egyii blog

Independent Research Firm Forrester cites Egyii in latest “Hot Banking Tech Companies to Watch in 2009: Q2 Update” report.

Senior Analyst and author, Ellen Carney, is part of  the technology industry strategy team and focuses on Product Management and Marketing professionals in banking, insurance and securities industry.

Egyii’s role in customer experience programmes played an important part of this recognition.

For more, see Forrester’ “Hot Banking tech Companies….”

Trip Allen, Team Egyii, Singapore

Banks just don’t get customer experience. Why?

  Hotels get it.

  Umpqua Bank in Oregon, USA gets it. But only partially…

Bank clients clearly are not happy. Banks continue to operate in the same manner.

So what are they missing?

The true client relationship. A genuine, authentic interface. Bankers are too busy pushing products, too pre-occupied with short term bank and personal results. They are too focused on the bank and the bank’s operations.

CRM, processes and the bank’s physical environment all help- but they don’t go far enough.

Hoteliers focus on the client - not the company.

That is the difference.

I spoke with the head of Customer Experience at one of the major Singapore banks the other day and she said that the banks’ staff ARE too focused on THE BANK. They are are tied up with too many regulations, compliance, rules, Etc.

Banks need to start focusing more on the personal side of the client, the relationship (the real experience),  to really add value and capture the audience.

Customer focus. Customer value. Customer Experience.

Trip Allen, Team Egyii, Singapore.

According to a recent study published by Dow Jones titled “Wealth Management After the Crunch,” the following numbers on banks’ performance were presented: 74% of the banks in Asia thought they over-performed through the crisis whereas 91% of the US banks were under the illusion that they performed well.

But, the reality is just 29% of the clients concurred with this.

The author, Bruce Weatherill, a former PWC consultant and now representing his own firm Bruce Weatherill Executive Consulting, states: “Clients are saying they look for service from life to death to the next generation. Wealth managers are delivering that by changing advisers very frequently moving in and out of markets. They don’t understand to be successful, wealth managers need to provide security, a long term vision and not just transactions.”

As for trust, Mr. Weatherill states that 65% of the wealth managers in Asian banks think their clients see them as “trusted advisors.” 

But, again the clients have a different perspective on this. Only 32% agree with this.

Mr. Weatherill states in the report that “Wealth managers underestimate the loss of trust that has resulted from the credit crunch. They need to recognise the damage and work rapidly to repair it.

There are other statistics around low numbers of loyalty between clients and the wealth managers, disagreements on the clients’ view of performance Vs the banks, Etc.

All of this leads to dissatisfied clients and all in all it is not positive (to say the least).

So much so that many of the clients are switching to other institutions and private wealth management firms.

We all don’t need to have these numbers to recognise that there are levels of denial and a lack of real client focus.

When will the banks and other financial institutions realise that it is time for a change?

Trip Allen, Team Egyii, Singapore

Trust is about being, not doing. In fact, in Laurel Delaney’s blog How to Build Trust, Marilynn T. Mobley says “It isn’t something you do – it’s what you are.”

Our clients don’t leave meetings with us and analyse our actions and come to the conclusion that ‘because he kept to his word he can be trusted.’ Keeping to your word is, of course, essential. But this kind of behaviour is just the entry ticket to play the game of business.

Trust is sensed. It’s about how our client feels when in our presence. These feelings derive from all the unconscious signals we send out as we interact with our client.

We can’t strategise this by deciding what behaviours we are going to engage in to create trust. We can’t fake it. It comes from our intent.

If our intent is to do the  best we can for our client irrespective of sales targets and other pressures – just listen and give them what they need – then we will unconsciously communicate authenticity.

So the starting point is to look inside ourselves honestly and ask whether our goals are the right ones for long term business development and ultimate success.

All of us need to audit our own purpose and aspirations from time to time. Take the time for some introspection instead of always looking at the outside world for answers.

When we are familiar with our internal world and are authentic, then the outside world pretty much takes care of itself. This, I believe, is the key to building trusting relationships that lead to increased business success.

James Irvine, Team Egyii, Singapore

 Scenario

In today’s world, everyone is looking for the right “fix” for their business. Some examples of the fixes are:

The release of new products to fit the ‘mould” for today

Making price adjustments

Re-skilling the workforce to face today’s scenario

Or doing absolutely nothing…

All of these options have short to long term effects. So which option do we choose to make the most impact? Well doing absolutely nothing certainly stands on it own, so a combination of the others does makes the most sense.

But, if you were to prioritize, which one should be emphasized? I believe it should be your people, your front line. As your greatest asset, your client facing people can make the most memorable short, medium and long term impact in businesses.

So, from here on in, we will focus on your people.

This then leads to two big questions. Do we look at “short term” solutions and possibly sacrifice long term results? Or do we look at “medium to long term solutions” and sacrifice short term results?

These questions are not necessary. Why? Let’s build solutions for short, medium and long term results.

The Ultimate Problem

The problem is making the right decision in order to make the highest impact, and too many companies take the wrong perspective and make the wrong decision. What people think is the right decision for the solution is actually the short term, quick fix solution. Why are people choosing this route? Because it is the “easiest” option to implement and it is one that typically can be measured, so it appeases both management and shareholders as it (supposedly) brings in results now.

