The banking industry today is undergoing a series of drastic changes, forcing banks to operate along with a new crop of online financial service providers that have increased pressure on them to follow suit. The rise of technology has also brought big changes to procedures and regulations.

The shift from physical bank branches to everything happening online is already in motion. The industry is realizing the operating benefit through online mode rather than the physical branches that are too many and too expensive to maintain. The cost savings can then be utilized for offering better and more sophisticated online products and services that provide a better value to their customers.

Along with the latest technological initiatives and innovations, banks need proper support from their workforce to provide their customers with a friction-free experience. Park Avenue Group’s recruiters, with their vast experience in serving the needs of the banking industry, understand that if banks are unable to attract and retain the right talent, the digital transformation will not be fully realized. It is imperative that their employees have or acquire the new digital capabilities necessary for the change. So, the requirement of tech-aware employees is bound to increase, and banks need an effective recruitment strategy to stay ahead in the race.

Customers across all industries want a seamless experience without hitches. The banking industry is no exception to this and with globalization and changing customer needs, the expectations have only accelerated. Making customer experiences seamless means simpler and more straightforward processes with high levels of multichannel delivery. Customers should not experience lapses as they move across channels.

Simplification of the processes is the key to attracting new customers and increasing the loyalty of existing customers. The growth of fintechs with their simple product/service offerings has created a healthy competitive environment, forcing banks to transform themselves to catch up. Various innovations in banks like digital onboarding, AI-driven decision making, automation of mundane tasks and omnichannel presence have helped smooth the customer experience.

The changes that are surfacing and evolving in the banking sector are the result of the nature of technological innovations, changing customer preferences and the addition of new and efficient competitors bringing a shift in the way things are perceived. The nature of these changes has increasingly turned the industry’s focus to being customer-centric and service-oriented.