Moving from analytics-as-a-service to analytics-as-a-product isn’t a technology project it’s an operating model shift. It changes how teams collaborate, how insight is delivered, and who owns the lifecycle of analytical tools and models.
Tesco Bank’s transformation offers clear, practical lessons for any organisation considering this journey. In a panel discussion with Dufrain’s Sean Kenny Client Director, and Bal Lola Head of Delivery, their leaders shared what works, what to expect, and what to prioritise.
1. Ownership must sit with the business
One of the most significant changes was shifting ownership of pricing models and analytical infrastructure into the business.
Chris Russell (Head of Pricing at Tesco Bank) now owns the full lifecycle decisions on commissioning, maintaining and retiring models. Analytics teams still build and maintain the tools, but accountability sits where decisions are made.
Chris described it through a powerful analogy:
- The business defines the type of “car” they need
- Analytics builds it
- Once delivered, the business “owns” it—fuel, upkeep, day-to-day use
- Analytics provides servicing and upgrades when needed
- When requirements change, the business commissions a new model
This model encourages partnership not dependency.
2. Strong engineering capability is non-negotiable
Gwil Morrison emphasised that analytics-as-a-product requires robust engineering foundations. Toolkits, front-end interfaces, and reusable analytical frameworks must be production-ready and scalable.
Without strong engineering:
- Self-serve tools aren’t reliable
- Reusability becomes difficult
- Teams fall back into manual analytics delivery
This is a critical enabler many organisations overlook.
3. Collaboration replaces the “request → queue → output” pattern
Across the discussion, every speaker highlighted collaboration as the defining feature of the new model.
No more finger-pointing when reports are delayed. No more ambiguity around ownership. No more repetitive production line.
Instead:
- Business and analytics teams co-design products
- Requirements consider future adaptability
- Insights become shared assets, not one-off outputs
Sean Kenny noted, this shift frees people from “churning out weekly reports” and gives teams the headspace to uncover meaningful insights.
4. Agility increases when products are built well
Laura Castro at Tesco Bank explained that when a solution is designed for flexibility, the team can evolve it quickly rather than rebuild from scratch. This makes organisations significantly more agile.
Even better, these products can serve multiple teams:
- Pricing
- Marketing
- Finance
- Risk
- Customer analytics
A single robust product can become a shared capability used across the bank.
5. Prioritisation must be ruthless and transparent
One of the most practical lessons came from Laura’s approach to managing demand. With multiple stakeholders believing their work is the most important, prioritisation becomes a discipline of its own.
Tesco Bank’s approach includes:
- Clear categorisation of work (critical, medium, lower priority)
- Stopping certain lower-tier activities to create time for transformation
- Transparent roadmaps
- Stakeholder visibility into planning sessions
- Open discussion of impact and urgency
“Ruthless prioritisation” and “ruthless transparency” are the two principles that allow the model to succeed.
6. Start small and build a “treadmill of investment”
For organisations just beginning the journey, Gwilym’s advice was clear: don’t start with everything.
Start with:
- One stakeholder
- One high-impact use case
- One small cross-functional team
- One reusable product
Deliver it well, prove value, and use that success to secure the next phase of investment. Over time, this creates momentum, a “treadmill” that continually funds new analytical products.
Importantly, this doesn’t require major platform spend. Tesco Bank often uses open-source tools to make early progress at low cost.
7. Upskill the business to use the insights independently
If the business relies on analytics teams every time they need to interpret outputs, the model fails.
Tesco Bank highlighted the need for stakeholders who are:
- Insight-driven
- Curious
- Able to dig into data
- Comfortable exploring with new tools
This capability shift ensures analytics products deliver real value.
Shifting to analytics-as-a-product is a journey but the payoff is significant
Tesco Bank’s experience shows the shift requires time, mindset change and clarity of ownership. But the benefits – speed, scalability, reusability, cross-functional value and strategic impact far outweigh the investment.
The organisations that win in the next decade will be those who treat analytics not as a service, but as a product.
If you’d like to learn more: Watch the discussion in full here.
For more information on the webinar, visit blog one.