Tracking and taking action against customer concerns can lead to a better customer experience and happier, more satisfied customers—so says David Tate, VP of Card Programs for First Citizens Bank.
Tate wants customer experience to be the top priority every day for every Citizens Bank employee, as he pointed out in a Q&A with Loyalty360 to discuss his company’s commitment to the Customer Experience.
Has there been an “ah-ha” moment in this journey?
There have been some “ah-has” along the way, but raising the overall awareness of the customer experience and making it a more critical element in the everyday decision-making process has been part of a big cultural evolution.
Who is the champion of Customer Experience at First Citizens? 
The entire executive leadership team, but primarily the COO.
How do you define CX?
The total of all the experiences a customer has with our bank, regardless of channel, prior to and during their account relationship with us.
How do you measure the effectiveness of the program?
J.D. Power 2014 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, Client Survey program. “Action Alerts” are generated when a client notes that they are dissatisfied with First Citizens via contact center or website. All customer concerns that are received through our client-survey program are reviewed and categorized. An Action Alert can have up to three category codes assigned to it. AEs/MRB/MEs monitor and track Action Alert problem resolution through the APECS Performance Monitor site.)
How does voice of the customer feedback impact your customer experiences?
VOC feedback is reported out quarterly and discussed among a cross-section of leaders. These meetings have the following objectives: Uncover customer pain points in order to enhance self-serve channels and improve customer satisfaction; analyze customer feedback to better plan for future product/service design and offerings; discuss support provided by the Customer Care Center; and discuss upcoming initiatives to get ahead of design and development to include customer perspective, understand the impact of change on customers, and ensure that the support staff is prepared for implementation support.