Banca Alpi Marittime solves critical document retrieval problems to improve customer response from five days to five seconds

Founded in 1899 Banca Alpi Marittime (BAM) currently operates out of 18 branches, serving customers in the Piemonte and Liguria regions of Italy. With an ever-expanding portfolio of products and services and increasing quantities of paperwork, the bank’s filing demands exceeded the available space within the branches. The decision was made to move paper filing out of the branches and into remote warehouse facilities to relieve the situation.

This decision unfortunately increased their problems—especially with regard to customer service as document retrieval was increased to a minimum of five days. In addition, warehousing and transportation costs multiplied; the manual storage process became fraught with errors; and customer satisfaction fell dramatically. Finding a solution to this problem became the number one priority for Bruno Chiecchio, the bank’s service area director.

Customer satisfaction was paramount
Aware of this growing threat to the bank’s reputation, Chiecchio set about the task of selecting a vendor who could expedite a speedy and BASEL II compliant solution within certain key parameters that were of paramount importance to Banca Alpi Marittime. The priority was to provide an instrument that enables the on-demand access of client-signed documents. The objectives were to improve customer care, reduce paper archiving and transportation costs and to reduce the number of mislaid documents.

Supporting bank workflows
Five day lead time to retrieve client signed documents, spiraling warehousing and transportation costs, and the inaccuracies of manual filing compelled Chiecchio to find a fast and effective solution—a solution that would not only provide superior customer service, but that would also integrate seamlessly into the bank’s regulated workflow process and satisfy the perpetual data storage demands of BASEL II compliance.

Chiecchio reviewed four proposals and evaluated them on three key criteria:

• Safety: All banking systems must provide uncompromising data security.
• Simplicity: Solution must demonstrate a high degree of compatibility and ease of installation.
• Efficiency: Added tasks must be straightforward in operation and not overly onerous.

Sowre, an IBM Business Partner, was chosen with their solution CM/R&B (Content Manager/Retrieve and Barcode) Finance package powered by IBM Content Manager Enterprise Edition 8.3 software. CM/R&B permits the electronic data entry of documents allowing for their subsequent traceability, which can be easily identified and retrieved when needed without incurring extra logistics costs. The creation of a common repository for all types of counter transactions streamlined the management and delivery of information across applications and staff.

IBM® Content Manager Enterprise Edition software provides a single, open foundation to create, manage and distribute all forms of content—records, images, documents, reports, e-statements, audio, video and Web content. IBM Content Manager Enterprise Edition supports implementations from workgroups to high-volume business processes, across multiple platforms and business solutions.

Transforming business processes
Instant retrieval of documentation at the counter has transformed the bank’s service offering, achieved client transaction efficiency and provided significant cost savings at a stroke. The solution provides BAM with both electronic data entry and retrieval on demand. Gone is the manual paper trail—the fragmented five stage retrieval process. Now, instant Web-based document retrieval satisfies today’s on-demand customer needs.

Seamless implementation
With Sowre having already worked with the bank in 2004, Chiecchio knew Sowre would respect the bank’s workflow procedures during the implementation. “... in less than one week they optimized the passive management cycle by implementing the module called CM/R&B – Scan Server,” says Chiecchio.

Sowre’s Dr. Davide Gianmaria Airaghi was confident the solution provided maximum value to the bank. “The installation of the product was really easy… our product, CM/R&B is made for integration, being a sort of common store for all the applications,” he says.

Twenty stations were fully operational including training within five days. This included the server, scanner, middleware and CM/R&B software. The transition from manual to electronic document entry and retrieval was seamless.

Dramatically shortening transaction duration
From five days to five seconds—this is the time the bank’s clients now wait for stored documents to be retrieved with an on-demand solution that has dramatically shortened transaction duration and significantly improved workflow. Counter activity rate is now accurately analyzed, allowing for more cost-effective deployment of personnel. Logistics costs are substantially reduced. Chiecchio acknowledges that Sowre’s CM/R&B on the IBM Content Manager platform was the most cost-effective and fastest solution available to the bank. It integrated easily with their existing EDP systems and satisfied the BASEL II perpetual data storage demands. Once operational the bank embarked on a two-phase deployment to become paperless and finally paper-free.

Providing lasting effects
Sowre satisfied the bank’s needs with minimum change and maximum effectiveness. Sowre delivered an electronic solution powered by IBM technology that has given Banca Alpi Marittime a lasting advantage. “This solution allows BAM to implement digital signatures on the bank’s documents, either individually or for batches of documents to minimize fraud,” adds Chiecchio.

Secure, perpetual electronic data, logistics savings, efficient transaction flow and non-obtrusive compliant work practices have propelled the bank’s ability to satisfy the growing demands of its clients with an immediate, on-demand, response.

The Sowre solution not only satisfied the bank’s stringent operating criteria, its management functions help to ensure efficient personnel deployment based on counter activity. Benefits include:

• Fast installation with no operational downtime
• Easy to use system, minimal training
• Extremely time efficient, workflow compatible
• Helps satisfy the data storage demands of BASEL II compliance

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact your IBM sales representative or IBM Business Partner. Visit us at:
ibm.com/software/ecm

You can get even more out of Information Management software by participating in independently run Information Management User Groups around the world. Learn about opportunities near you at: ibm.com/software/data/usergroup

For more information on Sowre, visit:
www.sowre.com

For more information on Banca Alpi Marittime, visit:
www.bancaalpimarittime.it

Additionally, IBM Global Financing can tailor financing solutions to your specific IT needs. For more information on great rates, flexible payment plans and loans, and asset buyback and disposal, visit: ibm.com/financing