National Westminster Bank Essay

Q1. Analyse the node contact process during the business relationship opening night procedure. What aspects of the branchs operation impact on for each nonp aril stage?From analysing the branchs operation it is clear to see which part of the fixs operation impacts each stage of the nib opening procedure.Firstly the customer arrives into the bank, usu all in ally customers go to the vote counters section, they are consequently referred oer to the enquiries counter, where they are greeted by enquiry personnel who find out which of the banks service the customer requires. If the customer wishes to open a unsanded account, a member of the records stave comes to address the account opening procedure.It is the records staff who deals mostly with new-fangled customers. The records staff must(prenominal) to eat up a good basic knowledge of all the banks operations to be able to advise the new customer which account is best suited for them. They must find out if the customer wishes to invest cash or if they wish to avail of the banks address facilities. The records staff would non have an in depth knowledge of the investments available to new customers so much often than non a member of the investment section is called over to advise the new customer.Read more Bankers Draft NatwestFor credit facilities, the new customer is referred to the lending section for processing, as this operation is immaterial the record section staff jurisdiction.in one case they account type has been established, the formalities begin (processing of customer details). Records staff go through forms to ensure that all key information has been gathitherd. This is probably the longest part of the account opening procedure with the customer as a lot of details collect to be processed. at a time all the details have been gathered by the records staff, the direct customer contact finishes. Customer details are then passed onto the administrative section and the machine r oom to root the opening of a new account and the paper printing (cheque books, log books, ATM card game etc.)How the different operations interact upon the Records sectionQ2. How would you improve the process?Once the bank determine their problems the influence out an progression plan.They key areas identified for improvement were identified> Signage> Inexperienced Staff> Limited staff for kicking hours> Uneven flow of walk-in customers at peak msFrom a recent survey customers identified the following problems> Account opening forms were not properly explained> Banks standard account pack was not sent out to customers> Some customers waited more than the standard 9 old age to receive cheque book and bank card> Customer in-person details were recorded incorrectly> Staff seemed uninterested in the customers involve> Customers wouldnt recommend the bank to othersAll of the above points were taken into account in the banks improvement plan. Firstly the signa ge issue was tackled. This issue was intelligibly a problem when we visited the bank, see fig.1It was evident from this, that the enquiries desk wasnt clearly noticeable or signposted. To eliminate the problem of new customers queuing at the cashiers desk (adding to aline delays in the bank) new signage was positioned around the bank clearly highlighting where the new customers were to go.While it was unfeasible to move staff permanently from section to section, records staff who are generally young and junior members of staff could be temporarily move around each of the banks operations. This would add to their schooling knowledge and alter them to give more specialised advice to customers. By doing this staff will get in to know each others jobs, they will become more confident in their work, giving the sense of importance to the banks operation. This increases staff motivation which reduces boredom as boredom leads to mistakes.To assess the overall performance of staffs gen tility and progress, the bank could introduce mystery story shoppers, a member of staff from roughly other of the banks branches comes to open an account, goes through the whole procedure and at the end evaluates the staffs performance, identifies areas for improvement etc.As it was, the cashiers would go for their lunch, and it was the job of the records section to cover the cashier positions during lunch. This however was the busiest rate of flow for new customers wishing to open accounts. During the lunchtime belt along customers could feel they were been rushed, inevitably resulting in mistakes occurring.To deal with this issue, lunch time for the bank staff could be divided up more evenly. Only a set amount of cashiers go for lunch at any one time, these cashiers do not take their lunch until the first group comes back, this focus there is always somebody covering the records section to deal with new potential customers if they arrive during the lunch time period.To ensu re the records section were not over burdened by new customers during the lunch time period, a carcass of appointment only during the lunch time rush was set up. This way the records section could easily deal with walk-in customers in the mornings and afternoons, and during lunch time they knew how many customers to expect and spend the required time unavoidable with each customer opening an account. This way the customer feels more at ease and the records section staff do not feel beneath pressure and rushed, reducing the amount of mistakes made.Customers felt that the account opening forms were not properly explained to them. This issue was tackled by more staff training and the mystery shopper besides helped by giving feedback. This helps the junior staff in training to interpret the forms better and be much more capable of explaining the forms to customers.In terms of the banks standard account pack not been sent out to customers, the bank set up a system of having all the l eaflets on hand so the member of staff relations with the new customer could make up a package there and then to suit the customers needs.It was identified that some customers waited more than the standard 9 days to receive their cheque books or ATM cards. This waiting period was improved by a more clear line of chat set up between the records staff, administration staff and the machine room. This was also helped as now there were fewer mistakes and the records staff had more time to process the forms during the day as the by appointment only and not having to cover the cashier positions fully during lunch had clearly freed up some extra time for them.To deal with the problem of customers personal details not been recorded properly, the customer was asked to fill in a form which clearly legible showing how to spell their name address etc. Once all the forms had been filled out, it was advised that the supervisor provided an extra check on the forms before they were sent for proces sing. To assist with the implementation of this system a differentiate of a Kanban system could be set up, In-Kanban, Out-Kanban this way everything was fully accurate before it was sent for processing, and there would be no mix ups, on what was processed and what has to be processed. Also as part of this kanban system to finalise the last step, approval by the manager must be sign(a) on the form.The problem of the customers feeling rushed was solved when the records section were released from other duties such as fully covering the cashiers during lunch.If all of the above points are implemented successfully, the bank will be back on fall into place to a successful and complimentary word of mouth.