Turning Digital Tools Into Human Solutions
A Moment That Changed Everything
It was mid-March 2020. I was visiting colleagues in the branches of a large bank when I received a memo: “Work from home, only for a week.” That week became months.
Just before leaving, I held the door for an elderly couple walking in. For thirty years they had visited that branch every week. That day, the lady showed me a new iPad her children had bought. “They say we may not be able to come here much longer. I don’t know how to use this, but I know your team will help us.”
Weeks later, I learned (from a personal email she sent me) that same iPad allowed them to apply for a mortgage for their great-grandson—digitally. It wasn’t just about the mortgage. It was about connection. Technology, paired with human care, preserved their family’s dreams even in the most uncertain times and in moments that mattered the most.