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RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.RBS Citizens Improves its customer experience with support from Aptean Respond

CASE STUDY

CASE STUDY RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. 2

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RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is a $120 billion commercial bank holding

company headquartered in Providence, R.I.

• RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. At-A-Glance

• Citizens Bank (operating in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont)

• Charter One (operating in Illinois, Michigan and Ohio)

CUSTOMER DETAILSToday, RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has approximately 1,400 branches, over 3,500 ATMs and more than 18,000 colleagues in 12 states covering New England, the Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest.

INDUSTRYFinancial Services

APTEAN SOLUTIONRespond

CHALLENGES• Maintainingacompetitivepositionamonglargerfinancialorganizations

• Ensuringpromptcollection,assessmentandresolutionofcomplaintsdata

BENEFITS• Enhancedbrandreputationforcustomerserviceandsatisfaction

• Continuousimprovementthroughrichfront-linefeedbackdata

• Decreasedcomplaintvolumesandfewerexpressionsofdissatisfaction

CASE STUDY RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. 3

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DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES Withanetworkofbranchesacross12statesintheNortheast,

Mid-AtlanticandMidwestregionsoftheU.S.,RBSCitizens

FinancialGroup,Inc.(RBSCFG)isaregionalorganizationfocused

onprovidingatrulydifferentiatedcustomerexperiencethroughits

CitizensBankandCharterOnefranchises.RBSCFGhasdeveloped

a three-prong customer experience strategy designed to ensure

happy, loyal clients across its network.

The strategy begins with a strong customer service culture

thatflowsfromtheCEOthroughtobranch-levelemployees.

Everyone is encouraged and empowered to make customers

thetoppriority.Oneoftheorganization’sstrategicprioritiesis

todeliveradifferentiatedcustomerexperiencethroughsimple,

clear and personal banking. Whether customers are applying

foramortgageordepositingacheck,thecompanyaimstobe

distinctive and honest in all its interactions. RBSCFG promotes

continuousimprovementbylisteningtothevoicesoftheir

customers.Thishappensthroughavarietyofcustomersurveys

includingtheJ.D.PowerRetailBankingSatisfactionStudy,as

well by surveys administered to customers who have recently

conductedtransactions.Thatcustomerfeedbackisanalyzedto

uncoveropportunitiesforimprovementandactionplansareputin

place to address those opportunities. An equally important source

forunderstandingthevoiceofthecustomercomesfrommining

complaintsdatagatheredbystaff.

Many organizations implement complaints policies to meet

regulatorydemandsenforcedbyagenciessuchastheU.S.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. RBSCFG not only examines

theseissuesthrougharegulatorylens,butalsoformalized

its complaints policy as a way to provide superior customer

experiences.Thispreventiveapproachinfluenceshiringdecisions,

employeetraining,andformalizesacultureofempowerment

that equips colleagues to go above and beyond standard service

practices.Insteadofviewingregulatorycomplianceasan

administrative requirement, RBSCFG has leveraged its complaints

policyprogramtoadvancethecompany’sdifferentiatedcustomer

experience strategy.

FLEXIBLE FEEDBACK AND COMPLAINTS MANAGEMENT Severalyearsago,RBSCFGimplementedApteanRespondsoftware

fortheExecutiveServicesandPriorityResponsedepartments.

Thesetwolegacydivisionshandledcomplaintsescalatedfromthe

branchlevel,inadditiontomanagingregulatorycomplaintsfrom

compliance bodies. The contact center also had access to Respond,

butnoneofthesedepartmentsusedthesolutionconsistentlyor

with any technical or business oversight.

OnceRBSCFGfocuseditseffortsmorestronglyondeliveringa

differentiatedcustomerexperience,seniormanagementrealized

thatRespondcouldenhanceitsfront-lineinteractionsandhelp

staffdelivermoretimelycustomerfeedbackresponses.Ledby

FaheemZuberi,theheadofproblemresolution,reportingand

analytics, the team rolled out Respond to more than 10,500

employees–morethanhalfthebank’sentirepopulation.

Today, approximately 6,500 colleagues use Respond daily to enter customerexpressionsofdissatisfaction,resolvecases,followupon incidents, log comments, and escalate complaints and issues totheappropriatebankarea.Colleaguesusethesolutionfromthebeginningofeachcustomerinteractionthroughtoclosingthecomplaint,whilemaintainingafullrecordofprocessnotesand comments. For RBSCFG, this data provides key insights aboutcustomerbehaviorandevolvingconsumerneeds.It’sarichknowledgesourceforanorganizationdriventocontinuouslyimprove the banking experience.

TheRBSCFGteamworkedcloselywithApteanProfessionalServicestocompletetheRespondrolloutwithaclearvisionofhow the solution would support its business needs and provide apositiveuserexperienceforcolleagues.Topromoteaccurateentries(withoutsignificanteffort),thetechnicalteamfocusedonstreamliningdrop-downmenusandfeedbackcollectionprocesses,while pre-populating data wherever possible, automatically escalating complaints to the appropriate parties, and minimizing multi-screen tasks. Colleagues receive ongoing Respond training and are encouraged to suggest improvements.

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CASE STUDY RBS CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.

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More than 5,000 customers around the world rely on Aptean to give them a competitive edge. By providing innovative, industry-drivenenterpriseapplicationsoftware,Apteanhelpsbusinessestosatisfytheircustomers,operatemoreefficiently,andstayattheforefrontoftheirindustry.

Formoreinformation,visit: www.aptean.com

LEVERAGING COMPLAINTS FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE WithsupportfromRespond,RBSCFGhasbuiltasmart,

comprehensive complaint handling program. Customer care is a

cornerstoneofthebank’smarketposition–anditsstrategicfocus

hasclearlypaidoff.

Year over year, total RBSCFG complaints are down more than

20percent.Overallcustomerexpressionsofdissatisfaction

(by volume) have dropped by more than 20 percent. In 2013,

Money MagazinealsonamedRBSCFGoneof“TheBestBanks

inAmerica.”Thecompanywasrecognizedforofferinga24/7

customer contact center – including banking specialists available

via instant messaging – and convenient account access through

traditional and supermarket branches and ATMs, plus robust

online and mobile services.

By paying close attention to consumer insights and taking prompt

action,RBSCFGenjoysstrongcustomerretentionlevels.“You

actually save money, too, because you do not have to solve the

same problem over and over again,” says Zuberi. The company

hasboosteditsProblemResolutionscoresfromJ.D.Powerand

continuallydrivesimprovementstoitsslateofproductsand

services.Increasingcustomersatisfactionultimatelyproduces

across-the-boardenterprisebenefits.

WithApteanRespond,RBSCFGhasapowerfulsolutionnotonly

tocollectandassessenterprisefeedback,butalsotoachieve

itsbusinessgoals.Thecustomer-centeredfocusoneffectively

handling, tracking and resolving complaints has given this regional

bankingorganizationasharedsenseofdirectionandastronger

reputation in a competitive market.