The BNP Paribas Group is constantly offering innovative solutions to its customers. It is in this sense that the HACKDAYS Open Innovation program was set up. This program was part of a global transformation that they wanted to achieve, affecting both the way they interact with their customers and their internal processes for maximum efficiency.
The different activities that were carried out as part of this Open Innovation program are the following
The identification of the challenge which was focused on two main important themes for the bank:
"The bank of the future" and "the autonomous customer".
- BMCI Hackathon
The Hackathon was organized at the BMCI headquarters for 48 hours, during which five teams were selected to compete with the winning team of the BICICI Hackathon of the BNP Paribas Group in Côte d'Ivoire, in Abidjan also organized by LaStartupFactry.
- Bootcamp
A bootcamp was carried out during 3 days, with a tailored coaching to strengthen the selected projects.
- Demo Day
Demo Day to present the projects to a jury composed of members of the BMCI executive committee and members of BNP Paribas IRB. The choice fell on 3 teams, two Moroccan teams and one Ivorian team.
At the end of the Demo Day, the 3 finalist teams were integrated into a 12-week acceleration program carried out at the digital canteen, to develop the final product. This program was a great opportunity to get internal bank employees, startups, aspiring entrepreneurs and students to work together on an African scale to combine the expertise, business experience, creativity and agility of all. Throughout this Open Innovation program, several BMCI employees and digital experts have also contributed to the mentoring of the different teams, in order to make the experience more rewarding. Through this second phase of the Open Innovation Program, BMCI was able to confirm its positioning as a bank committed to innovation at the service of the Moroccan economy, having a positive impact on the development of the startup ecosystem by combining the bank's expertise and the creativity of young talent. At the end of this acceleration phase, BMCI has committed to the three startups for :
- A support in the creation of their legal entity in the framework of the contractualization
- Financing and support in the development of solutions in co-construction for the realization of the MVP (Minimum Viable Product)
- Support on agile and lean startup methodology to promote acculturation to innovation and digital
Throughout the Open Innovation program, several BMCI employees and digital experts from LaStartupFactory contributed to the mentoring of the different teams in order to make the experience more rewarding. By encouraging innovation both internally and externally, the group has been able to bring out great ideas to find concrete solutions for its customers, which are now industrialized at BMCI with the support and guidance of LaStartupFactory.
The solutions implemented at BMCI are the following:
B SENSEI: a mobile solution that provides personalized financial support to manage budgets and reach savings goals. This solution is inspired by a traditional Japanese budget management technique called "Kakebo". Note that this startup is composed of an entrepreneur and an internal BMCI employee who has become an intrapreneur.
BIFREE: A mobile application that facilitates access to ATMs and payment agents via geolocation.
HR Advisor: an application that acts as a companion for BMCI employees, thanks to an intelligent ChatBot that plays the role of an HR assistant available at any time to answer employees questions.
Laurent Dupuch, Chairman of BMCI's Board of Directors, said: "This program was a great opportunity to bring together, on an African scale, the bank's internal employees, startups, aspiring entrepreneurs and students to combine the expertise, business experience, creativity and agility of all. Throughout the Open Innovation Program, several BMCI employees and digital experts contributed to the mentoring of the different teams, in order to make the experience more rewarding. It is by encouraging innovation, both internally and externally, that we will bring out great ideas to find concrete solutions for our clients. "
Aalya Ghouli, Director of Marketing, Innovation, Digital and Strategy: "Our objective is to continually offer innovative solutions. This is why the Open Innovation program is part of a transformation that we want to be global, affecting both the way we interact with our customers and our internal processes for maximum efficiency. "
