EASE- A Gateway for Service Excellence

Customer service is the process of ensuring customer satisfaction with a product or service. In banking, service takes place while performing a transaction for the customer, such as making a sales and/or services. Public sector banks are a major banking service provider in India. A survey says that services in Public sector banks (PSBs) are not as good as private sector banks. Performance of PSBs is also deteriorating due to inferior quality services. Recently Government of India has launched a project for Responsive and Responsible PSBs known as Enhanced Access and Service Excellence (EASE). It is a major gateway for the performance of PSBs. Under Ease there are six themes for Enhanced Access and Service Excellence as follows:

Customer Responsiveness: EASE for customer comfort means banking from the comfort of home, grievance redressal, pleasing ambience etc. Bank has to provide EASE of banking from the comfort of home, EASE in grievance redressal, EASE for senior citizens and the differently-abled, EASE through forms simplification, EASE through pleasing ambience and introduction of EASE ranking annually.

Responsible Banking: Financial stability, improved governance and EASE for clean & prudent business. Under responsible banking, there are various themes such as ‘Creation of Stress Asset Management Vertical’, ‘Corporate Lending Through Rigorous due Diligence’, ‘Tie-up with Agencies, for Specialized Monitoring for Clean & Effective Post, sanction follow-up in loans above Rs.250 crore, institute efficient practices for large consortium loans, minimum 10% exposure, strict segregation of pre and post sanction roles and responsibilities, ring fence cash flows, differentiated banking strategy, Ease through transparent and robust OTS. Furthering financial stability through check aggressive and imprudent lending, monetize realizable non-core assets, rationalize overseas operation, under improving governance there is board-approved strategic vision and business focus, board to evaluate performance of banks’ whole time directors, strengthening and empowerment of boards.

Credit OFF-TAKE : EASE for proactive delivery of credit through Improving process, EASE for the borrower proactive reach-out to borrowers, strategy plans for key industry-based market segments.

PSBs as UDYAMIMITRA for MSMEs : EASE of financing and bill realization for MSMEs through online [email protected], decision within 15 days, EASE of financing for MSMEs, single-point MSME relationship officers, revival framework for stressed MSMEs.

Deepening Financial Inclusion & Digitalization : EASE through near-home banking, micro insurance and digitalization through EASE through near-home banking within 5 kms, social security through micro insurance , EASE through digital payments, customer protection against cyber-frauds.

Ensuring Outcomes – HR : Developing Personnel for brand PSBs through reward select top-performance identified through a performance Management System (PMS), specialization through job families, mandate annual role-based e-learning.

These six parameter of EASE cover all aspects of the customer for service excellence, under the guidelines for PSBs through EASE there is provision of Customer comfort. Under customer comfort, there is a parameter of banking from home and mobile to progressively make brick and mortar branch visits redundant. So banks have to promote digital banking, such as, internet banking, mobile banking, integrated mobile apps and phone banking for EASE of opening accounts and fixed deposits, nomination, sanction of overdraft facility, online loan application, e-payments, return preparation. So we can say that the cost involves through Brick & Mortar banking is going to reduce and able to reach mass section of the people digitally in the same cost. Digital channels provide ease and comfort to customer with less cost. If bank want to provide knowledge of the product to their customer then without any advertisement cost they can sell their product. So it is win-win position for both.

Simplification of forms: under this there is provision to provide maximum two pages for KYC, account opening including all. Online forms with auto filling of information already held by bank. Through this one can able to understand term and conditions easily and customer has convenience in availing services. It is beneficial for both the customer and the bank.

Suite of financial services for one stop access to customers including banking services such as insurance and investment there is a Board approved plan and Implementation with partnerships and skill development of personnel. Now a day’s banks are a financial hub. Customer approaching banks not only for bank deposit or advances but also for different type of service like Insurance, mutual fund and various other investments.

Pleasing ambience of customer service area, with proper seating uncluttered surroundings, cleanliness, proper white washing and painting etc. So customers feel the bank premises like their second home.

Courteous & smartly attired staff: Bank approved code of customer interface.

• Customer access to clean toilets and safe drinking water.
• Uniform and attractive signage for customer assistance in languages as per RBI’s instructions.

EASE in grievance redressal: There is system driven grievance redressal mechanism with real time complain status tracking by complainant, time bound auto escalation, compliant with time limits laid down by RBI, feedback from complainant to check the quality and root cause analysis and effective action on common grievances to avoid recurrence.

EASE for senior citizens and the differently abled: Banks has to provide doorstep banking, preference in service, or dedicated counters; free cheque book issuance without visit, online Update of pension life certificate, automation benefits of senior citizens accounts, visually handicapped may withdraw through authorized person, providing TDS exemption forms proactively.

Introduction of EASE ranking on customer EASE: Annual EASE ranking survey to measure banks customer responsiveness, assessed on all EASE items through customer survey and objective measurement. Ease Ranking Index to be published annually.

