ANZ has announced the implementation of a Scaled Agile approach to organise work within its Australian division and to respond to customer expectations with improved speed and efficiency.

ANZ is applying the leading Scaled Agile business approach used by companies including Google, Spotify,  and financial services firms ING and ABN AMRO to up its agenda to better engage staff and provide further efficiency and simplicity to its digital offerings.

Close to a quarter (20 per cent) of the big bank’s technology and digital projects including Apple Pay have already used the approach, which ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliot said had helped transform its offerings.

“In the digital age, customer expectations are being redefined by their experiences with businesses like Amazon and Apple,” he said.

“We need to break with some of the traditional 20th century approaches to organising and working to ensure we are more responsive to 21st century customer expectations.

“Moving to implement the agile approach at scale in our business is an important evolution in how we run ANZ which will allow us to respond much more quickly to customer needs, create higher staff engagement and make further improvements in efficiency.”

Elliot said the motivation for the introduction of the approach was the removal of a hierarchical work structure.

“The use of agile will mean a much less hierarchical ANZ, one built around small, collaborative, self-directed teams focussed on delivering continuous improvement in the customer experience,” he said.

“Our agile-based transformation will initially be focussed on the Australia Division. Building on our pilot projects, we plan to launch it at scale within the business in early 2018.”

ANZ managing director products, Kath Bray, has been appointed to lead the agility transformation project.