STATE BANK OF INDIA: “SMS UNHAAPPY” - A nationwide Initiative.
It has been nearly 60 years since the State Bank of India came into operation and undoubtedly, it has been one of the most well-established banks in the country. The SBI focuses on areas such as treasury and financial markets,international banking, relationship management and other non-banking financial services like insurance and mutual funds. The major reason as to why State Bank of India is what it is today is its progressive nature and drive for continuous improvement. At 1991, a time when SBI was enjoying near monopoly, its reign was threatened by liberalization as it handed many other private banks an opportunity to make a foray against the SBI. But the State Bank of India rose to the occasion and showed dramatic growth in the private sector. Advantages of SMS Unhappy One of the major advantages of „SMS Unhappy‟ was the simplicity and the clarity in the customer complaint management system as an SMS was all it took for a customer to let the bank know that he is need of help. As the whole system did not demand the use of papers, it fell well within the “Green Banking” initiatives which were taken to save the environment. Being a customer centric system, it also provided small yet pivotal advantages like 24 x 7 availability, low cost and more importantly, a reliable way of communication to address queries. Customer Expectations: The „SMS Unhappy‟ system has to reach a wide range of people and provide services to all sections of the society. Moreover, equal treatment is likely to come first on the expectations list of any potential customer. It must also be able to resolve the problems in an efficient manner as it would in turn enhance the services provided to the customers. We live in a world which is extremely dynamic and hence timely response is of utmost importance to the customers. Thus, adapting to the constant technological developments is necessary for speedy exchange of information. A vast majority of the population believe that„the simpler the system, the easier the access‟. Thus despite the technological developments, it is also important to reduce the complexity involved in the banking sector. Competition: ICICI, HDFC, National Bank of Punjab, Axis Bank. Reference Exhibit 1: A marginal victory has been achieved in the Hindustan Times Survey. This showcases extreme levels of competition and the capacity of the competing banks which are in close proximity. Sustenance is mandatory as a slight fallback would cause the bank to lose its number one position (position referred to here be according to survey taken in the year of 2009).
Technological developments would mean that newer technology would imply that a rival bank has equal opportunities to access it and win over the market.
Opportunities The bank initiated a campaign called as the “parivartan” which followed the inside out approach and an “intervention program” aimed to reach out to 200,000 employees in 100 days and obtain their buy-in. SBI introduced personal banking with more personalized customer service and “vishesh” banking services for high income individuals. SBI launched the “Citizn SBI” in 2009 -a program aimed at promoting customer engagement and orienting organizational mindset towards customer fulfilment. Another sequel was the introduction of “Udaan” which targeted employees on the frontline. The protagonist here is Mr Shiva Kumar, recently appointed Deputy General Manager. He is the person who had initiated the SMS Unhappy. The idea came to him first when he was working in Lucknow. His optimistic attitude led him to start this new venture in Bhubaneshwar, Orissa. The taste of success urged him to go one step further. He wanted to implement SMS Unhappy on a larger scale i.e. in the entire state of Andhra Pradesh. Mr. Bhatt had an even bigger vision for the future of the company. He wanted to spread SMS Unhappy to branches all over India.
Problems faced by protagonist: SMS Unhappy was a huge success in Orissa and Hyderabad. If it is nationalized, the following questions need to be addressed: 1) What will be its long term perception? 2) Will customers start to complain about too frivolous issues? 3) Will the system be regulated properly or will the system itself form a basis for complaints? 4) If a national wide campaign is held for promoting the scheme, will the complaint number rapidly rise? 5) Will customer addressed here will be profitable to the organization? 6) Can this scheme be made available to select customers, segmented by profile? 7) Will the focus be on customer satisfaction or to reach out the new customers? 8) Will the cost for appointing senior officials to address the queries, bearable?
Corresponding solution to the above problems: 1) With the national launch of this initiative, and widening of its reach, consumers of banking services can look forward to a new era of fast, hassle-free complaint resolution, and, better, delightful experiences with their Bank by providing cloud computing techniques, ordered customer services and online petitions.
2) The customers will tend to start over using the system but the exhibit 5 shows that the SBI AP has implemented a special department which segregates the complaints in a prioritized manner. The same idea can be extended in a prolific manner so that they could comply with the masses. 3) Based upon the previous success story of SBI-AP and Orissa and the response time backed up by Exhibit 7, the model will prove to be reliable. 4) The complaint number will briskly rise which has to be subdued by swift response through use of technology. 5) Customer satisfaction is the primary goal of any organization. It will increase the number of loyal customers which in turn increases the customer network across the nation. 6) A differentiated offering on customer profiles can be implemented through a centralized incident management system which categorizes the problems according to the sensitivity of the incident. 7) SBI is making a conscious effort to ensure profitable customer relationship by resolving the grievances of the customers in a quick friendly manner. Customer complaints are our guiding light towards better customer service. As the SBI‟s are targeting to provide more than what the customer expects, it results in customer delight and is the only way to win and retain a customer. This will ultimately reach out new customers resulting in the expansion of the bank. 8) Senior Officials play a vital role in problem solving. Even though the cost incurred in hiring them are high, the benefits received are of more significance to the Bank.
