The Art of Better Retail Banking (PDF)

"This new book on retail banking is both readable and innovative.Its analysis is unusually accessible in its style, and the book'sconclusions and predictions will be rightly thought provoking. Thecustomer is gaining real power and this new book's insights on theimportance of leadership, the need to unleash creativity and tomake a bank's IT and people resource work together more effectivelyfor customer satisfaction are important pointers to the shape offuture competitive differentiation."
--Sir Mervyn Pedelty, Recently retired Chief Executive, TheCo-operative Bank plc, smile, CIS and Co-operative FinancialServices

"A stimulating read. A readable and lively book that is alwaysinformative, sometimes controversial and invariably challenging.The authors don't expect readers to agree with it all, but thereaders will undoubtedly gain some fresh insights and perspectiveson the multiple issues facing management in a rapidly changingindustry."
--Chris Lendrum CBE, Recently retired Vice Chairman, BarclaysBank

"This book is clear enough for the layman and thorough enough forany banker to obtain an excellent sense of the options forsuccessful strategies for their retail businesses. The challengesof technology introduction, cost of production and scope of serviceare driving banks into responses increasingly similar to otherindustry sectors. These forces have been apparent for some yearsbut are so evident now they can no longer be ignored. This bookprovides an excellent guide to mapping that future."
--Joseph DeFeo, CEO, CLS Bank.

"This is a useful guide to retail banking that provides athought-provoking view on the state of The Art (of Better RetailBanking). Clearly retail banking can get better, and must! To stealan analogy from the conclusion, there is a sea change going on -consumers are looking more and more for greater simplicity andvalue, and so many banks are still making such heavy weather of it.This book does a good job of charting the currentdevelopments."
-- Lindsay Sinclair, CEO, ING Direct UK.

"A whistle-stop tour of all aspects of retail banking. This is avery readable and insightful real world mix of theory, strategy,tactics and practice. They have even managed to make banking soundexciting. But mostly they have been able to cut through thecomplexity to remind us all that success in retail banking is notjust about finance and efficiency - it is about customers andstaff, who are all too often forgotten about."
--Craig Shannon, Executive Director - Marketing, Co-operativeFinancial Services.

"The authors live up to their promise of providing managers andstudents with a clear exposition of the retail banking sector andhow banks can confront the challenging future they face. This bookis a practical manual with lots of useful advice. I was looking fornew insights in this book - and I found them!"
--Professor Adrian Payne, Professor of Services Marketing,Director, Centre for Services Management, Cranfield School ofManagement.

"A key determinant of any organisation's success will be anenhanced understanding of 'value' as defined by customers,employees, shareholders and other stakeholders. Value can meandifferent things to these different groups, and this book has setitself the objective of identifying the approaches that willimprove the value proposition for all of these interested parties.It achieves this objective."
--Professor Steve Worthington, Faculty of Business and Economics,Monash University.

"An enjoyable and useful read. It provides a good perspective onthe role of IT and how IT suppliers and professionals need tocontribute to future developments in retail banking strategy andimplementation. It helps provide guidance for the significantchallenges ahead for both suppliers and the Banks."
--Nick Caplan, Managing Director, Global Financial Services,LogicaCMG.