VODW entered a partnership with TEDxAmsterdam. The theme of the 2013 TED conference is The Young. The Wise. The Undiscovered. In search for the most inspiring ideas auditions have just taken place.

Leading Spanish newspaper El Mundo features our article ‘Ante todos, los clientes’ (Customers first). article
Our article in Dutch MarketingTribune introduces the leverage points where banks and insurers can make customer centricity tangible. article

BANKNXT is all anout innovation in financial services. Other bloggers include Chris Skinner (the Finanser), Jouk Pleiter (Backbase) and Bradley Leimer (Mechanics Bank California). Join the movement!

Friday 27 April we will share our vision on the future of financial services at the International Cards and Payments Conference that takes place at Oxford University.
Tuesday 15 May we will discuss ‘The Future of Cooperation Models and Partnerships’ at EBADay, the annual conference of the Euro Banking Association in Edinburgh.
Wednesday 23 May we will give a guest lecture at Humboldt-Universität in Berlin and fly on to Moscow for a key note speech at the Russian Bankers Strategy Club on Thursday 24 May.

The Mobile Payments Guide 2012 ‘provides an in-depth look at the global mobile financial services ecosystem, with insights from key stakeholders and top-level industry thought leaders’. And for some reason we were also invited.
How the industry looks at mobile is a perfect example of Marshall McLuhan’s ‘horseless carriage syndrom’.
Read more in our article …
For the Mobile Payments Guide 2012, click here

MarketingTribune features our article with Jean-Noel Kapferer, branding guru and author of ‘The Luxury Strategy’, the book he wrote with Vincent Bastien, former CEO of Louis Vuitton (in Dutch).

Leading Russian financial magazine Analytical Banking Journal features a long article about Reinventing Financial Services. article
Spanish Borsadiner Professionales reports on the key note speech of Roger at a recent EFPA conference: new trends in asset management. article

We are pleased that the mauscript of the German edition of our book is now ready, and that so so many executives from leading instutions and highly acclaimed professors from Germany, Austria and Switzerland have contributed. Among others Roland Boekhout (ING DiBa), Christian Deuringer (Allianz), Markus Perlwieser (Deutsche Bank), Herbert Walter (former CEO Dresdner Bank), Horst Schmidt (Bethmann Bank), Amir Tabakovic (Schweizerische Post), Tilman Hengevoss (Zurich Financial Services), Otto Lucius (Karl Franzens University Graz), Marcel Beutler (Nettobank – Wegelin), Hans-Peter Schwintowski (Humboldt University Berlin), Matthias Kroener (Fidor Bank), Gianfranco Bisagni (UniCredit Austria) and last but not least Egbert Deekeling (Deekeling Arndt Advisors). Stay tuned for the launch date!

‘Reinventer les Services Financiers’ is on the ‘recomended’ shelfs of all major bookstores, among others at Fnac and Virgin.

Backbase is the leading bank 2.0 software company.
Other advisory board members include Brett King, author of bestseller ‘Bank 2.0′

Third author for this edition Karina Milare and Fabricio Fudissaku of TNS Brasil added a lot of research data and best practices from Brazil.
Furthermore it includes additional interviews and contributions from thought leaders such as Fabio Barbosa (former CEO Banco Real), William Salasar (Febraban – Federation of Brazilian Banks), Berry Marttin (Member executive board Rabobank Group) and Johnson Marques de Sousa (Mapfre).
The book is expected to launch in May.

Banking Review features our article on implementing customer centric change. We identified over 50 leverage points across the organisation where customer centricity shoud be tangible. Very useful to identify where you are now and to set the roadmap to a customer centric future. Read more…

This week’s MarketingTribune includes an article about the challenge of private banks. They need to redefine their business model in view of increasing costs transparency. At the same time they need to anticipate rapidly changing consumer demands.
Read article

‘Muchas entidades financieras sufren una crisis de identidad’ is an interview in financial newspaper Expansion. Banks in many countries are experiencing an identity crisis. Also in Spain.
Read article

Today we met with the French financial press. Benoit Legrand, CEO of ING Direct France, presented latest research. Proximity paradox: 55% of French consumers feel their bank is close to them. Customers of online bank ING Direct: 74%. Who needs branches?

From left to right: Roger, Benoit Legrand, Caroline Ollivier-Lamarque and Reggy.

Co-author Caroline Ollivier-Lamarque organised a cocktail at Galerie Le Feuvre, in the middle of the Paris fashion district, to thank the contributors of the French edition. Drinks and finger food while discussing the latest country credit ratings, enjoying the art of JonOne and Lu Peng and of course … the book
Do visit the gallery when you are around. Franck Le Feuvre just composed a new exhibition: AmerIKONology. www.galerielefeuvre.com

Dutch magazine Balans, issued by Van Lanschot Bankiers, features an interview about the (perceived insufficient) added value of private bankers.

The Russian edition of our book continues to generate publicity.
‘Focus and simplicity are keys to success’ in Tinkoff Live Journal features the interview with Oliver Hughes, president of the bank Tinkoff Credit Systems, that is also in the book.
‘Banks hunt for customers in supermarkets’ in World News (Kazachstan) and ‘Banks disguised … like supermarkets’ in Rosbank Journal are actually identical, apart from the title (we found out).

The launch of the Russian edition of our book was well covered by the financial press in Russia. Check out articles in Bankir, Arguments and Facts, and in Finparty. All in Russian by the way …

Each year Management Team magazine asks Dutch executives to rank their consultants. We are proud that for the second year on a row VODW has been awarded a number 1 position.