Establishing new standards with Cash Cycle Management™

Testing solutions today that will deliver success tomorrow – that is exactly what Credit Suisse has done in one of its branches.
The bank has piloted a cash recycling system with exchangeable cash cassettes from Wincor Nixdorf’s new CINEO product family – one of the first to test the new technology platform. The Swiss financial institution views self-service as a crucial component of its “Branch Excellence” retail banking strategy. We spoke with Jürgen Maier, Product Management Debit & Cash Services at Credit Suisse, about the bank’s experiences with the new technology and the opportunities he sees for it moving ahead.

Mr. Maier, why is Credit Suisse so committed to self-service technology? And how do you expect it to benefit your business processes?

Self-service technology is a key component of our “Branch Excellence” branches since it helps us provide basic customer services more effectively. Indeed, the technology plays a role in our branches whenever services can be offered more simply and faster without support – and whenever we can relieve branch personnel of routine tasks so that they can spend more time consulting customers. A branch without self-service technology is unimaginable today.

Can you explain what the term “Branch Excellence” entails?

Our branches are crucial sales and services channels. They serve more than 34,000 customers daily. Each individual contact is an
opportunity to win customers over to a service. As a new business concept of Credit Suisse in Switzerland, Branch Excellence
helps us seize new opportunities that arise in our branch operations. With this concept, we aim to establish a unified image and create a pleasant environment for customers to manage their routine banking tasks.

What, specifically, is so special about the concept?

With Branch Excellence, we can target the various needs of our customers and differentiate ourselves from the competition through
intensified customer relationships and individual service. A key element is the new function of the “Floor Manager,” who welcomes
customers at a freestanding reception counter and inquires about their needs. The Floor Manager also handles basic customer banking tasks such as opening a new bank account but, for more complex needs, directs customers quickly to the responsible advisor.

You also plan to deploy Wincor Nixdorf’s new CINEO technology. What prompted this decision?

Credit Suisse is a choice development partner and pilot bank for vendors developing new systems. We have a very close partnership with Wincor Nixdorf – and one that has allowed us to bring our wealth of experience to the pilot during the ongoing development of the company’s new product range.

Can you tell us a little about this process?

During the test phase within the Credit Suisse testing environment, we had to clear some huge hurdles together with Wincor Nixdorf. After a very intensive joint test phase, we were able to pilot the new ATM ProCash 8050 in a branch. The results were extremely positive. The system was able to provide all existing services to customers without any failures or interruptions. This was the basis for installing a pilot test for the CINEO cash recycling system. Following some start-up problems, we were able to stabilize the system and today can look back on an overall successful pilot in one of our branches. The launch of Wincor Nixdorf’s new product line is off to a good start.

How do you benefit from the solution specifically?

The solution has benefits for both us and our customers. We save on costs in system maintenance and are able to reduce the level of local support provided by Wincor Nixdorf technicians through our own cash service staff. All this impacts our bottom line. Our customers benefit through easy-to-use system, faster transaction times, higher system availability and greater protection against system manipulation such as skimming.