Digital Transformation and Customer-Centric Innovations

Jason Hair, Chief Digital Officer at Westpac Group

Jason Hair, Chief Digital Officer at Westpac Group

Jason was appointed Chief Digital Officer of the Westpac Group in May 2021. He has over 25 years of experience in digital, direct, customer experience and transformation across financial services, retail, telco and financial market data industries.

Before Westpac, Jason was with the Woolworths Group leading their digital transformation and eCommerce functions. During this time, he was part of the team that transformed Woolworths from a traditional bricks and mortar retailer to the largest digital retailer in Australia.

Jason was also with Virgin Mobile as the chief operating officer and deputy CEO (South Africa) and director of customer service (Australia). He was also with Thomson Reuters (UK & Australia) in various managing director / global head roles in direct, digital and customer operations. He began his executive career in Financial Services with Citibank and HSBC.

He holds a masters in business administration from the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. He has completed the executive leadership program with Oxford University / Said Business School (UK) and has also completed the company directorsprogram with the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

As the Chief Digital Officer at Westpac Group, could you provide an overview of your role and responsibilities within the company?

I’m responsible for developing and driving Westpac’s digital strategy. This includes our digital offering for customers, such as the app, online banking and their overall digital experience with us. I’m also responsible for the digital platform for our bankers, making it easier for our bankers. Something I was very passionate about when joining the bank was implementing a uni channel concept. We focussed a lot on our digital offerings for customers, but I wanted to make those same experiences available for our bankers.

As a Chief Digital Officer, what are some of the key challenges you face in leveraging technology effectively?

Working for large, distributed organisations that have a lot of technology components, being able to deliver a succinct, seamless customer proposition is the most challenging aspect. If there was one core system with one front-end it would be a lot simpler. When you’vegot multiple back-end systems, the challenge is to ensure the customer’s experience at the front is consistent, usable, quick, and seamless.

With the rapid pace of technological advancements, how do you stay informed about emerging technologies and assess their potential impact?

I gain a lot of insight from both within financial services but also externally from other industries –locally and globally. In financial services, I read a lot about how other banks are using technology. I also tap into consulting houses who can provide some good insight. However, financial services is not as progressed as some other industries. For example, I learnt a lot of my craft and was exposed to a lot of innovation when I was working in the retail sector. Retail margins are thin, it’s a volume play and it’s about looking for greater share of wallet, so it forces you to be much more innovative and curious. As a result, I learnt a lot about digital innovation - everything from digital products and services to the application of robotics instore, and ways to be much more efficient and increase revenue.

What advice would you give to young professionals who are interested in pursuing a career in technology, and what qualities do you think are essential for success in this field?

The first piece of advice is ‘learn to code’. I didn’t learn to code because I fell into digital. I didn’t learn it as a career as it wasn’t really a career option when I was going to university.There’s lots of programs about coding out there, even in primary schools now. You don’t need to become a master in coding, just learn how to do it.

Second, look at how technology has changed or disrupted traditional business bases. I draw on the Kodak vs Fuji scenario where Kodak missed the opportunity on digital cameras, however Fuji saw it. So just be innately curious about how technology has transformed traditional business models.

In terms of qualities for success, for me it’s about curating the most authentic leadership profile you can. Early on in your leadership career, you want to be a domain expert. You want your expertise to be the reason that people follow you or listen to you. As you get older and more developed in your career, it’s about having a real sense of purpose, authenticity and being able to inspire people. This is what sets you apart from the leadership pack. Be true to yourself and curate authentic leadership within yourself to inspire others.

Financial services needto think more like a retailer in terms of how we can get deeper awareness of our customers - their wants, needs, and desires.

Any other key insights, topics, areas you’re passionate about that you would like to share with our readers?

Career highlights:

My career has provided the opportunity to work both locally and internationally. My career has been enriched with different cultures, markets, and industries. I started my career in financial services 25 years ago, but I left financial services for 17 years. During that time, I built three telcos and worked in retail. Being exposed to different cultures in this time has really driven my purpose around diversity and understanding people.

Being part of the biggest digital transformation in taking Woolworths from a very traditional bricks and mortar retailer to the largest online retailer in the country was a key highlight. At Westpac, in the two years since joining, we’ve taken the bank from number four to number two digitally.

Personal motivation:

I’m driven by making a difference. I am drawn by organisations that have a rich history, have strong cultural values and a deep sense of purpose, but are rediscovering their way and need a change agent. I want to leave Westpac a better place than when I joined and have an impact on people that I lead so they understand their true potential and inspire them. If you can harness that collective, you can make it a special place to work. You’ll never see me go and work for a company that’s number one, because the job’s done, I’m driven by being part of the underdog and getting them back to greatness.

Opportunities ahead:

Everything that’s happening around A.I. and generative A.I. is super interesting. We need to be thinking about the potential impact of coupling A.I. with quantum computing, in terms of the potential positive and negative implications for society.

Financial services need to think more like a retailer in terms of how we can get deeper awareness of our customers - their wants, needs, and desires. We need to drive loyalty and look for emerging business ideas that we can bring to our customers. Banking in 20 years is going to look very different, it’ll be less about traditional banking products and more about features which customers can pick and choose to suit their needs.

I always get asked ‘how do I get into digital?’ The answer is that you need to be innately curious and learn about it because digital applies to every business and every business model. Digital transformation can be done in any job and in every job. It’s not a discipline that you need to leave school and study and spend a whole career in. Everyone’s role will have a degree of digital transformation, now and into the future, so everyone should be super curious about how technology and digital can help them.

The role of people is never going to go away. Technology can’t be empathetic, it can’t replicate human emotion so people shouldn’t be scared about technology and technological advances in their role, they should be very curious about how it can help them. The role that people play in servicing customers and delivering for customers is always going to be there because of that human connection which we all crave.