ORLANDO, Fla. — As the financial services industry continues to employ multichannel integration, it's increasingly important for financial institutions to balance technology with personal interaction. In its "Branch of the Future" concept demonstration room at the 2008 BAI Retail Delivery Conference & Expo, Diebold Inc. showed how emerging technologies relate to branch efficiencies and personal interaction.
Building on customer feedback from its 2007 mobile banking demonstrations, Diebold demonstrated three scenarios to illustrate how future service and security technologies can seamlessly blend with personal interaction in transactions that heighten the overall customer or member experience at a bank or credit union.
"Diebold's Branch of the Future is now in its third year of illustrating how a progressive financial institution can employ cutting-edge technologies without sacrificing customer service," said Jim Block, director of advanced global technology for Diebold. "The scenarios are different each year but they're founded on technologies we could see in the not-so-distant future and designed with customer input in mind. Our intent is to help financial institutions understand the many benefits to their own operations through these technological advancements, while shedding light on the positive effects technology can have on how their customers bank."
Diebold's first scenario showed how a teller, using a mobile tablet PC, can complete a customer's CD renewal through one-on-one interaction, while using the same technology to prepare the back office for another customer to cash a check at an ATM or self-service terminal.
The teller's mobile PC is equipped with biometrics technology to capture the customer's fingerprint "signature," which enables immediate identification of the customer at the self-service terminal, expediting the transaction.
"In this case, the combination of technology and human interaction not only heightens productivity and makes use of existing technology, promoting cost savings for the institution, it also empowers customers by enabling them to engage in personal interaction with branch personnel and still manage important transactions," Block said.
A second scenario showcased the effectiveness of network monitoring security tools in the branch.
A branch supervisor relies on remote technology to access a financial institution's network to quickly solve various challenges, such as locating and granting appropriate system access rights, authenticating a replacement teller for one who is unable to report to work, and identifying the appropriate branch to handle a customer's urgent deposit.
"In this case, mobile technology allows the supervisor to securely access several areas of the institution's remote system to quickly gather and disperse the necessary information to keep the branch operating at an optimal level while providing exceptional service," Block said.
And in the third scenario, Diebold showed how technological improvements to a teller's interior work station at the branch drive-up window can translate to a more fulfilling customer experience.
From the customer's perspective, an animated screen illustrates what the customer might see during a drive-up transaction. Although the majority of the advancements are through new technologies incorporated into the teller station, they help facilitate a more positive personal exchange for both the customer and the teller.
