Making Branch Banking Safer and Smarter for Customers
A novel branch banking model to refine branch transaction experience.
CLIENT & DURATION
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC Bank)
Jun 2022 – Aug 2024
ROLE
Manager, Experience Design OCBC Bank
UX Design, User Research, Service Design, User Testing
CONTEXT
OCBC Bank, a leading Singaporean financial institution, relied on decades-old manual forms for customer transactions. This project aimed to drive digital transformation in its branches, starting with its teller portal.
IMPACT
Savings of 2 million SGD through error reduction and process optimisation, minimising security and fraud threats with the introduction of system-oriented authentication.
PROBLEM
Over 40 branch transaction types are still manually handled, resulting in slow, error-prone processes.
Customers are upset with teller inaccuracies.
Staff errors incur substantial annual branch costs.
Manual verifications heighten exposure to risks and fraud.
aPPROACH
Goal-driven process aligned with both user and business objectives
Process
Empathize
Uncover pain points via research insights and analytics
Define
Identify branch workflows, extract opportunities
Co-create
Collaborate with stakeholders to come up with solutions that align business objectives with user needs.
Prototype
Work with design agency to come up with hi-fidelity prototypes
Test
User-testing with customer and staff to understand break points. Reiterate and retest.
USER RESEARCH
To capture a broad view of branch experiences, teller and customer interviews were conducted.
Interview participants
The customer group consisted of those who visit OCBC Bank branches at least once a month for Teller Counter cash transactions and hold multiple bank accounts with OCBC.
The teller group comprised individuals with varying levels of experience, including those who had worked at both young and mature residential estates, across personal and premier banking, and had dealt with both consumer and corporate customers.
Interview objectives
To understand the daily routine of tellers
To recognise common challenges faced by tellers and customers
To comprehend the nature and limitations of teller training
To identify typical customer profiles and transaction types at branches
FINDINGS
Despite teller errors, customers value branch visits for guidance, highlighting the need to reduce errors from manual processes and inadequate training.
High cognitive load
Manual processes to complete tasks, leading to inaccuracies
Staff has to memorise 6-digit codes to start a transaction
Illegible customer handwritten responses makes it challenging to enter into the system.
Lack of support
Inadequate training leave tellers ill-prepared for operational challenges
Training before on-the-job duties only covers basic transactions while actual operations are much more complex
Staff reliance
While many transactions can be completed online or at ATMs, customers prefer to visit the branch
Customers feel more reassured and safe when staff are involved in the process, even if it means long wait times.
USER pERSONAS
Branch patrons are categorized into three user personas based on assistance needs.
The Confident Navigator: Provide opportunities for customers to take the lead
The Assurance Seeker: Give assurance through staff guidance and affirmation
The Habitual Dependent/ The Fully Reliant: Make room for staff to take control
Fig: Pictures from the research conducted to come up with the user personas
CONCEPTUALIZATION
Co-creating solutions with stakeholders to strike a balance between business and user needs
The proposed duo-screen interactive model focuses on:
Enhancing transparency and trust: Building on previous findings that side-by-side engagement fosters transparency and trust, the new concept introduces a dedicated counter for each teller-customer interaction
Encouraging customer ownership: The new concept shifts the burden from staff to a more collaborative process, actively involving customers in completing their transactions and giving them a sense of responsibility and ownership.
Fig: In the new model, the customer will engage upfront with the teller side by side, whereas in the old style, the teller sat far behind a counter.
Fig: Pictures from the designing and testing of counter designs
VALIDATION
Concept validation uncovered receptivity while revealing crucial considerations to guide the design.
Safety is of utmost priority
Customers value the implementation of security measures such as face verification and 2 factor authentication. The added layer of security provides them a sense of assurance.
Customers cannot do without tellers
Customers rely on tellers to perform transactions on their behalf due to a lack of confidence or concerns about potential errors.
Simplifying user interface is key
Customers find the platform intuitive but struggle with complex interaction patterns like scrolling and are less likely to engage with lengthy or intricate content.
Fig: Pictures from the concept testing sessions to understand receptiveness towards a new interactive model, and ensure it is viable
SOLUTION
A new branch banking model enabling customer-initiated digital transactions with teller guidance.
Tackling key challenges
1
Assessing potential implications of transitioning to a new system
2
Ensuring the ease of transition for those acquainted with old habits
Shifting responsibilities to customers
Through a duo-screen setup, customers may select transaction options, such as choosing accounts or entering transfer details, reducing reliance on staff.
Both the customer and teller will have dedicated interactive screens, offering full visibility and control, departing from the traditional teller-led approach.
Fig: Customer and teller screen design placed side by side for comparison
Simplifying the workflow
I conducted card sorting with both young and seasoned branch staff to arrange over 40 transactions into an intuitive menu, removing transaction codes. A search feature is also introduced.
Fig: New menu and search function
Fig: Card sorting exercise with tellers
Incorporating guided instructions
With on-screen prompts. tellers can execute transactions regardless of their level of knowledge or experience.
Fig: On-screen prompts are provided at each step of the transaction
Ensure visual consistency for familiarity
I synchronised with the Automated Teller Machines (ATM) design team so that customers would learn a similar design language for ease of learning and usage.
Fig: On-screen prompts are provided at each step of the transaction
Supporting tellers to unlearn and relearn
The new concept requires unlearning current procedures. Training solutions were created to familiarize tellers with the interface and workflows, including on-the-job training during pilot testing before the full rollout.
Fig: Teller e-learning training modules
Fig: Pictures of on-the-job training during pilot testing
USABILITY TESTING
Iterative usability testing helped identify critical gaps across project phases
• Low-fidelity prototypes were tested with the stakeholders weekly for feedback on functionality, content, and interactivity
• High-fidelity prototypes were tested with tellers and customers—including elderly and less-abled users—to identify critical breakpoints, ensure intuitive flows, and reduce training complexity.
Fig: Pictures of usability testing with staff and customers
IMPACT
Projected savings of over S$2M in Singapore prompted plans for regional rollouts.
Initial implementation in July 2024 at two pilot branches. Simultaneously, the team is developing phase 2, which will encompass the complete range of branch transactions.
Ongoing customer and teller usability testing to detect crucial breakpoints in the customer journey and opportunities for improvements that may be prioritised for future implementation.
Estimated savings for the branch exceeding 2 million, encompassing upgrading outdated backend systems, annual budgets for error rectification, and the reduction of paper receipts through the adoption of digital e-receipts.
REFLECTIONS
Impactful design balances stakeholder empathy, constraints, and prioritization of customer value.
Digital transformation is complex, and it takes time.
My role often center around perfecting pixels, yet it's vital to recognise the broader scope of digitalisation. It includes varied parties, from operations to service teams, across the entire journey. Understanding and empathising with their challenges are crucial for effective collaboration.
Prioritize impact
In any project, perfection is unattainable, and compromises are inevitable due to constraints like deadlines, stakeholder demands, and regulatory requirements. In resource-strapped situations, the key is to prioritize impactful outcomes and focus on delivering the most significant value to customers