Customer service over the Internet will remain limited in the benefits it delivers if it continues to be modelled on its bricks-and-mortar systems. Amir Lubashevsky, CEO of EC-Hold, says that the legacy of isolated systems, mountains of paper and manually driven business processes has been passed on to Internet-based systems. "An ITAA (Information Technology Association of America) survey done in conjunction with Ernst and Young identified `difficulty (in) integrating new e-commerce products with existing systems as a major technological barrier in the success of these e-ventures. Workflow and document imaging technology and a change in company culture underpin breaking down organisational barriers and creating user friendly business processes."
"Harnessing technology goes beyond adding new technologies on top of old. Customers want a single view of the bank. They want one entry point. They want transparency and to know what is happening to their transactions," says Lubashevsky. "Queuing and timeouts, inaccessible services, delays and constant querying to see if a transaction has been completed wind the customer up in anxious, irritable and sometimes furious transacting."
However, the investment in and complexity of these legacy systems makes scrapping them a long-term option. But, says Lubashevsky, in the meantime this fragmentation and the top-heavy processes must be tamed.
"Customers apply, sign and pay for services such as home loans, accounts, investments, insurance and loans at one point. But changes and queries are met with `We don`t deal with that, please contact...`.
Workflow gives new life to old systems cutting across boundaries and involving suppliers and service providers and the customer as part of the process, reducing lead-times, costs and customer frustration. Workflow is dynamic; its energy speeds up any process, and makes it very clear who and what the delays are. "A notification of a successful step via e-mail, fax or SMS, built into the workflow process or initiated by the concerned staff member, an estimate of completion date, a request for further information can be dynamically communicated," adds Lubashevsky. "Personal service takes on new meaning with proactive communication. Notifications of transactions exceeding pre-defined limits such as an unusually large debit, or time to renew investment and insurance agreements, not just marketing material which already swamps so many post-boxes. Mobile and Internet customers are potentially high value loyal customers when the bank adds value."
Paper-based processes are slow and are mobilised by document imaging. Workflow is speeded up as each person in the supply chain has the same immediate view. Customers who can see their portfolio, applications, contracts and the cheque or credit voucher that is being questioned online or as an attachment, are reassured, don`t have to go to the bank and staff don`t have to explain what something looks like over the phone.
"Technology can support far more than account queries, payments and applications. Is a service really better when an electronic funds transfer takes three days, to reflect on the account, making on-line querying pointless, while a manual cheque deposit is reflected immediately? Chase Manhattan and the Bank of America are digitising cheques, speeding up processing, making them available to customers on the Web. Services such as foreign exchange transfers
"Virtual banking needs more than a quality shopping mall on the website. Differentiated e-enabled services need to have the groundwork laid, linking business processes across the traditional organisational boundaries with accessible electronic documentation. Web technology offers lower cost and improved efficiency but only if the bank makes the legacy of old systems work for the customer," warns Lubashevsky.
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