Full annual report - African Bank - Investoreports

Our staff requests Our response
Interdepartmental
interaction
The ability to make
decisions – more
empowerment
Embrace social media
46
■ A programme called “In your Shoes” was introduced into the business in 2011, with the
objective of providing an opportunity for people within the call centre and Midrand support
functions to experience life on the “coal face”, in the branches. This follows on from a similar
programme in 2010/2011 called “job shadowing” in which branches were brought into the call
centres for a day, to understand the day-to-day challenges.
■ An account management programme is the second phase to the new customer interface. This
will allow credit decisions to be overridden by identified branch managers on a limited basis.
■ Operational empowerment has been implemented which allows branch managers decisions
regarding appropriate marketing, repairs and merchandising.
■ African Bank participates in a range of social media.
■ Communications support the marketing strategy with posts on Facebook, Twitter and blogs.
■ Measurables have been put in place including numbers of “likes”, demographics and online
reputation which measures brand reach and sentiment.
■ A social media management committee was set up this year, represented by various
departments.
■ Our mobile offering, inseconds, has been integrated on Facebook and Twitter is used to
generate leads and monitor and become involved in conversations. Our LinkedIn presence is
being improved and used as a careers channel.
Fair and equitable treatment ■ Employment equity committees meet quarterly, where all designated groups are represented.
■ The executive committee meet quarterly for a “People Meeting”, in which this is a consistent topic.
■ Emotional intelligence (EQ) courses have been running for over two years, in which the
leadership of the Bank is exposed to extensive training on this topic.
■ Employment equity committees are leading the rollout of Diversity and Inclusion Workshops
across the organisation.
Keep us informed
■ Following executive committee meetings each month, a “business update” email from the
managing director is distributed to the entire business. This message has been designed to
address progress on certain issues as well as transparency with regard to decisions that affect
employees.
■ Regular updates on progress of issues across the business are communicated through biweekly
editions of an electronic newsletter, “Comms Café”, as well as through the online quarterly magazine.