Innovation Leadership Programme

About this programme

The Cambridge SupTech Lab Innovation Leadership Programme gives access to world-class online leadership education, ground-breaking research, new analytical frameworks, innovative digital tools for market intelligence and business analysis, the skills needed to manage the development of innovative products end-to-end, and the opportunity to build and deploy cutting-edge suptech applications.

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LEARN, EXPERIENCE AND BUILD

Over the course of nine weeks, you’ll develop a holistic understanding of financial technologies, the opportunities they provide, and the risks they bring. Through an immersive online experience that draws on real-world case studies, you’ll deepen your connection to technology and data science, and familiarize with the many dimension of digital transformation and product lifecycle management. You’ll experience design sprints, conduct suptech diagnostics, create proofs of concept for new applications… that you and your agency may well develop and deploy through the Programme.

October 2022

9 WEEKS

(7-8 hours/week)

Self-paced
Asynchronous
Online

Up your INNOVATION game. Maximize your impact

In our vision, effective digital supervision and regulation enable sound and sustainable delivery of innovative financial services, greater protection of consumers, and the pursuit of other policy objectives such as financial integrity and the oversight and mitigation of environmental and governance risks. Through this Programme, the University of Cambridge is providing experiential training and digital tools to establish a new community of leaders that will drive innovation in the financial sector for the decade to come.

As a Programme fellow — one of the Cambridge SupTech Lab Innovation Leaders — you will team up with peer supervisors, regulators, data scientists, and technologists from your agency and across jurisdictions to develop proofs of concept of impactful, scalable suptech applications for their capstone projects.

Some proofs of concept will be selected for production, procuring technology vendors that will work with the Lab’s team and the Innovation Leaders to bring their ideas to life.

WALK AWAY WITH A SUPTECH SOLUTION

Centered on leadership, change, and innovation, the 9-week curriculum is built around six modules that integrate interactive learning tools. After completing the Programme, participants will have completely developed suptech proofs of concept, some of which will be selected for full development and deployment — with sponsorships available. The Lab will assist with the selection and procurement of a technology vendor, management of the production phase, and testing of the application.

In the era of fintech and AI, the very same tools digitalizing the private sector and creating new supervisory risks could also be wielded by the supervisors themselves to mitigate these emerging challenges. The Lab’s Innovation Leaders should be able to break down departmental silos and address supervisory pains (“what do you dread about coming to work in the morning?”) creating solutions that bring transformative gains (“if you could snap your fingers and instantly change anything about your day, what would that be?”). In this course, we bring together the expertise of the supervisors, novel technologies, and a mindful approach to change management and product lifecycle management to actually build valuable cutting-edge suptech solutions. A unique feature for an executive Programme.

Matt Grasser, Programme co-Director

To drive deep transformation, we need to infuse in our work a new culture. Creating sustainable innovation with long-lasting impacts requires us to look beyond business cases and technical specifications. Agile development, Human-Centered Design (HCD), and other process-oriented techniques support the shift we aim to instigate in financial supervisory authorities. Also critical is a leadership style that nurtures cooperation, trust, and exploration, shaping an environment where creativity is harnessed, and people are empowered to bring innovation to life. For this reason, we have invited in the Programme communication techniques, embodiment exercises and consciousness-based practices to enable each of us to embody an evolved version of the Innovation Leader.

Simone di Castri, Programme co-Director

Curriculum

Introduction

1 week

Oct 17-21

GET ORIENTED AND INSPIRED

Familiarize with the scope, learning objectives and timeline of the Programme
Feel inspired to think beyond the boundaries of your day-by-day job
Explore the Digital Infrastructure Diagnostic Tool
Sketch capstones process with teammates

Introduction

1 week

Oct 17-21

Module 1

1 week

Oct 24-28

DATA AND TECHNOLOGY

Play with data and tech tools deployed in FinTech, RegTech and SupTech products
Describe data science best practices and key features of new technologies
Assess practical and ethical implications of tech, and the related opportunities and risks
Blueprint the "Data Stack" model for supervisory data management of your agency
Start working with members of your team and broader institution on the digital infrastructure diagnostic of your agency or department

Module 1

1 week

Oct 24-28

Module 2

1 week

Oct 31-Nov 4

FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGIES

CRYPTO, DIGITAL BANKING, ALTERNATIVE CREDIT SCORING, PEER-TO-PEER LENDING, DIGITAL PAYMENTS

Delve into emerging fintech products and business models
Discuss how they are reshaping the financial ecosystem

Module 2

1 week

Oct 31-Nov 4

Module 3

2 weeks

Nov 7-18

PARADIGM SHIFTS IN FINANCIAL SUPERVISION

5 ALTERNATIVE TRACKS

Elect
one
subject:

CONSUMER PROTECTION AND MARKET CONDUCT SUPERVISION
AML/CFT/PF SUPERVISION
PRUDENTIAL & BANKING SUPERVISION
PAYMENTS OVERSIGHT
CAPITAL MARKETS AND DIGITAL ASSETS SUPERVISION

Identify and weigh the main drivers of supervised risks within your jurisdiction
Describe, analyze and evaluate the supervisory framework implemented in your jurisdiction
Critically examine the impact of financial technologies on supervised risks
Characterize risks where SupTech applications could augment the supervisory capabilities of your agency

