It is October 1999 and ING DIRECT, a retail bank, is growing fast and expanding into new geographic markets. Martin Vonk, the CIO, must decide how to manage IT systems to support the growth of the bank. ING DIRECT’s strategy is to deliver simple products with no fees and very competitive rates, so IT and other infrastructure costs must be managed carefully. But a lack of investment or poor IT investment decisions could constrain the bank’s ability to grow within the countries it serves, or to expand into new countries. A key issue in the case is how to define the governance of IT in the bank. Who should make decisions and how should they be made? How do you define the priorities for the IT organization? This case is designed to be used with the companion case ING DIRECT: Your Other Bank (IMD-3-1343).
