BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT: FINANCIAL SERVICES

The Company

A major Metro-West, Boston, financial institution.

The Situation

The cycle-time to replace lost/stolen debit cards is an unacceptable 7 to 9 days and, occasionally, 13 to 15 days. Also, poorly coordinated vendor delivery of customer PINs relative to new cards often results in additional customer “wait time” for cards to be usable.

The Challenge

How do we improve the efficiency (speed) and effectiveness (accuracy/quality) of the process by which we fulfill a customer’s request to replace a lost or stolen debit card?

The Results

• Total process cycle time is reduced from 7 to 3 days (best-case)/9 to 5 days (worse-case) -- representing 44% improvement (worse-case) and, 66% improvement against occasional, worst-case 15-day replacement cycle-time.
• Client also reports, “greatly diminished FedEx costs” (formerly required to expedite card deliveries).
• Clarified empowerment practices for “customer-facing” staff
• Consolidated and standardized multiple and inconsistent data-handling tools and practices
• Reduced customer data inaccuracies
• Optimized external vendor integration within total Debit Card Replacement Process