Kristin Moyer

Stessa Cohen here. I was born and raised in Washington, DC, literally inside the Beltway. My father even worked on Capitol Hill for a few years in a profession that has been made mostly obsolete by video. He used to tell stories of smoking cigars after work with Democrat and Republican senators alike. Many of our neighbors were civil servants with government jobs. Though I didn’t grow up in a political family, I always knew the way Washington worked: Washington, the political part, was back room discussions and deals, where Democrats and Republicans alike did real work, away from the glare of reporters and citizens. Transparency in the real political process? Not a chance.

Social technologies are changing that. Gartner colleagues noted the impact of social networks and networking in a very recent note Obama for America: Using Networks to Redefine Participatory Politics. That campaign had presence and visibility, well, everywhere.

And interestingly, the Washington Post points out that the incoming new US administration is poised to leverage their networking aptitude – and email addresses and Facebook friends. The transition websites delivers news whether the traditional media outlets report it or not. Not only that, but the US General Services Administration (GSA) created a website that explains every aspect of the transition of presidential power, down to an org chart and abbreviation definitions.

I can hear your objections: Banks are businesses – not participatory organizations, not democracies. Banks have private account data and information that cannot be made public. Banks are not subject popularity polls.
Or are they? My colleague Kristin Moyer pointed out recently that before they started experiencing financial problems, failing US banks also experience customer experience and service deficit.

My point?  Social networking technologies are pushing organizations and industries slowly but surely towards transparency – of processes, organization, customer interactions. And that’s how banks can use these technologies too:

• Transparency: For your customers – Give them some insight into your process. Might help avoid costly onboarding errors.
• Connect with your customers – Especially for those banks operating in geographies where the financial crisis has hit consumers hard, use social networking technologies.
• Connect with your employees – Use social software internally to bridge those internal siloes that prevent bank staff, business and IT alike, from collaborating and communicating. During these times when mergers and acquisitions are on the rise and likely to continue, use these tools, social networking software, blogs and wikis to facilitate communication between management and staff.

But be prepared: Consumers and employees will tell you things you don’t want to hear. What customer service processes are broken, how awful the bank is. But if you are listening, you may start to hear positive things – especially as if you take the opportunity to change things, small customer service processes, adjustments to the organization or a policy that make all the difference – to your customers and your bottom line.