Customer Service & Financial Services

It is advisable to always inquire about service standards in those areas that will be critical in ensuring that the bank of choice will satisfy your requirements. There are many banks on the local market with majority offering similar services. With this homogeneity of products and services locally, competitiveness is what will give any the edge over their peers eventually leading to business growth. Market differentiation in other terms referred to as segmentation has lately taken root further compounding the situation but working to the advantage of the customer. One key determinant of competitiveness is superior customer service. In Kenya the banking industry has come a long way in terms of customer service now lately referred to as customer experiences. Around the mid-90s the industry witnessed a rush by the institutions towards putting in place tools and policies for superior customer service upon realisation that tangible business growth can be realised through this. Most banks branded and started to engage in aggressive marketing by going flat out for the client in contrast to the previous practice of waiting out for them at the banking hall. It is during this change period that customers witnessed the shifting of the bank managers office from being positioned behind opaque walls to one with transparent glass positioned in the banking hall. Most staff were moved to work from the banking hall and the entrenching of the new culture of willingness to negotiate packages a practice that before then was anathema. This awakened the once sleepy banking scene to a new era of competition and innovation in products and services as new players joined the fray. The clientele at first suspicious eventually embraced the new business concept upon realisation that the model was being adopted with them being the centre of focus.

Whether new or regular as a bank client, it behoves one to keenly match their personal and business needs to their requirements. A quick scan through the products and services being offered should help shed light on what the financial institution you are dealing with lays more emphasis on. A number of institutions specialise in various segments and areas. These include the personal products for the affluent or lower end market, mortgages, asset financing, the SME sector, corporate banking, institutional banking, small ticket lenders, short term lenders, consumer lending, non secured lending, trade finance, sharia complaint banking and others. The list is long. It would serve a client better to follow through and find out what market segment they belong and align themselves with the same for better services and the appropriate product match. This in turn will most likely lead to one being taken through superior customer service experiences. The opposite would hold true. For example, a corporate client would face many hurdles when dealing with an institution that is specifically tailored for the mass market. It is only a few banks on the market who have the muscle and well oiled expertise that manage to handle all clients across the board. There should be caution though as the saying goes that one may be a jack of all trades but remain a master of none can easily hold true for this. A client should check this out very keenly and if not clear then engage the services of a consultant who is well conversant with the set-up of the local industry.

In the effort to keep the customer promise each financial institution has internal standards for upholding customer service. This document is crafted in the form of a charter and seeks to manage the client expectation. Detailed within the document are standards that put meaning to efficiency and being effective while offering the various services. A well-established bank has in the public banking hall hoisted these standards alongside their tariff. Locally the regulator has got the overall responsibility of ensuring that the consumer rights are well protected against any unfair play, unreasonable charges and general service satisfaction. These requirements were imposed by the regulator after the public furore raised in the early 90s about bank hidden charges and other non-explainable practices.  In this regard one is advised to check out for this besides terms and conditions before signing along the dotted line. A customer has the right to demand to get a copy if in doubt as hardly do sales people state this unless by inquiry. In the worst of this some institutions will not accord you the ample opportunity to go through it despite it being a customer right. As of now by law there are no hidden charges in banks on the market but it should take some effort by the customer to find out for themselves. 

The local Kenyan market has evolved pushing financial institutions to use customer experiences to attract and maintain their relationship with the client ultimately helping to fuel business growth. Customer service has now taken its rightful position as one of the key determinants of possessing the competitive edge. The modern banking client has stepped up their awareness of what good customer service is and what mediocrity looks like. It is also for these same reasons that the regulator has stepped in by coming up with policies that seek to both protect the bank client and also ensure they receive quality service. This serves to make the country become competitive in the financial services sector. Bank clients are advised to seek redress any moment they receive below standard service. If the banks internal mechanisms have failed to satisfactorily address your complaint, then one has the right to seek the intervention of the regulator. 

No single service delivery institution can claim the right of perfection. The regulator however has put in place a policy that requires the establishment of a customer service department. This is charged with the focus of documenting customer complaints, resolving them and periodically carries out feedback surveys in this area. All these data is analysed and reports generated for actioning in the endeavour to keep improving service delivery. Whenever standards are breached one has the right to initially engage the service provider directly through channels available. Informal engagement is advisable for cases that require simple straightforward answers while for those of high value impact,the client is hereby advised to formally lodge their concerns right away. Procedurally this should elicit an equally formal response from the respective bank. If not satisfied, then one has the right to follow through escalating this step by step till reaching the highest office in the respective institution. If not conclusively resolved then the last option is bringing the matter to the regulator which locally is the central bank. There are those exceptional cases that eventually end in court and may jeopardise the relationship between the client and that particular institution. It will remain upon the clients discretion on when to take this course of action.