Zscaler Case Studies Transitioning to Remote Work: A Case Study of National Australia Bank's Cloud Migration

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	Transitioning to Remote Work: A Case Study of National Australia Bank's Cloud Migration Zscaler

Transitioning to Remote Work: A Case Study of National Australia Bank's Cloud Migration

Zscaler

Applicable Industries	Finance & Insurance National Security & Defense
Applicable Functions	Procurement Product Research & Development
Use Cases	Campus Area Network Tamper Detection
Services	Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
Challenge	National Australia Bank (NAB), one of Australia’s “Big Four” financial institutions, faced a significant challenge in balancing the convenience of online transactions with the need for personal, direct engagement for larger transactions. The bank was also grappling with the strict data-privacy requirements, low risk tolerance, and regulatory constraints typical of the financial services industry. In the mid-2010s, NAB recognized the potential value of migrating to the cloud, particularly for strengthening its security posture. However, the transition was not without its challenges. In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, leading to a surge in customer call volumes and necessitating a shift to remote work for the safety of NAB's employees. This sudden change posed a practical challenge, as not all of NAB's employees were equipped to work remotely. Read More
About Customer	National Australia Bank (NAB) is one of Australia’s “Big Four” financial institutions, serving consumer and commercial interests in Australia, New Zealand, and across Asia. With over nine million customers, NAB is the largest business bank in Australia and a national icon with a history spanning 160 years. The bank's IT organization supports business operations for more than 1500 branches, and its IT team is led by Steve Day, the Executive for Enterprise Technology. NAB has a revenue of USD$12B40 and employs 35,000 people across eight countries and 1600 locations. Read More
Solution	To address these challenges, NAB invested in Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA), implementing local internet breakouts for users and leveraging ZIA’s Cloud Sandbox security technology. The bank's shift to the cloud was driven by security priorities, with a focus on achieving a Zero Trust environment. When the pandemic hit, NAB had to quickly scale up its operations to accommodate higher customer call volumes and enable remote work for its employees. The bank realized that it could not scale up its existing VPN solution rapidly due to the time and cost involved in procuring legacy connectivity hardware. Instead, NAB opted for an accelerated rollout of Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), shifting to a remote-access model and deploying ZPA for thousands of employees. This enabled them to access corporate resources from remote locations, facilitating a smooth transition to remote work. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Applicable Industries

Finance & Insurance

National Security & Defense

Applicable Functions

Procurement

Product Research & Development

Use Cases

Campus Area Network

Tamper Detection

Services

Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services

Challenge

National Australia Bank (NAB), one of Australia’s “Big Four” financial institutions, faced a significant challenge in balancing the convenience of online transactions with the need for personal, direct engagement for larger transactions. The bank was also grappling with the strict data-privacy requirements, low risk tolerance, and regulatory constraints typical of the financial services industry. In the mid-2010s, NAB recognized the potential value of migrating to the cloud, particularly for strengthening its security posture. However, the transition was not without its challenges. In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, leading to a surge in customer call volumes and necessitating a shift to remote work for the safety of NAB's employees. This sudden change posed a practical challenge, as not all of NAB's employees were equipped to work remotely.

About Customer

National Australia Bank (NAB) is one of Australia’s “Big Four” financial institutions, serving consumer and commercial interests in Australia, New Zealand, and across Asia. With over nine million customers, NAB is the largest business bank in Australia and a national icon with a history spanning 160 years. The bank's IT organization supports business operations for more than 1500 branches, and its IT team is led by Steve Day, the Executive for Enterprise Technology. NAB has a revenue of USD$12B40 and employs 35,000 people across eight countries and 1600 locations.

Solution

To address these challenges, NAB invested in Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA), implementing local internet breakouts for users and leveraging ZIA’s Cloud Sandbox security technology. The bank's shift to the cloud was driven by security priorities, with a focus on achieving a Zero Trust environment. When the pandemic hit, NAB had to quickly scale up its operations to accommodate higher customer call volumes and enable remote work for its employees. The bank realized that it could not scale up its existing VPN solution rapidly due to the time and cost involved in procuring legacy connectivity hardware. Instead, NAB opted for an accelerated rollout of Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), shifting to a remote-access model and deploying ZPA for thousands of employees. This enabled them to access corporate resources from remote locations, facilitating a smooth transition to remote work.

Impact #1	NAB's transition to the cloud and implementation of ZIA and ZPA resulted in a more secure and flexible operational environment. The bank was able to achieve its goal of a Zero Trust environment, reducing the number of potential attack points by eliminating the need for a separate corporate network. The accelerated rollout of ZPA in response to the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the solution's ease of use and flexibility, enabling a rapid shift to a remote-access model. This allowed NAB to continue serving its customers effectively during a time of crisis, while also ensuring the safety of its employees. The successful deployment of ZPA was also a testament to the efforts and insourcing work of NAB's internal teams.

Impact #1

NAB's transition to the cloud and implementation of ZIA and ZPA resulted in a more secure and flexible operational environment. The bank was able to achieve its goal of a Zero Trust environment, reducing the number of potential attack points by eliminating the need for a separate corporate network. The accelerated rollout of ZPA in response to the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the solution's ease of use and flexibility, enabling a rapid shift to a remote-access model. This allowed NAB to continue serving its customers effectively during a time of crisis, while also ensuring the safety of its employees. The successful deployment of ZPA was also a testament to the efforts and insourcing work of NAB's internal teams.

Benefit #1	NAB was able to accommodate three-to-four times its normal commercial and consumer banking volume during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Benefit #2	The bank successfully transitioned 4,500 employees to remote work in response to a COVID-19 case in the workplace.
Benefit #3	NAB deployed ZPA for thousands of employees, enabling them to access corporate resources from remote locations.

Benefit #1

NAB was able to accommodate three-to-four times its normal commercial and consumer banking volume during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Benefit #2

The bank successfully transitioned 4,500 employees to remote work in response to a COVID-19 case in the workplace.

Benefit #3

NAB deployed ZPA for thousands of employees, enabling them to access corporate resources from remote locations.

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Overview

Transitioning to Remote Work: A Case Study of National Australia Bank's Cloud Migration

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit