By Toby Bowers
ING DIRECT, one of the most innovative customers that we work with, has for some time had a very purposeful strategy of transforming its business with the help of the cloud, which it sees as a key enabler for innovation. Today it’s taking another step forward as it put its ‘Zero Touch’ initiative into action, with the help of Microsoft’s private cloud solutions.
Zero Touch is a major overhaul of ING DIRECT’s entire infrastructure that involves transferring its systems into a private cloud – which ING DIRECT says is a first for an Australian bank. The project reflects a simplification of ING DIRECT’s Production environment, providing new computing, network and storage infrastructure.
ING DIRECT’s COO Simon Andrews says the move will have an immediate impact on the bank’s operational capability and in the medium to long term ING DIRECT customers will see a real benefit in the form of improved service standards and an increased capacity for the bank to deliver product and service enhancements.
Zero Touch builds on ING DIRECT’s “Bank in a Box” innovation, a ground breaking solution that virtualised Developement and Test environments providing the bank with an accelerated and cost efficient means of delivering new products and services.
Within the ING community, this Australian originated project is viewed as best practice and will likely be implemented in other ING businesses around the world.
