Odeabank invests in Webex for secure hybrid work in the cloud

Odeabank is the youngest and most celebrated bank in Turkey, and in just a few years, it has garnered a record number of awards, including International Finance Magazine’s “Best Customer Service” honor. It’s easy to see why Odeabank has developed a reputation as the most innovative and disruptive player in Turkey’s banking sector, despite not being the largest bank. However, staying ahead of the competition requires not only forward thinking but also the ability to embrace best-in-class technology that can keep stride in a fast-paced industry. “We are focusing on pace and agility, on the development of banking processes” says Cagin Cirikciel, Head of Odeabank’s IT Infrastructure Teams. “We are building more new products faster than the big banks, and I think in some areas such as investment banking, we are outpacing the big banks.”

Powering secure hybrid work in the financial services industry

To accomplish their goals, Odeabank needed a secure collaboration platform that could power hybrid work. Banks have additional levels of security they must comply with, and that can bring challenges all their own. Odeabank addressed those challenges head-on. They turned to Cisco and Webex for the technology they needed. With Cisco’s world-class security products, they were able to meet extremely stringent criteria. “We have strict regulations in Turkey,” notes Tonyukuk Ozden, IT Network Security Manager at Odeabank. “We must keep our data in the country. So, the cloud application and finance area is very hard to deploy. However, we found a solution with Cisco – that offered the KMS technology, the key management system, which allows us to easily encrypt our data and messaging data with our own certificate.” With Webex, Odeabank found the collaboration solution it had been searching for. “Webex gives us the ability for all the banks to collaborate,” Cirikciel explains. “For example, our treasury department and our IT managers can communicate in the best way. Even when needing to work remotely they can meet on a secure video conference or send a quick message or securely share a file in the Webex App and continue to build products for the bank.”

Accelerating hybrid work and business goals with Webex

Speed and agility have also improved since Odeabank adopted Webex. Odeabank is utilizing the entire Webex Suite including Webex Meetings, Messaging, and calling. “Everything is in one platform. We can reach anyone in the bank very easily,” says Cirikceil. “I can say our efficiency has grown because all stakeholders—business partners, business teams, IT teams, and any other participant can collaborate very simply and easily. Before the Webex cloud, we were communicating using separate systems. Now we can bring all these together under one platform in the Webex App, which has increased our efficiency.” Odeabank also organizes large meetings and team gatherings with Webex Webinars. These meetings range from internal sales team presentations to engaging customer connection events. “Webex Webinars have made daily life much easier and helped us to achieve our business goals,” says Cirikciel.

Bank runs smoothly during pandemic and hybrid work era thanks to Webex

The Webex solution worked wonders for Odeabank during the pandemic. “When the pandemic came, Odeabank responded quickly. We gave our employees laptops and mobile devices, and quickly adopted the Webex platform,” Ozden says. “Everybody was happy because there was no interruption to our workflow while our employees went home.” The Odeabank team also appreciated the fact that Webex integrated with the other apps and tools they used regularly. “The pandemic could have caused chaos in the bank if we couldn’t communicate. Webex integrates easily with many other applications and so this was critical for us,” says Cagin. And now that they’ve transitioned to hybrid work, Odeabank has a collaboration solution with Webex that works with the many devices they use at home and in their offices. “If you visit our branches, we have countless devices connected to our Webex cloud account. These devices range from third-party headsets to desk phones and personal mobile devices. The experience with any device on Webex has been great for our branch employees,” Ozden says. “Our colleagues collaborate daily with their office. We have video-featured desk phones so everybody can connect and meet easily with those devices.” Odeabank loves the super quality Webex secure video conferencing delivers. “We chose Webex because of its abilities. It is reliable and it has great quality,” Cagin says. The only downside? “One colleague told me, “’Now I need to shave every morning because Webex has such a brilliant picture!’” Cagin jokes.

The future of hybrid work for the banking industry

Webex will continue to be a crucial part of Odeabank’s workflow going forward. “Lots of our workers will continue to be remote,” says Cagin. “Some branch employees will go to the office, but we will have a minimal number of employees in our headquarters. Webex is important as we look ahead and we are so grateful to have a fully functional hybrid work model.”