At the Forrester conference in May, I blogged about Wal-Mart trying to get into banking in the US, which has successfully been lobbied into submission. So here comes the Canadian angle. Wal-Mart Canada Corp. is looking to expand into the financial services business, a potentially lucrative growth area as the retailing price war intensifies over food, clothing and other consumer staples. The big-box giant recently hired Trudy Fahie as vice-president of financial services at Wal-Mart Canada, a role created for assessing the retailer’s options in the sector. Ms. Fahie is the former vice-president of financial services for American Express Canada. … Continue reading Wal-Mart eyes banking in Canada

David at Infoworld succinctly sums up the problem with CRM. The customer benefit is not there. Quick. When was the last time you remember being pleasantly surprised by how effectively a company used data about you to improve your customer experience? Source: Customer Relationship Management (CRM)? So What? I wrote about the frustration with CRM recently. David goes on to touch on why this problem exists. Based on surveys it appears that corporations have simply not decided to make good use of customer data a priority, mostly because no single person or part of the organization owns the issue. He … Continue reading Putting data to work for the bottom line

David from INGBlogs builds on an essential point here in a comment that I thought worth amplifying into a post. The bank is becoming less important in its role of middleman between demand and supply of money – at least, in the medieval bank model as set up by some rich Italian families hundreds of years ago. A newer middleman function for a bank could be modelled after the eBay model. Let the expertise and decision making of demand and supply reside with these parties themselves. This would apply to retail banking but also to corporate banking. Toyota could lend money … Continue reading Banks role as middleman is under attack

 Got this great post from a link in Chris’s feed.  I have spent years developing strategies, getting them approved, and the next few quarters adjusting, and re-budgeting so this resonates. “Make small, frequent decisions whenever possible. You will have many opportunities to make small decisions & use them as best you can. Your reaction time will be too slow if you always try to come up with a comprehensive plan, and the situation may change, rendering your plan irrelevant. Constant reassessment is possible if you work in small steps. Once a group comes up with a master plan, people can become overly … Continue reading We Have No Plan | CEO Blues

Setting the tone for the next BAI, this statement sums up the state of banking well.  Its innovate or merge to grow.  What we’ve heard loud and clear is that the banking industry has become an increasingly commoditised marketplace and banking organizations are looking for new ideas and groundbreaking concepts to help them thrive in the competitive marketplace. Source: Payments News: Innovation ‘Very Important’ to Most Banks – October 16, 2006   Technorati tags: banking+strategy Continue reading Payments News: Innovation ‘Very Important’ to Most Banks – October 16, 2006

 George highlights a new book that sounds very relevant. The book, “Why business people speak like idiots.”  This quote of Russ Klein of Burger King, is the perfect example.  ‘Turning your brand over to the consumer enables social connectivity as a means of empowerment.’ Source: Pardon me while I speak rubbish!   Technorati tags: presentations, powerpoint Continue reading Pardon me while I speak rubbish!

I think this article from the Calgary Herald, misses the point, and demonstrates a lack of research.   RBC’s plans contrast with those of U.S. retail giant Washington Mutual Inc., which said last month that it is de-emphasizing branches to focus on the Internet. WaMu plans to close 63 branches in Atlanta and Chicago, for example, in favor of driving customers to cyberspace to open and manage accounts. Source: BankNet 360 – TOP STORY: Oh Canada! RBC Plans Major Expansion WAMU’s decision to scale back in Chicago follows a frenetic expansion plan only to realise the local market is hyper competitive.  Contrast … Continue reading BankNet 360 – RBC Plans Major Expansion

 Wow… its blindingly obvious when I read it, but Tara’s comment from an earlier post perfect sums up the immense gap we Bankers have to cross to really addresses customers real needs.  No further comment required.  Just something to think about how we build into the model for the future Bank. I guess the biggest question is: what do people want from their bank? I mean REALLY want from their bank. Higher interest? Lower fees? Security? Help with finances? Personalized service?  I really do love banking in smaller branches, because the people there know me and are willing to ‘bend’ the … Continue reading The Essence of Banking ….. from a customer