Customer Success

"iRise is a rapid, iterative definition solution that helped the bank get the most out of our Agile development approach. iRise lets us get more done faster."

– Alan Buffington, Executive Vice President, KeyBank

Background
KeyBank is one of the largest bank holding companies in the U.S. with managed assets in excess of $93B. A staunch believer in innovation-based performance, KeyBank EVP Alan Buffington advocates leveraging technology for competitive advantage. KeyBank is committed to building custom software, recognizing that packaged software solutions often to not live up to vendor promises and may not adapt well to unique processes within business units.

Challenge
KeyBank uses Agile methodology – a rapid, iterative software development approach – allowing the bank to produce smaller, more digestible project increments that are released on an accelerated but more predictable schedule. Although the company realized efficiencies through these processes, traditional text-based requirements documents and coded prototyping were not able to keep up with the fast pace of change dictated by an Agile approach. Working with remote team members, particularly those located offshore, resulted in communication difficulties based on distance, language and culture barriers. Seemingly straightforward concepts could be interpreted in multiple ways, holding up the approval process. Teams spent time and resources on rework, which negatively impacted schedules and the client's confidence in the development team.

iRise was introduced at KeyBank to augment its Agile processes with a visual definition solution designed to eliminate miscommunication and enable the bank to deliver its monthly sprint releases with predictability, keep the software roadmap on track and reap the full competitive benefits of building custom applications.

Result
With iRise, KeyBank realized a reduction in time to market, faster consensus building and shorter coding phases because developers understood what to build. Since its introduction at KeyBank, iRise has been used across a broad range of projects as a rapid, iterative definition solution that works hand-in-hand with Agile methods to speed approval, production and signoff. For one development initiative, the time savings was more than 30% including the iRise training. In all projects where iRise is being used, the tool has helped to improve the client relationship to build client trust and confidence in their development partners. Based on this success, KeyBank is now supporting the use of iRise across an even broader range of projects. From strategic planning and project buy-in to user training and customizing user interface solutions for multiple clients, iRise helps KeyBank employees visualize their ideas and speed innovative solutions to market.