Meet the Expert Justin Terpstra

“AI doesn’t call for a faster way of working, but for a completely different way of thinking”

The financial sector is on the brink of a major transformation. IT landscapes are becoming increasingly complex, costs are rising and, at the same time, AI is forcing organisations to rethink how software is developed. Meanwhile, there is growing focus on digital sovereignty as organisations seek to reduce their dependence on US technology. According to Justin Terpstra, Director Financial Services at Sopra Steria Netherlands, all these developments are now converging. “Organisations that use AI simply to speed up existing processes are missing the biggest opportunity.”

You are Director Financial Services at Sopra Steria. What exactly does that role involve?
“I am responsible for the commercial strategy within Financial Services. Together with my team, we work with banks and insurers and constantly look ahead: what developments are taking place in the market, and how can we help our clients prepare for them?

“It goes far beyond sales alone. We also look at the impact of new technologies. AI, for example, is fundamentally changing how software is developed. In the past, you would put together a team covering a wide range of roles: developers, testers, an architect and a product owner. Now, we increasingly see a single developer being supported by multiple AI agents that take on different roles, with the human acting as the controlling factor, monitoring those agents and ensuring that everything works as intended. This changes not only how projects are delivered, but also how we advise our clients.”

You speak to banks and insurers regularly. What is their biggest concern at the moment?
“The biggest challenge is that their IT landscapes have become so large and complex over the years that IT costs have continued to rise. For years, organisations tried to address this by moving work to nearshore and offshore locations. In practice, however, those savings have often been eroded as complexity has continued to increase. That is why I believe the discussion needs to shift. It should no longer be: how can we get the same work done more cheaply? Instead, we should be asking: how can we organise the work in a fundamentally different way? AI can play a major role in this.”

How can AI contribute to that?
“Many organisations are still experimenting with pilots and proofs of concept. That is understandable, but ultimately, that is not where the greatest gains will come from. Real change only happens when organisations adapt the way they work. Among other things, that means rethinking how software is developed. Do you give an existing team AI tools? Or do you redesign the team, with AI agents embedded in the development process from the outset? That is a fundamental difference and will also change both the composition of a team and the way it works.

“I expect developers to increasingly become the orchestrators of AI agents. Their experience will remain hugely important, but their role will shift from writing code themselves to directing, monitoring and improving the work produced by AI.”

Can you give an example of how you support organisations with AI?
“Insurers, for example, ask us to set up a Centre of Excellence for Agentic AI. Through this, we help employees learn how to use AI effectively in their day-to-day work. The key question is how you want to use AI. Organisations can choose to use it to achieve more with the same number of employees, but AI can also enable smaller teams to maintain the same level of productivity.

“I personally see a huge opportunity in the health insurance market, for example. In the final quarter of the year, health insurers experience huge peaks in customer enquiries as consumers have the option to switch to another provider. Health insurers then have to scale up their call centres significantly to deal with all those enquiries. If AI can handle the bulk of them, employees can focus instead on conversations where human interaction genuinely adds value.”

AI also brings new risks. What do you see as the biggest challenges?
“The financial sector handles highly sensitive data. As a result, the biggest challenge is striking the right balance between the rapid adoption of AI and the strict regulations that banks and insurers must comply with. Many organisations want to harness the potential of AI, but they cannot afford to make mistakes. Data relating to bank accounts, mortgages or insurance policies requires a very different level of care than in many other sectors.

“That is something we also emphasise in our To Protect What’s Precious campaign. Whether it is your banking information or your medical data in a health app, the last thing you want is for that information to fall into the wrong hands. To me, that is what Human Tech is all about: technology that protects people, supports them and earns their trust, while ensuring that humans always remain in control.

“At the same time, I believe financial institutions should not be overly cautious. When the sector moved to the cloud, it was sometimes slow to respond to developments. With AI, I would rather see organisations have the confidence to start experimenting sooner, while of course remaining within the boundaries of security, compliance and responsible data use.

“For example, I would love to see a bank develop an app that you could use in much the same way as ChatGPT. You could ask it: show me all the insurance policies I have and see whether I could get a better deal. Or find out whether I have duplicate cover. What does my savings pattern look like? And if I start putting aside €50 now, will I have enough to pay for my child’s education by the time they turn 18? If banks can implement that kind of integration securely, it will create a completely different customer experience from the one we have today.”

“Another risk is the combination of cybercrime and AI. The number of cyberattacks targeting financial institutions has increased enormously, and AI is a major factor in that. Cybercriminals are using a wide range of generative AI tools on an industrial scale to gain access to systems. We are even seeing autonomous AI-driven cyberattacks, in which swarms of thousands of automated AI agents carry out individual actions.

“At the same time, AI is increasingly being used to prevent cyberattacks and identify vulnerabilities in systems more quickly. AI makes it possible to use agents during the development process to automatically carry out security checks and security testing.”

Digital sovereignty is a major topic at the moment. How is the financial sector approaching it?
““For banks and insurers, this is becoming an increasingly important issue. Many organisations are acutely aware that being entirely dependent on US technology carries risks. This has become increasingly apparent in recent years. Organisations that operate critical infrastructure or handle sensitive data, in particular, are therefore taking a closer look at European alternatives.

“I believe that only a European technology partner with European roots and its headquarters in Europe can offer genuine digital sovereignty. US companies are, by definition, subject to the CLOUD Act and are required to comply with international sanctions. A current real-world example is the International Criminal Court (ICC). Partly in response to geopolitical developments, the ICC has decided to implement the European open-source solution openDesk. This allows the ICC to reduce its dependence on non-European suppliers and strengthen organisational continuity.”

You previously worked at Aegon, Cognizant and Microsoft, among others. How did you get into IT in the first place?
“I studied International Business & Management Studies and, while studying in Canada, I built websites to help fund my stay. That is how I taught myself to code. After graduating, I joined Aegon, where I worked on the digitalisation of pension processes, replacing old modem connections with modern web portals. That was my first real introduction to IT in the financial sector. I then went on to work at Mirabeau, Cognizant and Microsoft. Throughout all those roles, the combination of technology and the financial sector has been a common thread in my career.”

Why did you ultimately decide to move to Sopra Steria?
“What immediately appealed to me was the culture. In every conversation, I sensed that there was room for entrepreneurship and a genuine desire to collaborate, both in the Netherlands and internationally. Throughout the process, I felt that I could be myself. At Sopra Steria, there is room to try out new ideas, contribute to the direction of the company and have a real impact.”

What gives you the most energy in your work?
“Technology remains fascinating, but ultimately, it is all about people. I enjoy helping colleagues grow, retaining talent and thinking together about how we can remain relevant as an organisation in a market that is changing incredibly quickly.

“I also find it inspiring that, within Sopra Steria, I can contribute to topics beyond my own area of expertise. For example, I am involved in initiatives around Equal Pay. Having the opportunity to contribute more broadly gives me a great deal of energy.”

How do you keep your own knowledge up to date?
“I read extensively about the market and closely follow what competitors and technology companies are doing. But I believe staying in touch with clients is at least as important. By regularly meeting with clients myself, I hear first-hand about the challenges they are really facing. That often leads to new insights.

“We also regularly organise knowledge-sharing sessions and town halls, where colleagues and clients share their knowledge and perspectives on developments in the market.”

Finally, what advice would you give to people considering a career in IT?
“Stay curious and keep learning. Technology is developing faster than ever. Programming languages, tools and ways of working are constantly changing. That is why it is important not to see change as a threat, but as an opportunity to continue developing yourself. I believe that people who are willing to experiment, embrace new technologies and keep developing their skills have a very bright future in IT.”