DBS Bank Appoints Experienced Briton To Focus On IT Business Applications

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New DBS Managing Director was Previously CIO of Excel Communications of the US

SINGAPORE, SEPT 11 - DBS Bank said today that Steve Ingram, previously Chief Information Officer (CIO) of Excel Communications of the US, has joined DBS as Managing Director, Business Information Systems.

In this newly created post, Ingram, a Briton, will focus on improving operating efficiency, employee productivity, and service delivery. The Bank has invested a sizeable portion of its S$200 million annual technology expenditure in e-Business solutions, and retooling the organisation.

"Steve will spearhead the Bank's move to improve the scale and use of business applications on its current technology platform. With the technology infrastructure in place, we are sharpening our focus and intensifying our efforts on IT business development and applications. Steve has been brought in to lead and coordinate initiatives here from a user perspective, " said Senior Managing Director of Logistics, Soh Kim Soon.

While at Excel, Ingram was responsible for overall IT strategy development and business strategy alignment, managing the design, development and implementation of its enterprise business systems. He was also responsible for the operations and management of the IT infrastructure, covering local and wide area networks, and desktop and server management. Excel is one of the largest providers of telecommunications services in the United States, based in Dallas, Texas.

Prior to his appointment at Excel, Ingram served as CIO for US-based FirstPlus Financial Group, a specialized consumer finance firm. As director of the group's IT activities, he controlled an annual operating budget of US$55 million and introduced a number of new systems and processes.

From 1983 to 1998, Ingram held various senior positions with Ernst & Young in Australia and the USA. From 1983 to 1991, he served first as Senior Manager then Partner and Director of IT Consulting for Ernst & Young Australia. There, he focused on IT strategy formulation and life cycle consulting services to private and public sector organisations including Mobil, BP, Interflora, and the Australian Department of Defence. He was later made a Partner in the firm's National IT Practice in the US, served as Chief Technologist for Middle Market Consulting, and directed the firm's technology consulting services, focusing on high-growth companies.

In 1996, he was appointed to head Ernst & Young's Centre for Technology Enablement in Fairfax, Virginia, where he managed several portfolios including IT Transformation Services, IT Strategy & Architecture Development, Distributed Computing, Infrastructure Engineering and Deployment, and Technology R&D.

"We are very pleased to have Steve on board," said Soh. "His skills and experience complement our existing strong information technology capability. DBS needs to achieve a better balance between specification and fulfilment. Together with our information technology group, I expect Steve to play an important role as we move further and faster in a world increasingly driven by the Internet."