Banking & Financial Services · Branch Tech / Customer Self-Service · Scotiabank
Branch Tech / Customer Self-Service Project Manager Simulation — Scotiabank
Lead a $1.5M pilot deploying customer self-service kiosks — deposits, transfers, and balance inquiries — across 10 Scotiabank branches in the Greater Toronto Area. The hardware is the easy part; the real work is winning over district and branch managers whose customer-satisfaction scores are on the line during the transition, while clearing accessibility and InfoSec review before the first kiosk goes live. Gain hands-on project management experience over 27 days of real decisions, stakeholders, and PMO deliverables — no prior experience required.
The scenario
Scotiabank operates one of Canada's largest branch networks, and like every major bank it is trying to shift routine transactions — deposits, transfers, balance checks — away from the teller line and toward self-service, so branch staff can spend their time on the advice and relationships that actually grow the business. The Branch Experience Modernization Program has funded a $1.5M pilot to test that shift: customer-facing self-service kiosks from Diebold Nixdorf installed across ten branches in the Greater Toronto Area over sixteen weeks. The technology is well understood and the vendor contract is already signed. What makes this hard is everything around the hardware. Ten branches means ten branch managers and the district VPs above them, and those leaders are measured on customer-satisfaction scores — so a single confused customer at a new machine is a personal risk to them, not an abstract one. The kiosks are customer-facing hardware in a regulated environment: they must clear accessibility review under AODA and WCAG 2.1 AA and pass InfoSec and PCI-DSS sign-off before a single customer can use them, and neither review has started. The previous attempt to modernize the self-serve corner stalled for exactly these reasons. You are the IT Project Manager. The kiosks will arrive whether or not the field wants them. Your real job is to make ten skeptical branches want what you're delivering — without skipping the accessibility and security reviews that protect the customers using them.
What you'll do as the project manager
- →Install and activate self-service kiosks at all 10 GTA pilot branches within the 16-week window
- →Migrate at least 35% of routine deposit, transfer, and balance-inquiry transactions to the kiosks within 60 days of each branch's go-live
- →Hold each branch's customer-satisfaction (CSAT) score within 2 points of its pre-pilot baseline through the transition
- →Pass AODA / WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility review and InfoSec / PCI-DSS sign-off before every branch go-live — no waivers
- →Deliver the pilot within the $1.5M approved budget and produce a go / no-go recommendation for national Phase 2
Project management skills you'll build
The challenges you'll navigate
- •Field resistance — district VPs and branch managers are measured on CSAT and see the kiosks as a personal risk during the transition. The 2019 self-serve refresh died for this reason
- •Compressed first-branch date — the ~2-week go-live target was set before anyone confirmed accessibility and InfoSec reviews could be completed in time
- •Accessibility compliance — customer-facing hardware must meet AODA and WCAG 2.1 AA; a gap discovered late could block go-live or, worse, surface in front of a customer
- •Vendor dependency — hardware delivery and on-site installation sit entirely with Diebold Nixdorf; any slip cascades into every branch date
- •Adoption / CSAT dip — customers pushed to an unfamiliar machine may complain before they adapt, and the complaint lands on the branch manager first
Technology & stakeholders
You'll manage 7 stakeholders, including Pegah Babaie (VP, Retail Client Enablement), Diane Lefebvre (Director, Branch Technology & Channel Delivery), Donna Iannelli (District Vice President, GTA Central District), and more.
What you'll walk away with
A verified, shareable record of a completed enterprise project — plus the PMO deliverables you produced along the way (charter, project plan, SteerCo deck, closure document). It's real, demonstrable project management experience you can put on your resume and speak to in interviews.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need project management experience to start?
No. This simulation is built for aspiring and practicing project managers alike — you learn by doing. You make real decisions and get feedback, with no PMP or prior PM job required.
How long does this simulation take?
It runs over 27 days, roughly 24 minutes per day, covering the full project lifecycle from initiation to closure.
What will I learn?
You practice the core of project management — stakeholder management, budget and schedule control, risk, scope, and PMO governance — in the context of branch tech / customer self-service in banking & financial services.
Is this based on the real Scotiabank?
It's a realistic scenario inspired by Scotiabank and the Banking & Financial Services sector. Details and names are fictionalized for training — it's a simulation, not a record of any actual project.
What do I get at the end?
A verified project completion plus the PMO deliverables you produced (charter, plan, SteerCo deck, closure) — proof of hands-on experience you can show employers.
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