Northwind Mutual
A core banking migration that was cancelled — correctly
The replacement was cancelled. A targeted modernisation of the four highest-cost components delivered 80% of the benefit for under a fifth of the budget.
- capital not committed
- £11m
- from start to board decision
- 4 weeks
- of benefit, 18% of cost
- 80%
Problem
A board-approved £14m core banking replacement, twelve weeks from contract signature, with no independent view of the business case.
Solution
A four-week diagnostic covering the true cost of the existing estate, the migration risk profile, and three alternatives including doing nothing.
Result
The replacement was cancelled. A targeted modernisation of the four highest-cost components delivered 80% of the benefit for under a fifth of the budget.
The uncomfortable engagements are the ones worth writing up. Northwind asked for an independent read on a programme that was already approved, staffed and three signatures from starting.
How the work ran
- Cost-to-serve analysis on the existing core, broken down by component rather than reported as one number.
- Migration risk modelled against three comparable programmes in the sector, including the two that overran.
- Three costed options presented side by side: full replacement, targeted modernisation, and no change.
- A recommendation the board could act on without us — and did.
What made the difference
We were engaged for four weeks and recommended against the work that would have followed. Northwind has since engaged us twice on the modernisation itself, which is the argument for saying the difficult thing early.
“They told us in week three that the migration we had scoped would not pay for itself, and showed the working. That conversation saved us about eight months.”
Priya Raghavan
Chief Technology Officer, Northwind Mutual