Customer Focussed Innovation for Financial & Professional Services
Learn practical innovation and service design skills that help financial and professional services teams create better client experiences, deepen relationships and drive sustainable growth.
This CMI Level 5 Skills Bootcamp helps managers and leaders understand their customers more clearly, design better services and turn ideas into action. Participants work on live challenges from their own organisation, so every session connects directly to real work and real clients.
Government funding is available for eligible employers through the Skills Bootcamps initiative.
Who is it for?
This programme is designed for managers and senior professionals in financial and professional services who want to improve customer experience and innovation capability.It is ideal for:
- Leaders and managers in customer, client services, operations, product, marketing or customer experience.
- Teams who want to strengthen client relationships, improve retention and attract new audiences.
- Organisations that want to build internal capability to design and deliver better services without always relying on external consultants.
Outcomes for your organisation
This Skills Bootcamp is designed to help you:
- Improve customer engagement and retention through better designed services and experiences.
- Strengthen and differentiate value propositions so your organisation can stand out in a competitive market.
- Build internal capability so teams can continue to innovate and improve customer journeys over time.
What will you learn?
By the end of the programme, participants will have developed practical skills they can use immediately in their role.They will learn how to:
- Understand customers more deeply and use insight and journey mapping to shape services around real client needs.
- Use practical innovation and service design methods to generate, test and refine ideas with confidence.
- Communicate ideas and impact clearly so stakeholders understand the value of change and are more likely to support it.
How the programme works
This is a 10-week blended learning programme. It combines live online workshops, in person sessions and individual coaching so that participants can learn together and then apply ideas in their day-to-day work.The structure includes:
- Live online workshops focused on core concepts, tools and discussion.
- In person sessions where teams work together on real customer and service challenges.
- Individual coaching to help each participant apply learning to their own organisation and role.
Throughout the programme, each participant works on a live challenge from their organisation. This keeps the learning practical and ensures that projects are relevant to current priorities.
Learners work towards a CMI Level 5 qualification in innovation, with a strong focus on real world application. Government funding is available to cover 70-90% of the tuition fee per learner for eligible employers.
Contact us to find out more.
Programme Highlights
During the Skills Bootcamp participants will:
- Understand customers, map journeys and identify opportunities for customer focussed innovation in financial and professional services.
- Design and test improved services and value propositions that balance customer needs, regulatory requirements and commercial goals.
- Plan how to communicate ideas, gain buy in and turn successful concepts into practical changes in their organisation.
Meet your tutors
Our tutors bring a blend of industry experience, innovation expertise and communication skill. They create a supportive environment that encourages experimentation, reflection and honest conversation.
Martin is an experienced advisor on design led change and innovation in financial services. He has held senior roles in large financial institutions and consultancies and has led teams working on customer experience, service design and transformation. Martin brings deep knowledge of how regulated organisations work and how to make innovation practical rather than hypothetical.
Madelaine is an innovation specialist and tutor at Estu. A graduate of the Royal College of Art and a successful entrepreneur, she helps learners apply creative thinking in a grounded, commercial way. Madelaine is known for making innovation tools accessible and for helping teams turn insight into clear, testable ideas.
Fiona is a communication and presence coach who helps leaders communicate with clarity and confidence. She uses techniques drawn from theatre and performance to help learners tell their story, connect with their audience and handle challenging conversations. Her sessions support participants to present their ideas and impact in a compelling way.
Quick facts
Ready to make an impact?
If you want your teams to design better customer experiences and services, this Skills Bootcamp is a practical way to start. The programme gives your people the tools, confidence and support they need to understand clients more deeply, design better services and turn ideas into action.