For large financial institutions, staying ahead in today’s fast-moving landscape means more than simply tracking trends – it requires engaging directly with the emerging technologies and future talent who will help shape what comes next. Through its ongoing partnership with Ivey, CIBC’s Enterprise Innovation team is gaining an invaluable pulse check on how the next generation views the digital transformation of banking while giving Ivey’s students the chance to apply their knowledge to live business challenges.
It was all part of the 2025 Ivey Digital Innovation Studio (IDIS) course, which encourages MSc in Management: Digital Management students to develop creative solutions for real organizations to practice and refine innovation through a series of increasingly challenging design sprints. While the final sprint is delivered in partnership with CIBC, students in earlier sprints worked with a diverse group of organizations across sectors, including Across Languages, Autism Society of America, Boys and Girls Club of London, Big Brothers Big Sisters of London and Area, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA), Karis Disability Services, and London Food Coalition.
Exploring the future of banking
For the CIBC sprint, the students were divided into teams and assigned to one of three forward-looking cases – extended reality (XR), influencers as a client segment, and the evolution of challenger banks – all reflecting both external trends and CIBC’s innovation agenda.
“We deliberately chose topics that are both timely and unresolved,” said Keye Tang, Director of CIBC's Enterprise Innovation team. “These are questions we are actively thinking about.”
Over several weeks, the students engaged in research, design thinking, and iterative problem-solving, supported by CIBC mentors. The goal: produce recommendations through the lens of the students themselves, using that to inspire new thinking inside the bank.
Student innovation in action
MSc student Daphné Tambakis, whose team worked on challenger banks, said the CIBC sprint was a course highlight. Her team developed CIBC THRIVE (Tools, Habits, Rewards, Insights, Values, Empowerment), a Gen Z banking experience focused on flexible cashback, digital onboarding, a TikTok-style education feed, and e-money travel wallet. It blends the trust and full-service offerings of a traditional bank with the ease, transparency, and personalization that younger users expect from FinTechs.
“It was such a cool challenge to take something from idea to execution, and then pressure test it with CIBC in real time,” she said. “What stood out to me the most was how motivated the CIBC team was to collaborate with us. As someone who’s looking to work in consulting or digital strategy, this sprint helped me see how big organizations can actually move with agility if they’re willing to listen and adapt. I’m walking away from this with so much more confidence in my ability to build creative, realistic solutions that matter.”
Classmate Kexin Cui worked on the influencers theme and said the experience opened her eyes to how banks can better support non-traditional earners, such as influencers. Her team proposed a tech-enabled solution to recognize the unique financial patterns of influencers and provide more personalized services.
“Applying what I’ve learned about digital transformation to such a real-world business challenge was incredibly rewarding,” she said. “It deepened my understanding of user-centred innovation and demonstrated how thoughtful, technology-driven approaches can contribute to the development of a more flexible and inclusive financial future.”
A visit to CIBC's headquarters
IDIS culminated with a high-energy showcase at CIBC Square in Toronto. Student teams presented video pitches to a panel of judges from across the bank and experienced XR technologies firsthand, including simulations offering real-time feedback on communication skills.
For MSc student Lia Fraleigh, the final sprint was a defining moment.
“With the first two sprints, I noticed a lot of my cohort’s solutions were focused on improving operational inefficiencies, as many nonprofits are still conducting tasks manually. With this final sprint, CIBC introduced a brand-new structure to the problem statements. Instead of producing a proof-of-concept or building a working AI-prototype, they took a more nuanced approach in wanting to hear our personal opinions about the three specific topics,” she said. “My team was given the opportunity to work on XR, which we were really excited about as there are so many pathways we could think about.”
Career-building opportunities
To date, nine Ivey graduates have gone on to full-time roles at CIBC as a direct result of their involvement in IDIS.
Zoya Abbas, MSc ’22, a former consultant on CIBC's Enterprise Innovation team, helped organize the sprint. She was recruited through IDIS and credits the experience for opening her eyes to opportunities in the financial sector.
Tang said the partnership with Ivey provides strategic value.
“Just being able to hear all of the insights the students have, especially when these are essentially our future clients... hearing what they think and how the bank should be handling upcoming emerging tech and trends is important to us,” he said.
A model for experiential learning
Warren Ritchie, MSc Faculty Director, said IDIS exemplifies Ivey’s approach to experiential learning. Students don’t just talk about innovation – they demonstrate it.
“What really stood out was the quality of the student proposals and presentations because they are able to move from ideation into implementation so much more effectively by leveraging artificial intelligence,” he said. “Artificial intelligence is really democratizing innovation and allowing these organizations to make dramatic leaps forward.”
Congratulations to the IDIS winners
Congratulations to the three winning teams, one for each case:
Challenger Bank – Team 3: Gargi Kaur Bedi, Anna Carruthers, Danya Gulati, Hafsa Khan, Tanishka Pradhan, Nikol Shapiro, and Daphné Tambakis
Team 3 (l-r): Daphné Tambakis, Nikol Shapiro, Danya Gulati, Gargi Kaur Bedi, Hafsa Khan, Tanishka Pradhan, and Anna Carruthers
Influencers – Team 6: Mahnam Ahmad, Ayub Athar, Carlos Fang, Surya Narayanan, Immanuel Onyemah, Kamiya Sunder, and Raeesa Valani
Team 6 (holding certificates, front row l-r): Kamiya Sunder, Raeesa Valani, Mahnam Ahmad; (holding certificates, back row l-r): Surya Narayanan, Carlos Fang, Ayub Athar, and Immanuel Onyemah
XR – Team 9: Tina (Peiyu) Liu, Anny Luo, Joyce (Zixin) Qu, Evonne Wu, Emma (Jiayin) Xie, Austin (Zhanbo) Zhang
Team 9 (holding certificates, l-r): Emma (Jiayin) Xie, Tina (Peiyu) Liu, Joyce (Zixin) Qu, Austin (Zhanbo) Zhang, Anny Luo, Evonne Wu
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