Train journey

Sunday morning 10.30 a.m. I got permission from my branch head to take sick leave. 

I rushed to KR puram RS. No trains till 2 p.m.  Felt ashamed on my ignorance on matters. No computers to my aide.

Decided to wait.

Good breeze.. and in between bad smell also.

I saw above my seat, a crow has made its nest and a not so small but yet a kid crow began crawing and its mother crow put something in its mouth .  The child is happy.  The nest was in between wires .  But the nest was same either on a tree or anywhere.   Who teaches crows to build the same nest everywhere.  Once the use is over, it neglects the nest.  Then I related to house building of humans..  a craze for difference from neighbours.  (The baker model in Kerala insists of using only locally available resources and the design to last only for 20 -25 years so that the posterity can demolish when required easily.  Only human beings attach importance to sentiments to houses… I feel that as we give much importance to building houses, we spent more money and energy on it  we feel  sad to see old historical buildings being demolished..

The crow then tried to pull something from the tubes or holes. I thought it had  stored food there.  But I saw it was searching for worms..( who teaches the crow to look for these worms in such places).

Then  a man is walking with a machine to sweep the platforms.. ) a mixed scene of adopting technology and yet keep the poorly paid lady workers to swab the floors. This we can see in all industry.  We adopt technology and at the same time engage labour. 

The theory is use technology to reduce labour, improve productivity and reduce costs to compete.   But  the present model of engaging men and machine seems to good in present conditions.

Then the number of people in the platform swelled.(again felt ashamed to see how the world is aware and I am not.

As the crowd swelled, the seats became the most sought after. The broadcast says the train is delayed.

Among the crowd, I saw small girls, children and many with happy faces..I thought people who are not happy are not travelling..So traveling makes one feel happy. 

I also saw the economic gap… Poor children gazing at the richer children eating chocos and we can see from their faces, their fear to ask their parents for something like that….

I felt as if I took wrong decisions..

First I could have gone to Cantonment RS where they give current reservations or I could have gone to Koramangala or Madivala from where we could get private buses though it costs more. The advice at the counter was to go by Seshadri train and get down at Katpadi and get another train to Chennai. But after this train there is another train directly to Chennai called Brindavan express.  I was thinking of going by Brindavan express.  But I suddenly stopped and asked the peon of the seshadri express train which was about to start. He immediately asked me to get in and when the train started he asked me to ask the station master to adjust. I searched and could not find the TTE. He came with me and pointed out the TTE. As I said this, he looked into the list for a minute. Then he said the ticket charge is 650/- and you can pay anything.  I thought he is asking for the ticket amount and anything..So I gave him Rs.800/- (i.e.650/-+150}.  He laughed at me. I can see his mind..though you look old, you are new to this business.. He took 500/- and gave me back 300/-. I happily returned and took my luggage which was with the peon.   Then  at the next station, I took the luggage and ran to get into A2 which was at the front. I sat in the AC comfortably.  Then the peon came and took me out of the AC cabin.  He asked me to pay to TTE Rs.200/- or at the maximum 300/-.  I said he took 500/-  he too laughed at me  and said you are robbed.  He then asked for 100/- and I thought paying for this man is a punya . I thanked god for the comfortable journey to Katpadi.

Inside the cabin, a rich man with a big stomach playing games on his I pad, was telling another girl who was traveling in a tatkal ticket. Rs.1200/- to renigunda -  Why did you take tatkal..you could get an adjustment trip in Tirupati quota , it would cost much less.???

From Katpadi to Chennai, standing.. the price for not planning a trip…

wish list

A wish list given by me to my General Manager in 2012 for improving Inspection dept. I recently discussed with an Officer. So I thought i can put it in my blogs.

Wish you a happy new year	January 1 2012
Inspection is becoming an important subject the world over		Wish list

Sir

Wish list

The Desk Officers needs frequent updating of knowledge:

Ø They can, with prior sanction, sit in any of the sessions they need updating ;( By this they can also hear the grapevine)

Ø They can be sent for training in Audit related programmes conducted in our Learning Centre and also in outside Training centres such as SBI, RBI etc.

Ø They should be motivated to take up online exams like CIA, CISA etc.

Ø Each Officer should present papers related to Audit

Ø Each Officer should be given training in basics in MS Office.

Ø Each Officer should be sent along with an I.O. to get to know an on-hands training in sampling, etc at branches.

The Desk Officers need to improvement in the way they work:

Ø In order to improve the work culture, the Department can think of giving a Certificate signed by the General Manager, for improvement in various parameters in the desk – outstanding performance such as prompt closure, the quality of notes, analytical way of presentation etc.

Ø Each Officer has to feel that he has been given 150 branches and not 150 audit reports and therefore, his work starts when the auditor begins to audit a branch.  He should keep close liaison with the auditor, branch and the peer at the Controlling Office, so that the audit and closure will be smooth.

Ø Each desk officer should make a presentation along with the synopsis to the DGM, if possible along with one or two photos of the branch outside and inside. The synopsis should contain an analysis as to why the branch obtained the rating.  An improvement or reduction in marks can also be discussed.

 

ü The Department can arrange for monthly talks by Chartered Accountants, and if possible Internal Auditors in Companies, other Banks, and SBI etc.

ü The I.Os may also be requested to make a presentation once in a while to the Department and the Department can let him know of their views on the reports of the IO. In return the IOs can apprise the department know of the gaps in their expectations from the Dept.

