Bank grows through self-service

Banque Saudi Fransi (BSF) is expanding its branch network in Saudi Arabia following trials of the first completely self-service 24-hour branches, branded 'Fransi Connection', which were designed by NCR, states Banking Technology.

BSF's existing manned branches have also been remodelled by NCR to provide customers with self-service access to a wider range of quick and simple transactions, thereby freeing up staff to focus on customer acquisition and product cross-selling.

Located in shopping centre and business district locations, the self-service branches are intended to provide drop-in centres around the clock for a wide range of rapid money management tasks.

West Interactive, provider of hosted communication solutions, is partnering with Movidilo, a provider of advanced customer self-service and marketing multimedia solutions for mobile handsets, reports PR-USA.

West Interactive plans to use Movidilo mobile solutions to enhance its current suite of mobile communication product offerings and help clients improve services across multiple contact channels.

West Interactive aims to offer this service to clients in the areas of customer self-care and acquisition in the communications, financial, healthcare, retail and travel markets.

Patients are frustrated by having to wait at doctors' or hospital offices and are looking to self-service technology as a way to reduce the time involved, according to NCR, which makes a self-service kiosk for the healthcare industry, says Dayton Daily News.

A study that NCR commissioned found that 74% of patients regard waits at a physician's or hospital office the greatest frustration of a healthcare appointment.

People surveyed for the study also said they would be interested in using self-service technology to schedule medical appointments, pay medical bills and complete the forms now done on paper.