NAB retail and call centre staff to be rewarded for great customer outcomes
NAB is changing the incentives program for its most senior branch and contact centre managers, to reward delivery of great customer outcomes, leadership, and performance.
More than 700 NAB Retail branch managers, assistant branch managers, and sales team leaders in consumer call centres will move from their existing incentive plan to NAB’s Group Short Term Incentive (STI) Plan.
This will take effect from 1 October 2017, well ahead of the 2020 deadline set by Stephen Sedgwick AO for bank remuneration reforms.
NAB Chief Customer Officer of Consumer Banking and Wealth, Andrew Hagger, said the change will see greater emphasis placed on customer outcomes, actions and behaviours, not just product sales, for staff incentives.
“Our branch managers are the respected and trusted face of our business in the community, and their priority is to deliver the best outcomes for customers,” Mr Hagger said.
“This change to our staff incentive program sends a very clear message: that the customer must be at the heart of everything we do, and that great leadership is both valued and rewarded.”
The NAB Group STI Plan has a sharp focus on deep understanding of customer needs, and also links incentives to an overall assessment against a range of factors, including risk management, conduct, and adherence to NAB values.
“We’ve heard the message from our customers and the community, and we’re taking action to make banking better for our customers,” Mr Hagger said.
The move of these employees to the Group STI Plan is consistent with final recommendations made by Stephen Sedgwick AO in April as part of the Australian Bankers’ Association’s Better Banking reform package, which aims to protect consumer interests, increase transparency and accountability, and build trust and confidence in the industry.
“This change is just one of many things we’re doing to ensure we are better serving our customers,” Mr Hagger said.
“Over the coming 12 months we will continue to review our practices – including things that influence our culture, such as performance plans, incentives, visual management, and team meeting structures – to ensure we are consistently delivering great customer outcomes,” Mr Hagger said.
NAB has already made a number of other changes to its employee remuneration structure, including:
- In 2016, NAB moved away from performance-based, fixed pay increases for customer service and support staff. These staff receive a standard pay rise of 3% per year, under our 2016 NAB Enterprise Agreement;
- All of our people have a balanced scorecard where demonstration of values is as important as performance metrics;
- We have introduced higher standards for conduct and compliance; and
- NAB was the first bank to commit to implementing the Sedgwick reforms and we aim to implement them well ahead of the 2020 deadline.
