Banking on customer service: Alaska's banks strive to provide the best service possible, and have many policies in place to do such.

• Author: Saunders, Stacey

Customer service is defined as "a department or function of an organization that responds to inquiries or complaints from customers of that organization," according to Barron's Dictionary of Business Terms. Senior management with Alaska banks regards customer service as more than a single department taking complaints or solving problems. Executives for First National Bank Alaska, Wells Fargo, Northrim Bank, Alaska Pacific Bank and Alaska First Bank and Trust describe their customer relations philosophies, ways of providing quality service, challenges, the impact of technology, and how their banks stand out in the way they provide customer service.

FIRST NATIONAL BANK ALASKA

Sue Foley, senior vice president, central support division, has been with FNBA since 1974. From the beginning, she has heard Chairman and President Dan Cuddy say "Call the customers by name and try to do it at least three times. Make the customer feel appreciated that he came into my bank." Because all decision-makers of the bank live in Alaska, FNBA is not bound by a larger corporation's restrictive philosophy of customer service. Employees--Alaskans--provide outstanding customer service, said Foley. FNBA managers learn which employees perform better in branch positions.

"Some folks can't please customers--they are nervous face to face. But they can be great on the phone in our call center," Foley said. She emphasizes meeting individual customer needs, even when staff doesn't know the answer. "The (response) should not be 'No', but 'I don't know; I'll find out.'"

FNBA and other banks must balance customer service efforts with conflicting federal regulations. For example, banking regulations state: "Know your customer." FNBA verifies customers through agency-issued identification, often bearing photo and signature. In November 2002, Foley learned military IDs will no longer bear Social Security numbers and signatures. Military personnel are calling financial institutions to find out if this new form of identification will be accepted. FNBA has agreed to accept the new military IDs for existing customers and find alternatives for new customers that satisfy bank rules and federal regulations.

Satisfying rural customers' needs is also a mission.

FNBA partnered with the Treasury Department and United States Postal Service in a pilot project to place upgraded ATMs in St. Marys, Hooper Bay and Togiak. "As we began to work together with the Treasury and the USPS, we shared with them our knowledge of traffic habits in each community." Foley says the proposed location in each community was the post office, commonly a local gathering place. But FNBA's existing ATMs were in locations open seven...