National Westminster Bank Essay -- Business and Management Studies:

National Westminster curse1. IntroductionThe purpose of this report is to analyse the sheath NationalWestminster Bank (David Woodgate and Nigel Slack, 1992), in order toidentify either existing and potential problems, then after carefulconsideration recommend possible courses of action to rectify them.During the review of the organisation described in the case, the pick upissues will be identified and then related to relevant theory.Analysis will then be made of wholly relevant factors and recommendationswill be made after consideration of all factors.Overview of the CaseThe case study to be analysed focuses on the St Jamess Square branchof the National Westminster Bank in Londons West End. The case givesa clear and concise representation of the banks structure givingdetailed descriptions of the all the employees roles and functions andan organisation chart. The focus is then applied to the RecordsSection and account opening procedure, which is where the problems arefound and co mplaints have been registered.The results of a survey are summarised in the case to show the unmingled level of customer dissatisfaction with the account openingprocedure, the importance of such factors are then highlighted with abrief description of the level of contention within the bankingindustry. The views of are also considered and suggest areas wherecurrent systems may be failing the organisation.2. ProblemKey IssuesThe location of the bank in St Jamess square is both a blessing and aburden to the organisation. The sophisticated clientele resulted inthe bank being the most profitable in its region, hitherto they alsoexpected an extremely high level of customer service. This high levelof expectation from the customers resulted in any lapses in servicebeing exceedingly scrutinised.The key issues to be addressed within this branch occur in or aroundthe process of opening accounts which is the responsibility of theRecords Section, they are as follows Customers connecter the w rong queue and requiring redirection because the enquiries desk was neither well positioned or signposted. Competition is tough within the banking industry, particularly in this branchs immediate vicinity. 36 per cent of customers felt formalities were not properly explained. 76 per cent had not received the sta... ...nt a new system in theRecords Section. After consideration of alternatives it is apparentthat it would be possible and practical for the organisation to dothis with kayoed major disruption to the organisational structure.5. RecommendationsThe main recommendation from the findings in this report is for the StJamess Square branch to implement a cell layout in order for theRecords Section to handle its workload.This would enable them to carry out all their tasks much moreefficiently and fulfil its duties while maintaining customersatisfaction. To implement such a system the bank will need to employa process of windows in which customers are able to come in and openac counts or to arrange appointments on the phone.Possible drawbacks with such a service would be that customers wouldnot be able to open accounts at their gismo and may becomedissatisfied with this process but the quality of product they wouldreceive is likely to be much improved.---------------------------------------------------------------------1 Statistics derived from a survey the branch carried out in 1989 on customers views of their account opening procedures.