Module 3

2 weeks

Nov 7-18

Module 4

1 week

Nov 21-25

DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE DIAGNOSTIC

Present to peers your digital infrastructure diagnostic report

Module 4

1 week

Nov 21-25

Module 5

2 weeks

Nov 28-Dec 9

PRODUCT DESIGN

Apply product design best practices, including Human-Centered Design (HCD)
Develop your value proposition analysis
Familiarize with cutting-edge SupTechapplications implemented by different authorities
Lay out the specifications of SupTech applications that match the needs of your agency
Peer-review the proof of concept of your SupTech application

Module 5

2 weeks

Nov 28-Dec 9

Module 6

1 week

Dec 12-16

AGILE PROTOTYPING AND APPLICATIONS DEVELOPMENT

Apply product lifecycle management best practices, including Lean Product Management
Elaborate a strategy for change management related to the applications you aim to implement, identifying dependencies and roles that are critical for the success your SupTech project
Assess strategies for vendor selection, and identify the optimal choice for development of your suptech application
Collaborate with peers and explore creative approaches to product development

Module 6

1 week

Dec 12-16

INNOVATION LEADERSHIP

(every week)

Expand your leadership vision and skills to nurture creativity, innovation and collaboration in your agency
Become a more effective communicator and a more confident decision-maker
Develop the self-awareness and emotional intelligence of an embodied leader

CAPSTONES & APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT

Every week you and your teammates will work on your capstone projects designing proofs of concept of cutting-edge, scalable suptech applications
The Lab will run competitions to crowdsource ideas that complement the Capstones and identify vendors for the implementation of the solutions
Several solutions receive sponsorship for prototyping and deployment

Programme Lecturers and Guest Speakers

Technologists, policy and regulatory experts, economists, entrepreneurs, researchers, product managers, designers, data scientists, coders, and business strategists with global and local expertise will lead the delivery of the curriculum.

Leveraging their first-hand experience and practical case studies from around the world, they will provide foundational knowledge of fintech business models and products, institutional data architectures and underpinning technologies, digital transformation approaches, and train the fellows on product life cycle management and engage with relevant stakeholders.

Ademide Adefarasin

IDEO

Dee Allen

University of Cambridge

Douglas Arner

University of Hong Kong

Giovanni Bandi

University of Cambridge

Sholthana Begum

Financial Conduct Authority

Cennydd Bowles

NowNext

Chris Butler

Google

Vicente de Villa

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Simone di Castri

Cambridge SupTech Lab

Matt Grasser

Cambridge SupTech Lab

Rafael Mazer

Innovation Poverty Lab

Jose Miguel Mestanza

Cambridge SupTech Lab

Charles Niehaus

Circle Payments

Juliet Ongwae

Cambridge SupTech Lab

Pia Roman

United Nations

Adam Scott

CFPB

Anna Wallace

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Muthoni Wanyoike

Springer Nature: AI and Ethics Journal

Robert Wardrop

University of Cambridge

John Won

Last Mile Money

And other experts

This programme is for you, if you:

Want to deepen your knowledge while enhancing your capacity in the conceptualization, design, procurement, development and roll-out of suptech applications.
Are a supervisor, regulator, economist, data scientist,or technologist currently employed by a financial regulatory or supervisory authority.
Are committed to accelerating the digital transformation of your financial authorities, to furthering innovation in financial sector supervision, and to catalyzing resilient, sustainable, and innovative financial sectors.

YOUR CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION

This Programme offers you the opportunity to earn a certificate of completion from one of the world's leading business schools - the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. Your certificate will be issued in your legal name and couriered to you upon successful completion of the Programme, as per the stipulated requirements.

Judge Business School Executive Education

The University of Cambridge Judge Business School Executive Education portfolio comprises over 40 well-crafted programmes that expand the participant's skills and understanding in service of their organisational, personal development and career objectives. These programmes are designed by world-class faculty for managers and leaders looking to learn and grow.

TUITION

Financial Authorities

$2,200/person

6 seats minimum

Deadline for application:

September 23rd, 2022 at 11:59 PM EDT

Individuals

$2,500

Deadline for application:

September 23rd, 2022 at 11:59 PM EDT

SUPTECH SOLUTION DEVELOPMENT

Each team will develop a capstone project represented by a suptech proof of concept. By the end of the Programme, the proof of concept will be ready for production into suptech applications. The cost of production is $150,000 and includes:

Selection and procurement of a technology vendor through an international competition;
Management of the production phase;
Testing of the application using international best practices and certified standards.

SCHOLARSHIPS & SPONSORSHIPS

A limited number of scholarships to attend the Programme and sponsorships for the development of application solutions are available to financial authorities from Low- and Middle-Income Countries who will enroll in the consumer protection track (sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) in the payments track, or in the Anti-Money Laundering track (sponsored by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office).

Enrollment

We accept in the Programme either individual fellows or teams that represent a financial authority;
We highly encourage agencies to enroll the team of 6-10 individuals that would be responsible for the development of a suptech application, roadmap, strategy, open data project, innovation hub, or digital transformation initiative;
Admissions to the Cambridge SupTech Lab Innovation Leadership Programme are highly selective.
Institutional admissions are rolling. The sooner you apply, the sooner you will receive a decision.

Apply Now

Download brochures

Brochure for sponsors

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Brochure for applicants

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Do you have any questions?

Find answers in our FAQ slides below

We've held two Q&A sessions in July featuring short introductions to the programme by the Cambridge SupTech Lab team, followed by a chance for applicants to ask any questions that they had about this nine week course, starting in October 2022

Speakers:

Simone di Castri

Juliet Ongwae

7 July

2 PM BST / 9 AM EDT

Download slides

Speakers:

Matt Grasser

Jose Miguel

21 July

1 PM BST / 8 AM EDT

Download slides