses, recommendations, projects and programmes at a level of seniority that far exceeds our competitors. This is not just down to the content knowledge generated through these sessions but also the conviction and gravitas required to effectively communicate findings to a critical audience and to listen and respond succinctly to their criticisms.
We don’t stick to a ritual of monthly scenarios just to keep our staff up to date, develop our junior consultants and make sure we’re ahead of the curve.
We do it because it’s fun! Valentia Partners is always on the look out for talented staff and we hire extremely selectively. The calibre of people we choose enjoy grappling with complicated, strategic questions and picking a way through a maze of competing factors and priorities. We hire people who have strong opinions and convictions and relish the opportunity to express them and be challenged on them.
Valentia Partners thrives on intelligent conversation and informed challenge to one another. The firm is better as a collective and Scenario Thinking has been a vital tool in keeping us together and getting the best out of one another throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
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