This may get ugly. Those with weak constitutions should avert their eyes.
I had a perfect storm of mishaps last week, culminating with my debit card being severely overcharged with a pre-authorization hold from Southwest Airlines… but that’s not what really upset me. Southwest needed a fax number to resolve the issue, which wasn’t on their website anywhere. The number listed on the back of the card was to their card provider, who could only handle lost or stolen card problems. I understand that. I really, really do. What I find incredulous was when I called my CU’s customer service number the next morning at 8 AM and was routed to an overseas call center. Why is it that my CU’s customer service is outsourced to an overseas call center and then only open from 8-5?
We live in the outsourcing world. The majority of our clients outsource their core services, card processing, security monitoring… the list goes on. It’s a fact of life in our environments that outsourcing is a part of the business model for many banks. Very few outsource overseas, but the point is still valid. For every solution outsourcing provides, other hurdles are created and need to be addressed. First and foremost: Communication.
Wether it is communication with your provider to ensure that you have accurate information to support critical decisions or to provide a conduit for your customers to reach the right people to assist them with their issues in a timely manner, you have to communicate (a fax number on a “contact us” page after authentication isn’t that difficult).
Don’t forget compliance either. Outsourcing process or business function does not absolve an organization of compliance to regulatory responsibilities. We see a lot of institutions fall into this trap when it comes to business continuity planning. You can outsource a lot of the “how’s” concerning recovery processes, but a thorough plan should still be documented that addresses how your institution continue it’s operations. The same can be applied to incident response plans: sure your outsourced core provider and e-banking solution has security in place, but how will you handle an internal data breech or virus outbreak?
There’s nothing wrong with outsourcing. it’s vital to the modern environment. just make sure that issues are thought through and addressed before someone blogs about not being able to contact your customer service or not having a fax number available.