Service Excellence through Engaged Service

In today’s financial world, members have many choices when it comes to financial services – credit unions, national and multinational banks, community banks, online banks, non-banks, brokerage houses, etc. And with expanded and sometimes overlapping charters, credit unions are often competing with each other for the same members.  In this ever-expanding universe of financial services providers, it will be necessary for many credit unions to rely on service as the primary differentiator.

In order to become a real differentiator, service excellence must pervade all member interactions, across all delivery channels (in-person, email, website, telephone, chat, blog, etc.), and at all times. Achieving and maintaining this level of service will reduce member attrition while concurrently informing and driving growth. 

So how does a credit union achieve and maintain a consistent level of service excellence? Through a program of Engaged Service, which will inform and define not only external service (how your member contact staff interacts with your members), but also internal service (how staff and departments interact with each other). 

Fully realized, the proven methodologies of Engaged Service will increase account balances, numbers of accounts, member satisfaction and the membership base itself. We will work with you and your team to develop an Engaged Service program, embodying elements such as:

• Service skills assessment
• Review of “generalists” and “specialists”
• Review of job titles, job descriptions and perceived roles
• Success indicators: performance review process and metrics
• Management by objectives (modified)
• Process review (if needed) for new accounts, loan originations, etc.
• Customized training to meet the needs of the credit union and its membership
• Training aligned with corporate culture and strategic plan
• Dynamic training that takes place at both group at individual levels.
• Development of a definition of service, specific to the credit union
• A methodology for measuring “how” service to be delivered
• A methodology for measuring the results of the service delivery – at individual, department and corporate levels.
• Development of ongoing staff development and “refresher” courses
• New staff orientation programs designed to provide an intimate, interactive discussion about the service concepts of the credit union
• Focus on accountability and responsibility
• Reimagining of the service recovery role
• An orientation program for new staff, designed to create early alignment with the service culture
• Effective cross-selling using needs-analysis
• Supplementing in-person service with technology
• Compensation in a service culture

If service excellence is your goal, or you would simply like to know about the Engaged Service model, give us a call or send us an email.

Start at the Start

Any program or initiative to improve service should "start at the start," or at least go back to start, which is to say the recruitment and hiring function. Are you looking for the right people with the right skill sets? Does your position announcement or advertisement reflect all of what you would want in the "perfect candidate" for the job?  Is your onboarding program sufficient to ensure that you've made the right hire?

"Customer satisfaction begins with employee satisfaction" - Frederick W. Smith, Chairman and CEO, Federal Express

Win-Win-Win

Our Engaged Service approach is designed to produce not just a win-win scenario, but a win-win-WIN scenario that benefits the credit union, its members, and its staff.