Identifying the key performance measures and outputs for operations – cutting through the “noise” to see key areas for improvements. Identifying key colleague and customer “hot spots” including cultural issues such as colleague engagement and empowerment. I have deployed all of these in different scenariois which have included; cheque processing, account opening and servicing, complaint handling and dispute resolution, investment operations, fraud and customer claims handling, branch operations including cash and self service operations and many others.

Process review and improvement – End to end review of many internal and customer facing products and services to shorten time to deliver to customers, reduce costs and improve service levels. Establishing service level frameworks and governance to ensure services are documented, and have continuous improvement plans in place. Identifying opportunities to make fundamental changes to customer propositions and services through innovative solutions. Examples include; account opening (dramatically reducing opening time for customers) , cheque imaging, colleague feedback mechamisms, and optimising ATM availability.

Cost Reduction – I have overseen cost reduction programmes. In particular, where there are structural changes in the business that require a re-think of how operations are configured, for example as fewer customer visit branches and delivery of services becomes more digital. All of the cost reduction programmes, to be delivered in a sustainable way maintaining or improving customer satisfaction and maintain the integrity of services. Cost reduction techniques I have used successfully include; outsourcing, insourcing, supplier review and management, process and service review (to enhance efficiency of services, and review of services delivered), headcount reductions through productivity improvement, organisational design and continuous improvement programmes, imposition of an annual % cost reduction target on operations, setting “best in world” targets.

Creation and implementation of service delivery frameworks. I have done this within Barclays, and it involves defining and setting out the services the organisation provides (internally or to “external” customers), to what service level and volume, and at what cost (ideally benchmarked against competitors (and best in the world)), and in doing so, matches these against the business objectives of the organisation. Assigns responsibilities for the delivery of the overall service as well as the component parts and puts in place reporting and governance to support the ongoing delivery of these services.

Supplier Management optimisation and enhancement. Suppliers are often treated as liabilities to be managed rather than assets to leverage. Both can be true, but I work to reduce the former and increase the proportion of spend with the latter. I will do a review of the supplier base in terms of cost effectiveness and strategic match to the needs of the organisation through interviews with suppliers and customers and review of performance measures and outputs. There are nearly always opportunities to improve service levels, reduce costs and improve flexibility and resilience through this process. I have worked with suppliers across a wide range of business areas with annual spends of many £10ms, where I have been able to achieve all of the above through positive engagement, and getting the right people and reporting in place. 

Getting the best from colleagues through empowerment and engagement. I believe that colleagues are an organisation’s biggest asset, but are often treated as though they are just another cost. Colleagues are usually the closest to customers in many businesses and they have a wide network of friends and family who are able to be the ambassadors for the company if they feel proud of what they do and who they work for. Colleagues who are proud of who they work for are usually willing to “go the extra mile”, doing more than they contractually need to create memorable moments for customers. To do that, colleagues must feel that they are empowered and are engaged with the leaders in the company. John Timpson and Julian Richer provide excellent examples of how to do this in practice, and I am fortunate to have worked with and learned from both. There are specific things that can be done to make this happen in an organisation, including; colleague listening and feedback mechanisms to capture and use the “colleague voice” and ideas, creating a colleague council to report to the executive team and board on colleague issues, “always on” colleague feedback mechanisms, “bottom-up” performance and reward mechanisms for managers and leaders, regular “back to the floor” events for leaders bringing them closer to customers and colleagues, active communication and recognition of best practice, and examples of where colleagues have gone the extra mile.

Review Governance and reporting processes. A review of how current governance and reporting matches up against regulatory and best practice. The review to specifically cover whether the existing meetings and reporting match business needs, involve appropriate stakeholders, cover relevant areas and topics (including risks and issues outside the immediate 6-12 month time horizon), and respect customer and colleague concerns. For example, there too many meetings involving too many people, too long, managed well, and meeting regulatory and business needs? I can bring an independent assessment of the effectiveness of existing governance and reporting based on my many years of working in Barclays as well as a NED and adviser to a range of companies outside the Bank. I can also bring in expert support from my “friends” who have specific expertise and experience in regulatory requirements, board effectiveness and special areas of interest such as sustainability and associated risks and issues.

Project and Programme Health Checks and Post Implementation reviews. I have many year’s experience in project and programme management covering projects in many areas (for example, IT based, outsourcing, people based, process transformation) with budgets up to £100m. I have led many successful projects (and some not so successful) and so have a good understanding of what works, and what doesn’t. Independent Health checks and Post post-implementation reviews of projects to check projects are on course to deliver what is expected and promised are essential and I believe show a business “in control”. I would typically carry out these reviews interviewing key stakeholders and reviewing project documentation – this would typically take one to two weeks to complete the review and the report (depending on availability of stakeholders).

Outsourcing and joint venture design and implementation. I oversaw the major outsourcing of Barclays UK back office operations around 2000, since then I have also overseen the creation of joint ventures (for example, Vaultex, the £100m turnover joint venture between Barclays and HSBC), as well as the building of partnerships with a range of suppliers and collaborators through Barclays Eagle Labs and Barclays Digital Eagles. All of these have needed to establish the “right” relationships between the partners for them to be sustainable and mutually beneficial – rather than just a transactional relationship that will not stand the test of time. I can support the identification of potential partners, the negotiations, and do a culture fit assessment. I can also recommend governance and reporting to be put in place to help sustain the relationship.

Customer and colleague listening. I can review existing arrangements for customer and colleague feedback and engagement, and identify opportunities to improve and enhance their effectiveness to increase customer and colleague satisfaction. I have put in place new mechanisms to improve both. I have expertise in ways to engage colleagues to improve feedback and implement effective colleague led continuous improvement at low, or no cost to organisations.