When financial institutions go through system changes and conversions, the employees’ immediate reaction after a conversion is to try to adapt the new system to their old procedures, to minimize the uncomfortable feeling that comes with change.  Three months later, we often find that the old processes are still in place despite the new functionality and efficiencies available from the new system.  They have effectively “paved the cowpath”.  

 

We have also found that as financial institutions grow and new staff is added or reassigned, procedures are passed on to the new incumbent.  The procedures are adopted usually without question.  If s/he encounters no issues or problems, that serves as confirmation that all is well.  If questioned as to the reasons for certain procedures, the standard response is “we’ve always done it that way”. 

 

Efficiency studies have a very negative connotation based on old practices where a company comes in, obtains very little input from management, then it dictates new procedures, and heads are cut.  

Abound Resources approaches operations and efficiency reviews in a collaborative approach.  We work with your operations and customer contact areas to find the processes they identify as “time hogs”.  We flowchart their current processes, talk about the technology they are using, how information gets into these technologies, the paper work they produce and the follow up required.  We map these processes and obtain confirmation, and then talk through ways to improve the process, eliminate the duplicate data entry and the paper work.  We follow up with the institution’s vendors to confirm our assumptions and create target process maps which again are confirmed and accepted by management and the departments involved.