The Problem With The Branch Transformation Journey

by. Ron Shevlin

One of those other analyst firms blogged recently about banks’ branch transformation journeys. The post contained a graphic depicting a 2×2 matrix showing how many banks move from the lower left quadrant to the upper left quadrant on their way to the desired state, the upper right quadrant.

Source: Celent

[There is an unwritten rule among consultants that when drawing a 2×2 matrix, the upper right quadrant is the place to be. Richard Stiennon has even written a book about this.]

My take: I don’t doubt that my friends at the other analyst firm are correct in their assessment of how banks progress through this journey. But banks’ vision (and goals) for this journey is all wrong.

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Increasing transaction automation is the last thing banks should be striving for.

Banks’ right-channeling goal should be: If a transaction can be automated, it should be conducted anywhere BUT the branch.

Why in the world would someone want to go to a bank branch to interact with a piece of technology when there are ATMs, PC monitors, tablets, and smartphones — points of interaction that exist in millions of places that aren’t branches?

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