Because of competition, online banking trends and customer demands, financial service institutions are beginning to adapt and implement new technology. Two examples are CoreFirst Bank & Trust and Discover Financial Services.
CoreFirst Bank & Trust, headquartered in Topeka, Kansas, is the first bank in its region to completely re-engineer its core technology to provide 24-hour ATMs, add grocery store branches and extend its banking hours. Discover Financial Services deployed information technology allowing its customer service representatives to personalize interactions with customers, thus increasing customer service.
CoreFirst Bank deployed a Microsoft.net architecture as a technology integration platform to tie the data coming in from the new ATM system and branches into one easily managed and integrated system. Discover implemented a system that tracks customer contacts across various channels and uses information management decision and analytical tools to deliver real-time and value-added information to customer service representatives.
In both examples, these companies applied information technology to deliver more value and services to customers. Given that customers have so many choices in the financial services area, customer service is of the utmost importance.