CASE STUDY RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. RBS Citizens Improves its customer experience with support from Aptean Respond www.aptean.com CASE STUDY RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. CUSTOMER DETAILS Today, RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has approximately 1,400 branches, over 3,500 ATMs and more than 18,000 colleagues in 12 states covering New England, the Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest. CHALLENGES • Maintaining a competitive position among larger financial organizations • Ensuring prompt collection, assessment and resolution of complaints data BENEFITS • Enhanced brand reputation for customer service and satisfaction INDUSTRY • Continuous improvement through rich front-line feedback data Financial Services • Decreased complaint volumes and fewer expressions of dissatisfaction APTEAN SOLUTION Respond RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is a $120 billion commercial bank holding company headquartered in Providence, R.I. • RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. At-A-Glance • Citizens Bank (operating in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont) • Charter One (operating in Illinois, Michigan and Ohio) www.aptean.com 2 CASE STUDY 3 RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES FLEXIBLE FEEDBACK AND COMPLAINTS MANAGEMENT With a network of branches across 12 states in the Northeast, Several years ago, RBSCFG implemented Aptean Respond software Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions of the U.S., RBS Citizens for the Executive Services and Priority Response departments. Financial Group, Inc. (RBSCFG) is a regional organization focused These two legacy divisions handled complaints escalated from the on providing a truly differentiated customer experience through its branch level, in addition to managing regulatory complaints from Citizens Bank and Charter One franchises. RBSCFG has developed compliance bodies. The contact center also had access to Respond, a three-prong customer experience strategy designed to ensure but none of these departments used the solution consistently or happy, loyal clients across its network. with any technical or business oversight. The strategy begins with a strong customer service culture Once RBSCFG focused its efforts more strongly on delivering a that flows from the CEO through to branch-level employees. differentiated customer experience, senior management realized Everyone is encouraged and empowered to make customers that Respond could enhance its front-line interactions and help the top priority. One of the organization’s strategic priorities is staff deliver more timely customer feedback responses. Led by to deliver a differentiated customer experience through simple, Faheem Zuberi, the head of problem resolution, reporting and clear and personal banking. Whether customers are applying analytics, the team rolled out Respond to more than 10,500 for a mortgage or depositing a check, the company aims to be employees – more than half the bank’s entire population. distinctive and honest in all its interactions. RBSCFG promotes continuous improvement by listening to the voices of their customers. This happens through a variety of customer surveys including the J.D. Power Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, as well by surveys administered to customers who have recently conducted transactions. That customer feedback is analyzed to uncover opportunities for improvement and action plans are put in place to address those opportunities. An equally important source for understanding the voice of the customer comes from mining complaints data gathered by staff. Many organizations implement complaints policies to meet regulatory demands enforced by agencies such as the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. RBSCFG not only examines these issues through a regulatory lens, but also formalized its complaints policy as a way to provide superior customer experiences. This preventive approach influences hiring decisions, employee training, and formalizes a culture of empowerment that equips colleagues to go above and beyond standard service practices. Instead of viewing regulatory compliance as an administrative requirement, RBSCFG has leveraged its complaints policy program to advance the company’s differentiated customer experience strategy. www.aptean.com Today, approximately 6,500 colleagues use Respond daily to enter customer expressions of dissatisfaction, resolve cases, follow up on incidents, log comments, and escalate complaints and issues to the appropriate bank area. Colleagues use the solution from the beginning of each customer interaction through to closing the complaint, while maintaining a full record of process notes and comments. For RBSCFG, this data provides key insights about customer behavior and evolving consumer needs. It’s a rich knowledge source for an organization driven to continuously improve the banking experience. The RBSCFG team worked closely with Aptean Professional Services to complete the Respond rollout with a clear vision of how the solution would support its business needs and provide a positive user experience for colleagues. To promote accurate entries (without significant effort), the technical team focused on streamlining drop-down menus and feedback collection processes, while pre-populating data wherever possible, automatically escalating complaints to the appropriate parties, and minimizing multi-screen tasks. Colleagues receive ongoing Respond training and are encouraged to suggest improvements. CASE STUDY 4 RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. LEVERAGING COMPLAINTS FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE With support from Respond, RBSCFG has built a smart, comprehensive complaint handling program. Customer care is a cornerstone of the bank’s market position – and its strategic focus By paying close attention to consumer insights and taking prompt action, RBSCFG enjoys strong customer retention levels. “You actually save money, too, because you do not have to solve the same problem over and over again,” says Zuberi. The company has boosted its Problem Resolution scores from J.D. Power and continually drives improvements to its slate of products and services. Increasing customer satisfaction ultimately produces has clearly paid off. across-the-board enterprise benefits. Year over year, total RBSCFG complaints are down more than With Aptean Respond, RBSCFG has a powerful solution not only 20 percent. Overall customer expressions of dissatisfaction (by volume) have dropped by more than 20 percent. In 2013, Money Magazine also named RBSCFG one of “The Best Banks in America.” The company was recognized for offering a 24/7 customer contact center – including banking specialists available to collect and assess enterprise feedback, but also to achieve its business goals. The customer-centered focus on effectively handling, tracking and resolving complaints has given this regional banking organization a shared sense of direction and a stronger reputation in a competitive market. via instant messaging – and convenient account access through traditional and supermarket branches and ATMs, plus robust online and mobile services. More than 5,000 customers around the world rely on Aptean to give them a competitive edge. By providing innovative, industry-driven enterprise application software, Aptean helps businesses to satisfy their customers, operate more efficiently, and stay at the forefront of their industry. 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