Data-Driven AI: The Smart Path to Banking Automation 

We recently explored this challenge in our industry report on intelligent automation, and the pattern is clear. Most financial institutions don't lack ambition. They lack the operational insights to deploy AI where it actually matters.

Why AI Projects Miss the Mark 

Think about the typical AI journey. A bank invests in chatbot technology because "everyone's doing it," only to discover their customers still prefer human interaction for complex decisions. Or they automate document processing without realizing the real bottleneck sits in credit decisioning. These missteps don't just waste money—they shake confidence in digital transformation. 

Here’s what’s really happening: you're making transformation decisions without comprehensive data about your actual operations, customer behaviors, and performance compared to your peers. But there’s a better way. 

How nCino Helps You Spot High-Impact Opportunities 

What if you could see exactly where AI creates maximum value before spending on implementation? The nCino Platform does just that through our Operations Analytics feature. By analyzing your processes, timing, and customer interactions, our platform shows you where automation generates the highest ROI. This isn't guesswork. This is intelligence drawn from your operational reality, combined with insights from over 2,700 customers worldwide. An intelligence-first approach ultimately reveals: 

• Which processes consume the most staff time relative to value delivered 

• Where errors and rework happen most frequently 

• Which customer journeys have unexpected abandonment points 

• Where processing time variance indicates inconsistent procedures 

When Arrow Financial used this data-driven approach with our Deposit Account Opening solution, they achieved a 280% increase in accounts opened. They didn't automate everything—they automated the right things. 

Peer Benchmarking that Actually Guides Decisions 

Unlike generic industry surveys or vendor claims, our platform leverages Operations Analytics to provide real performance data from institutions exactly like yours—same asset size, markets, and product mix. Our anonymized, consent-based insights from thousands of institutions create benchmarking capabilities you won’t find anywhere else and ensure comparisons are meaningful, not misleading. 

• Operational Reality: See actual processing times for specific loan types in your market—not industry averages, but real peer performance. 

• Hidden Opportunities: One regional bank* discovered through benchmarking that their commercial loan processing lagged significantly behind peers, but only for specific loan types. This insight, invisible without comparative data, led to targeted improvements that moved them from bottom quartile to top performer. 

• Strategic Clarity: Know definitively whether your "good enough" strategy really is competitive. Stop guessing where you stand in the market. 

Unified Data Eliminates Blind Spots 

Fragmented data doesn't just slow decision-making—it makes effective AI implementation nearly impossible. When lending, deposits, and risk management operate in silos, you're asking AI to solve puzzles with missing pieces. 

The nCino Platform creates a single source of truth through: 

• Connected Operations: Customer data, lending history, documents, and interactions live in one intelligent system. Updates from anywhere reflect everywhere instantly. 

• Pattern Recognition: Insights emerge that were previously invisible, like deposit patterns predicting loan eligibility or recurring document types driving delays. 

• Adaptive Learning: Optimization tailored to your institution as the platform processes more of your data. 

• Proactive Insights: Forward-looking intelligence that flags risks and opportunities before they materialize. 

The Advantage of Acting Now 

Leading institutions using our intelligence-first approach report significant, quantifiable gains: 

• 92% reduction in loan servicing costs   

• 70% decrease in loan approval time  

• 75% reduction in time to spread financials   

By aligning data with automation, institutions eliminate wasted effort, accelerate time-to-value, and achieve outcomes that competitors with fragmented systems simply can't match.  

While these institutions accelerate ahead of competitors, those that delay risk: 

• Widening Performance Gaps: Every month you wait, automated peers get further ahead. 

• Talent Migration: Top employees prefer institutions with modern tools that reduce administrative burden. 

• Rising Customer Expectations: Digital-first competitors set new service standards daily. 

• Regulatory Complexity: Manual compliance and processes become more costly and risky each year. 

Proven Governance for Responsible AI 

Responsible AI requires oversight, but governance doesn't need to slow you down. Our risk-proportionate framework ensures appropriate review: 

• Low Risk (Tier 1): Internal process automation with streamlined review 

• Medium Risk (Tier 2): Customer-facing tools with human oversight and standard evaluation 

• High Risk (Tier 3): Automated decisioning systems with comprehensive review 

This framework, refined across thousands of implementations, meets regulatory expectations while maintaining momentum—transforming financial services through innovation, reputation, and speed. 

Start with Intelligence, Not Guesswork 

The difference between successful AI implementation and expensive failure isn't the technology—it's the intelligence behind deployment decisions.  

With nCino, you gain: 

• Clear visibility into your operations. 

• Benchmark data showing what's possible among your peers. 

• Prioritized recommendations for where automation delivers maximum value. 

By aligning intelligence with automation, institutions eliminate wasted effort, accelerate time-to-value, and achieve outcomes that competitors with fragmented systems simply can't match. 

Book Your Strategic Demo 

* Metrics are reported from customer data alone and reflect customer experience on the nCino Platform.