I may be laughed at for my title and dismissed summarily as a novice's blabber, but nevertheless I will take the risk of going through with my thoughts on this.
ICICI is a hero in the eyes of Indian industry. In a land where government rank banks through proxies, where modern banking system was virtually unknown, where private banks could never muster enough support to break into mainline, ICICI stepped in boldly. It has gone places where no private Indian bank has dreamt of going before. KV Kamath is now an icon for what he has done. ICICI is a case study in vritually every book that deals with innovation, both in India and abroad.
Then why did I choose such a title? I not just a skeptic who finds fault with a new development. Neither am I to change. It is no secret that success of a corporation is dependent directly on the support it receives from its customers. True, employees, investors do have a good say on the survival, but the key itself is held by customers.
ICICI, while growing fast and bold and monumental, has somehow stopped taking its customers along with it. Somewhere in its journey, ICICI has dropped off customers in the middle of the sky, sometimes without parachutes, while it has sped along. It has become more like a federal company with middlemen dictating terms for end customers. Agents, who have no clue about ICICI's mission or vision, have become customer touch-points - or pain-points. Half baked mergers (with Bank of Madura etc.,) with poor system integration even after several years, have left common customers annoyed.
While corporate customers manage to arm twist and get things done in the bank, common customers are left to fend for themselves. Many of them stick with ICICI because they are either tired to move, or stuck with some transaction that doesn't allow them to move. While ICICI lures customers using all strategic marketing techniques, once they customers are in, they are made to go through all sorts of pain and trouble and poor processes. Customer familiar with latest technologies or with greater disposable income either don't care about hidden charges or just don't realize that there have been deductions without their knowledge.
But the middle class masses do realize. Walk into a ICICI teller counter and you can see customers yelling everyday on some deductions, wrong transactions, ATM charges, irresponsible middle agents, clerks with no clue about abbreviations, managers waiting for approval from "Mumbai". Add to this the irritating phone calls that thrust personal loans and credit cards - ICICI has a truckload of angry customers.
While flying high in quest for growth, ICICI has forgotten to take care of pilots who actually drive the company to success. Unless corrective actions are rapidly introduced and ICICI brings focus back on customer, chances are certain that the Bank will fail, possibly sooner.
ICICI is a hero in the eyes of Indian industry. In a land where government rank banks through proxies, where modern banking system was virtually unknown, where private banks could never muster enough support to break into mainline, ICICI stepped in boldly. It has gone places where no private Indian bank has dreamt of going before. KV Kamath is now an icon for what he has done. ICICI is a case study in vritually every book that deals with innovation, both in India and abroad.
Then why did I choose such a title? I not just a skeptic who finds fault with a new development. Neither am I to change. It is no secret that success of a corporation is dependent directly on the support it receives from its customers. True, employees, investors do have a good say on the survival, but the key itself is held by customers.
ICICI, while growing fast and bold and monumental, has somehow stopped taking its customers along with it. Somewhere in its journey, ICICI has dropped off customers in the middle of the sky, sometimes without parachutes, while it has sped along. It has become more like a federal company with middlemen dictating terms for end customers. Agents, who have no clue about ICICI's mission or vision, have become customer touch-points - or pain-points. Half baked mergers (with Bank of Madura etc.,) with poor system integration even after several years, have left common customers annoyed.
While corporate customers manage to arm twist and get things done in the bank, common customers are left to fend for themselves. Many of them stick with ICICI because they are either tired to move, or stuck with some transaction that doesn't allow them to move. While ICICI lures customers using all strategic marketing techniques, once they customers are in, they are made to go through all sorts of pain and trouble and poor processes. Customer familiar with latest technologies or with greater disposable income either don't care about hidden charges or just don't realize that there have been deductions without their knowledge.
But the middle class masses do realize. Walk into a ICICI teller counter and you can see customers yelling everyday on some deductions, wrong transactions, ATM charges, irresponsible middle agents, clerks with no clue about abbreviations, managers waiting for approval from "Mumbai". Add to this the irritating phone calls that thrust personal loans and credit cards - ICICI has a truckload of angry customers.
While flying high in quest for growth, ICICI has forgotten to take care of pilots who actually drive the company to success. Unless corrective actions are rapidly introduced and ICICI brings focus back on customer, chances are certain that the Bank will fail, possibly sooner.
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3 comments:
Which bank do you feel has the best customer service in India? SBI ?
well.. for "aam junta", SBI & Canara Bank have provided more transparent and easy access. While ICICI is good for well educated customers & NRIs, its banking practices are still very questionable - the thrust of personal loans and credit cards to unsuspecting customers for example..
and any corporate cannot have long term success when its customers stick to it because of lack of choice.
Your overall point about poor service is valid. but I think that poor service delivery is a national ailment. I'm yet to hear any consumer bank be praised by many. Everyone has complaints. Now even companies are complaining of having been taken for a ride by the banks that sold them complex derivative products recently, allegedly without explaining the details properly. There is so much pressure to sell now that service or looking after customer needs has taken a backseat.
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