Banks must retain human touch

A humanistic banking approach replacing the current mechanical/geometric work focus will tickle the customers' sensitivity and ensure their stickiness.

Shombit Sengupta, founder and chairman, Shining Emotional Surplus and Brand Consulting, said that technology should essentially be a back-end supply tool, playing a mere facilitating role at the front-end.

Banks in their bid to chase technology, replicate product innovation and are choking the very character of the banking service, turning it mechanical and dull.

All they have is a horizontal understanding of the customer now, instead of the emotional connect.

The mindset of banks are so skewed that even their logos are boxy and geometric. With the interest rate game saturating, banks only have the promotion-based asset growth mantra up their sleeves.

However, this governance related option too may run out fast as banks in their bid to outdo each other, not only replicate but do it better as well.

Instead of copying, they will stand in good stead if they work on specialisation, identify area-specific needs and launch a brand that revolves around their core culture and USP.

For instance, several old-generation banks are running after technology, without connecting to customers and are hence ignoring their culture, trust and other USPs painstakingly built over the years.

They need to contemporarise and evolve products that connect to the profitable demographics. This cannot be replicated easily, he said. And in the process of building such a product/service, banks will be forced to automatically push in the attitude and behaviour change among their front and back-end staff, which will kick off the emotional/humanistic approach.