ü One Officer may be entrusted with the work of updating the Manuals, and also in the site.

ü A Monthly Newsletter can be printed and sent to all.

its same everywhere

I rushed to Cantonment RS.  It is already 2.50 p m The Double decker train came. I booked tickets only the night before. But the tickets got confirmed by 12 noon. I got only aisle seat. The window seat was occupied by a middle aged man with a lap top.  His size occupied more than the seat he occupied. The Railways design does not meet indian standards.  I was a little worried..if I have to travel with an unrelenting co passenger trying to occupy space from the neighbour also.  

But when i knew he was from .....Bank and was in Inspection department.  He gave me some respect not because of grey hair but because he asked me which grade i was.. and in his Bank, III to IV he says is like jumping from mountain to mountain where as it is climbing in case of  I to III.

Then it was all talking.  He says his Bank is worried of internal frauds...He said that Bank has gone in for introduction of Basant Committee recommendations, wherein the queries for products will be given by the system and we have to say Deviation or No deviation and the comments.  Achievements and Non achievements, Deviations and non deviations will be taken into account and marks will be allotted by system leading to lesser manual interference and interpretations and globalisation of inspection in banks in india.  

State Bank of India has started this process much earlier and i felt that GOI has extended this to other banks for uniformity in banking system. 

He also was talking of the knowledge gap of the Branch heads/ department heads and the lack of HR management (HR is the most important asset of any institution),lack of system in finding out the skills in Officers.  This officer was in II grade. He was posted as a BM in a rural branch in TN. and his AGM called and thanked him for his was the only branch in the module that has achieved all parameters - achieving 2 cr in deposits and 9 cr in advances without losing marks in any other parameters. When he was 1.5 year old in the branch, a transfer order was issued to him posting him as Inspector - the reason the branch being a rural one, and his tenure in rural branches has been completed, the branch should be given to some other who is in need of rural assignment.  The pity is.. the new branch manager was reluctant to come and tried for modification and the branch was without permanent head for about an year and the modification did not come through.  The branch head joined and he took it as punished and showed his reactions to all and the result is..all the good work done by the young aspirant was destroyed.  Customer disatisfaction was revelant when many of them called and asked whether the earlier BM can be recalled..."

He says that he was given training and the Letter of Authority only after two months whereas he was asked to inspect branches during this period..He also lamented..one of the inspectors who came for this training was known for deficiency in knowledge during his tenure as BM..

The inspectors in that branch is not provided with lap tops. 

He also shared an open secret.. Discounts in hotel bills....He says the hotels are better informed of the eligibilities of different banks/ different grades..

( i told him of Pushparajan's story..how he was afraid when a hotel boy told him of the discounts and who all had got how much discounts, when he stayed at a hotel during his audit.  He immediately took a transfer from Inspection)

While I was in Inspection Department, i gave a note to our GM, DGM etc of my views of how the Department could be made better.. (I wrote..My wishlist).. Being the co ordinator with RBI/SBI audit and also because I was assisting DGM Inspection for ACE/ACB, I knew how other departments also were working.  I wanted to place such a wish list for other departments also ( i had earlier submitted one for Compliants department - though my wish lists did not see light.+

I felt it's the same everywhere...


(E&OE)

customer service

I am always confused by the words customer service, customer thrill..

I joined this branch in June 2013.  Nice branch. I have heard the good service by this branch whereby Mr.Sivaraman, one of the earlier branch managers and my immediate boss at Zonal Office, Calicut, had got many accolades from regional manager to MD.  

The branch had since grown from MMII to AGM and last year a new post for CM (C&I) was created for a branch where PSB deposits was to the tune of Rs.300 cr and PSB advances was Rs.75 cr out of Rs.90 cr adv.  and PSB chief manager was taking care of all charges voucher passing, staff matters, overall charge of accounts, etc.(i.e. almost all jobs of a branch manager).  The PSB advances are now sanctioned and maintained at RASMECCC.  The Bank may be taking of the future growth of the branch in C&I.  After the new posting, the branch is now growing in C&I advances.  But the question is should this traditionally deposit branch grow as deposit branch or should it grow more in other than PSB advance.  

One day a customer came to my cabin, introduced as Mr Shetty, proprietor of a pharmaceutical company which is some 20 km from the branch. He had connections from earlier days of this branch and because of distance he keeps his  banking in SBI, where he has 2-4 cr loan portfolio. I asked for a Current account and he agreed to open a CA. I then asked about his coming to the branch and he said it is for closing a gold loan.  I thought, if we release the gold even after business hours, he would be pleased and would certainly help the branch.  I went the the lady cashier, who was generally seen as jovial and good. She immediately and reflectively said "No, I can't 

.  I felt sorry for myself.

the customer was telling her.. OK, just tell it with a smile and not with a frown and agreed to come some other day..

Cashiers in SBT have not changed  ??  I have seen some change in the cashier's attitude over the years from being adamant to being customer friendly.  especially it should be so, in metros and especially in this branch known for its good service.

Later i came to know that she is travelling some 30 km by bus which means if she start by 4 pm she will reach home by 6.30 or 7 p.m.

But what confuses me was if we do things which are within the norms, timings..can it be called customer service or is it that we walk that extra mile that is to be called customer service..?