How are these employee based solutions implemented? Through:

Product and technical training

A new sales process or re-enforcement of an old process

Setting financial goals and measuring the behavioral targets to meet those goals (often done by micro managing)

But is the the best for the client? The one who is suffering the most? The one who actually pays the bills?

No.

Suggested Solutions

Financial organizations are “talking” trust, customer experience, customer centricity, client relationships and loyalty as the key solutions for the client, and therefore the solutions to many of the business problems. But very little is actually being done in these areas. It is all a lot of talk – blah blah blah marketing. Why? Because these require “soft skills” and are not “sexy.” Most businesses reach for “sexy” measurable fixes.

But because they are not “sexy” and mot measured, does this mean that you don’t get results?

No.

Let’s look at the facts. And let’s look at it holistically – in other words a programme that brings results across the  board.

Firstly, I suggest we take a realistic approach and look at how to deliver the right results. As Anthony Tjan, MD of The Cue Ball Group,  states “We too often focus on the desired financial performance target, rather than the inputs that drive those numbers…financial performance is a result, a by-product, a consequence of something else.”  Anthony  has written a very interesting approach to business results in his recent article in Harvard Business Publishing “The Fallacy of Financial Metrics.”

And now, let’s look at a few of the short, medium and long term results from implementing a few people focused programmes..

Loyalty. Loyalty programmes, which are a by product of client realtionships and customer expereince programmes, are very difficult to measure. The means of measurement would be similar to measuring soft skills training, in other words look at the numbers, the results. But numbers can be affected by too many variables (market swings, new product releases,  a change of the weather, Etc).

Frederick Reichold, who has made his entire 30+ year career studying customer loyalty, has measured loyalty and states in his book “The Ultimate Question,” that “A 5 percent increase in retention can equal to a twenty-five to one hundred percent increase in profitability.” Wow. What if the financial organizations had retianed more clients?

As for trust, trust is a hot topic now, from Harvard Business Review to Steven MR Covey. How do you measure trust? Again, very difficult but similar to how you would measure soft skills training and loyalty.

I recently asked Charles H. Green, of Trusted Advisor Associates and co-author of The Trusted Advisor (and a leader in the filed of trust and business) about how to respond to the constant request for short term solutions for immediate results. He responded by saying ” Short term results come from long term management. The best short term performance comes not from managing short term, but managing long term.” Enough said.

So, in summary, let’s re-adjust our attitude and look at employee/client focused programmes that can and do give a holistic solution- short, medium and long term. Although they may not be sexy, and can’t be measured with hard numbers, your greatest asset, your client facing people, can make the most memorable short, medium and long term impact in businesses by delivering upon these programmes. 

Let’s look at why the current economic fiasco happened in the first place. Wasn’t it a result of the push for immediate results? And what are we going to do, repeat what we have just done?

So forget the measurement. Focus on the client. Go with your gut.

For an abbreviated version, please see and download the following: Sizing Up Short to Long Term…

 Trip Allen, Team Egyii, Singapore

Part II: The Personal & Business Success Brought on by Working in a “Trusted” Environment

(part of a series of real work experiences, “Feat on the Street. Part I Sales Calls after Sales Training)

Today’s Challenging Environment

In the business world today, many companies are struggling. There are numerous challenges that hold them back: the current financial situation, managing people and risk, reducing costs while improving revenue, Etc. On top of that, one of the biggest challenges companies face is how to build the right environment to maximize the performance of their people.

And, if your people are performing at their peak, in the right environment, wouldn’t it help drive business and make it easier on you as a manager?

When employees work in the right environment, things get done faster, the employees feel important, undue stress is relieved, the clients feel more comfortable in doing business with the company, stronger internal and external relationships are built …this all leads to better business results.

What is one thing that makes a big difference? What helps build the right environment?

As Steven MR Covey says, trust is “the one thing that changes everything.”

An Environment for Success: a Trusted Environment

I spent 13 spectacular years working at a great company: Anixter. Anixter (AXE: NYSE) is a multi billion dollar, value added distributor of electrical and telecommunications components. You may or may not have heard of Anixter, as their business is not as sexy as Google or Apple’s, however, they have performed consistently and spectacularly throughout the years. There are numerous reasons for this; great leaders, running a smart and prudent business, staying low key and conservative, and more…

Why have they been so successful? It is partially attributed to the work environemnt; an environment of trust.

Some examples:

A flat organization: little to no arrogance

Complete transparency: open books and communication

Empowerment

Delegation: Trusting that the job will get done

Honesty

Collaboration: teams, managers, everyone works together to get the job done

Focus on short, medium and long term results (vs short term only)

Less paperwork and no employee contracts

No micro-management

and more…

There was always an overall attitude of “If you are capable of running your personal life and personal business, you can run and manage a professional business.”

And the record goes to show.

The results are great. Employee retainment is superb (many of my ex-colleagues have 30+ years of tenure and many left and have some back) and people are happy and therfore performing.

How can you instill trust? There are principles that can be followed and, yes, it can be taught.

Bottom line is your work environment directly affects performance. If you can improve upon your work environment through trust and personal relationships, performance will follow naturally.

Trip Allen, Team Egyii, Singapore