Zions Bancorp. says it can improve customer service and reduce employee turnover by using software from Allegiance Inc. of South Jordan, Utah, to systematically monitor what those groups tell it.
"We know intrinsically that the overall outcome is better as a result of listening to your customer or employee," said Claire L. Howells, the employee engagement communications adviser at Zions.
The Salt Lake City company has agreed to use a hosted "enterprise feedback management" system from Allegiance, the Engage Platform, to measure and respond to comments from customers and staff, Ms. Howells said.
"Dashboards" will be in place on Zions computer screens by January so managers can track the feedback that the company is receiving, she said. "We can capture feedback in real time and respond in real time."
Zions uses a variety of online surveys, mail-in comment cards, and employee feedback, in addition to random comments that come in from customers and prospects, Ms. Howells said. "We can compare it all side by side."
The Allegiance software makes it possible to measure issues such as employees' intention to quit their jobs, and to compare changes in employee satisfaction in response to changes in programs such as benefit plans.
"We had been using it for some time in pockets," including its Zions National Bank in Utah, Vectra in Colorado, and Nevada State Bank, Ms. Howells said. "We decided to take it to the entire organization."
The $48.7 billion-asset Zions operates six commercial banks with more than 400 branches in eight Western states.
"If we organize meaningful exchanges between employees and customers, we will achieve bottom-line results," she said. "The active listening system that they provide gives us the ability to analyze that feedback at both an individual and organizational level."
