Dorin Cernat joined SBS in October 2024 as a Product Manager based in the UK. After spending most of his career on the customer side of core banking systems, he made the leap to SBS to help shape products rather than simply use them. Today, Dorin’s mission is simple: solve real customer problems and create value. Passionate about technology, he enjoys finding ways to make processes faster, simpler and more effective, whether through automation, better workflows or new capabilities. In this conversation, he shares his perspective on product management, AI, innovation in banking, and the lessons he’s learned from working on both sides of the industry. And when the day is done and the problem-solving stops? You might be surprised to discover what helps him switch off.
How did you end up as a product manager at SBS software?
Before joining SBS, I spent most of my career at a bank as a product manager. In many ways, I was on the customer side of core banking systems, raising requirements and then waiting for vendors to deliver solutions.
Over time, I became increasingly curious about what happens behind the scenes: what drives a product roadmap, why some features take weeks while others take years, and how you balance the needs of multiple institutions on the same platform.
As someone with a strong interest in technology, I found myself drawn to that side of the business. SBS gave me the opportunity to make the move from requesting features as a banker to actually helping shape the product itself. That’s ultimately what brought me here.
What do you do as a product manager?
My mission is to solve customer problems and create value. A big part of that starts with understanding customers’ challenges and identifying whether they’re dealing with a specific issue or a broader market need. From there, I work with teams across engineering, architecture, sales and support to turn those insights into products that are both valuable and viable. That means defining priorities, building business cases, aligning stakeholders and making sure we’re solving the right problem in the right way.
At its core, product management is about owning the “why” and the “what” of a product, bridging the gap between customers and technology, and being accountable for whether an idea is truly worth pursuing and delivers real value.
What is a common misconception that people have about product management?
One of the biggest misconceptions is that product managers spend their time deciding what gets built. In reality, a big part of the job is deciding what doesn’t get built. There’s never a shortage of ideas. The challenge is evaluating them objectively, prioritising the ones that create the most value, and having the discipline to say no to the rest. Some ideas are genuinely good, but that doesn’t always mean they’re the right investment or the right priority. Product management is often less about generating ideas and more about making thoughtful, evidence-based choices.
When it comes to making a great product, how do you decide which ideas are worth pursuing and which ones should stay on their drawing board?
For me, it comes down to three things. First, is this a real problem shared by enough customers? One customer request is a request, but when multiple customers are asking for the same thing, that’s a market need. Second, are we the right people to solve it? The best opportunities are usually the ones that align with our strengths and product strategy. And finally, does the business case hold up in the real world? We have to test every idea against realistic, and sometimes challenging, assumptions. The hardest part is often saying no to good ideas. Some ideas are genuinely valuable, but not valuable enough to take priority over what’s already on the roadmap.
What’s the biggest challenge of building products for the banking industry today?
The biggest challenge is keeping up with customer expectations while protecting the foundations of the banking system. Today, customers compare every banking experience to the likes of Monzo or Revolut, where everything feels instant and seamless. But behind the scenes, banks still have to meet strict regulatory, operational and security requirements. You can’t move fast by ignoring those realities.
The challenge is finding ways to deliver visible improvements without compromising the stability and trust that customers rely on. And for many building societies with lean teams, it’s also about helping them manage change at a pace they can realistically absorb.
What excites you most about AI’s potential for banking and financial services?
When people talk about AI, they often think of chatbots. They’re useful, but that’s not what excites me most. What really interests me is AI’s ability to unlock the huge amount of knowledge banks already have, whether that’s data, documents or expertise scattered across the organisation. For the first time, we have technology that can make all of that accessible and actionable at scale.
I’m also excited by the potential of AI to automate the more repetitive parts of processes like mortgage origination. AI can handle the heavy lifting, gathering information, reviewing documents and preparing analyses, while people focus on judgement and decision-making. That’s where I see the real opportunity: not replacing humans, but freeing them from low-value tasks so they can focus on what matters most.
Aside from AI, is there another technology or a trend that you think deserves more attention today?
Beyond AI, I think payments modernisation deserves much more attention. It may not be as headline-grabbing, but it has a huge impact on how banking products are designed and experienced.
Many institutions still rely on legacy payment processes, while customers increasingly expect everything to happen in real time. Faster payments, open banking and smart, automated savings journeys can fundamentally improve the customer experience.
What’s interesting is that these innovations don’t just make payments better, they create opportunities for entirely new products and services. In that sense, they can be just as transformative as AI.
What do you do to switch off?
Honestly, the one thing that really helps me switch off is washing the dishes. It sounds strange, but it’s one of the few moments when my mind completely disconnects from work. Outside of that, I enjoy hiking, swimming, reading and playing strategy games.
Among all the hobbies that you’ve listed, is there one that surprisingly is useful in your day job as a product manager?
Definitely strategy games. They teach you to think in systems and focus on long-term outcomes rather than short-term wins. One thing you learn quickly is that the most obvious move isn’t always the best one. Every decision has second-order effects, and small mistakes can add up over time. That’s very similar to product management. You’re constantly weighing trade-offs, allocating resources and balancing immediate needs with long-term value. In many ways, it’s the same mindset, just applied to real-world products instead of virtual countries.
What is the most important lesson that you’ve learned in your career so far?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is to understand the other person’s perspective before judging their decisions. Early in my career, when I was working on the banking side, I often wondered why vendors couldn’t move faster or deliver what seemed like simple requests. It was only after joining the other side of the industry that I realised they were balancing many competing priorities and constraints that I couldn’t see.
That experience taught me the value of empathy. Whether in business or in life, people are usually doing the best they can within the constraints they’re facing. Taking the time to understand that context leads to better decisions, better relationships and better outcomes.
What advice would you give someone interested in product management?
My biggest piece of advice would be to develop deep domain expertise before focusing on product management frameworks. Frameworks and methodologies can be learned relatively quickly, but truly understanding an industry, its customers and its challenges takes years. That’s what helps you make better decisions and earn credibility.
For me, having worked on the banking side before moving into product management was invaluable. It gave me first-hand experience of the problems our customers face every day. So if you’re interested in product management, start by becoming an expert in the domain you’re passionate about. The product management skills will follow much more easily.