EASE for the borrower : Online facility for home, education, vehicle and other personal loans with 100% processing on automated basis, for time bound decision, making and transparent status-tracking, digitalize non retail credit appraisal process on end to end basis, step up cash flow financing substantially, rationalize decision making layers.

Proactive reach out to borrowers: Dedicated feet on street as against reliance on branch based reach in access to finance as a result of enhanced bankability of proposals, reach out entrepreneurs in association with chambers of commerce and industry associations.

EASE through near home banking: Banking outlets within 5 km of every village as approved by State Level Bankers’ Committees, most branch based services through bank mitras for branchless banking, mobile ATM in every underserved district by the district lead bank, with pre announced programme of availability to customers at various locations

Social security through micro insurance: Massive expansion in micro insurance coverage by tagging with MSME, agriculture and other retail loan disbursements to cover borrowing individuals & employees of borrowing entities, under Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana

EASE through digital payments: RuPay debit card to all PMJDY account holders, Aadhaar -seed all operative current & saving accounts as per prevention of Money -Laundering Rules, Enable Aadhaar seeding through OTP on mobile, Massive expansion in Aadhaar enabled payment points

Customer protection against cyber frauds: Ensure credit back against unauthorized debit in electronic transaction, Real-time alerts for customer protection, free customer level security updates for apps:

Service is an important part of maintaining enduring client relationships, which is key, factor to generate long term revenue. The successful entrepreneurs identify the importance of service excellence. A polite and empathetic interaction with a customer service creates a huge difference. Customer wants services to be a one stop endeavour. Customer service representatives must be accessible, knowledgeable. Service excellence is the act of taking care of the customer’s needs by providing and delivering professional, helpful, quality service and assistance before, during and after the customer’s requirements. Characteristics of an excellence customer service include.

• Promptness: Delivery of products must be on time. Delays and cancellations of products should be avoided.
• Politeness: Politeness is an art of saying hello, good afternoon; sir and thank you very much are using good manners whether the customer purchases a product or not is also a part of customer excellence.
• Professionalism: Customers should be treated professionally, means staffs have competence or skilled.
• Personalization: Calling the customer by name is very effective in creating trusts.

There is 7 S of

• SWAGAT
• SUCHNA
• SUVIDHA
• SURAKSHA
• SANRACHNA
• SAHYOG

“In Business you get what you want by giving other people what they want.”
– Alice MacDougall

Service excellence is focus on service before anything else, create a unique customer experience, it benefits to use the customer as marketing vehicle by selling product by WOW. So for service excellence, always respect customer time and opinion. This way, creative mind can solve the problems and communication provides excellence customer service.

According to one survey report July 2012, 26% of bank customers switch accounts to different banks due to poor customer service as the reason. Prompt friendly service with full product knowledge is the key of service excellence.

For excellent service, “Design and deliver the bank products, aligning and developing processes suit to customer needs”
Enhance access for service excellence cover all aspects to improve customer service excellence. Customer responsiveness provide PSB to improve services by providing customer to avail banking services from home, In this regard customer can use digital banking services and avail all banking services through their home.

Ease also suggests grievance redressal system, so that one not satisfied from the services can raise concern. All banks are already instructed by RBI to provide special services for senior citizens and differently abled persons .EASE helps the customer as well as depositors, borrowers and staffs.

Ease through digital payment and EASE for the borrower: Bank prime duty is to accepting deposit for the purpose of lending. EASE provide facility for digital channel, it is a major game changer for service excellence. Digital payment provides services from customer place anytime without inference of human. Digital transaction are settled on real-time basis so customer feeling WOW. In service, it is said, ‘if there is human interaction in services then there is chances of complain’. Digital lending has boosted financial inclusion. Digital channels in banking provide opportunity to both investors and lenders at affordable rate.

Bill Gates in 1990 has rightly said,
“We need banking, but we don’t need banks anymore”

Now we see that through EASE, there are six themes related to service excellence, it covers all aspects through which PSBs can excel. There is provision of clean banking in EASE. EASE index tracks multiple steps for clean banking to avoid NPA problem in future. So if asset quality is good then profitability increase because of less requirement of provisioning or capital. Bank focus less on follow up of NPA asset and legal actions. So PSBs personnel can focus on for customer delightment.

Therefore, we can say that through EASE, customer service of the bank can improve, stress asset will reduced, digital channel utilized more to provide door step banking services. There is provision of know developing HR personnel. So many banks like Union Bank of India providing e learning facility from their home and e learning is mandatory for their domain. E learning is mandatory and it is part of their appraisal. Thus, enhancine knowledge in their domain area provides skill among HR personnel. Finally, we can say that EASE- A Gateway for Service Excellence.

Authored By:

Prabhat Singh Suman
Union Bank of India
Chief Manager (Faculty)
Stc Bhubaneshwar