I believe that the process which needs to be followed by my corporation is one with multiple steps. The communications gap will not be bridged with only one or two new methods.

The first thing that needs to happen is for every employee with a computer to have intranet email. Currently, it is reserved for members of the management teams at each branch as well as customer service agents. It would be beneficial for all employees to have email access.

Although it takes more computer memory, an instant messaging program would be the next best step. Instead of waiting on hold or having to call multiple numbers to reach the right person, it would save time and energy if employees could immediately send each other messages. This would also be helpful for customers waiting on answers from the bank employee to whom they are speaking.

The third necessary change would be for more comprehensive training for the customer service agents. The more they know, the more customer questions they can answer. It would also be beneficial if there were a quick-reference guide for the employees on the receiving end of our call center. If they do not know the answers, it should be easy for them to look for them instead of calling around to each branch until an available teller can accept the customer’s call and answer their questions.

I believe that if enough branch service associates discussed their call center issues with the corporation’s decision makers that more customers would be helped more quickly in the long run.