Mammoth task: how to update documents of a bank

Carole: When we started working on the CI, we tried to get an overview of what had to be done and started the whole process with a kick-off meeting in October 2019. Each unit was given 10 days to nominate an “ambassador”, who was to act as a correspondent between us and his respective unit inside the Bank.

Within a month, about 30 meetings were held with nearly 40 ambassadors. We used the opportunity to actively inform them about recent modifications in our communication, such as new spelling rules. At the same time, we tried to make our colleagues participate in a wind of change.

Carole: The biggest challenge was to structure a roadmap and prioritise, since, as Pierre just mentioned, everything needed to be revised: single terminologies, products, contracts, even emergency exit signs. Every single place where our logo is displayed had to be kept in mind. Thanks to this census, we pretty quickly got an overview over the concerned documents and materials.

Carole: That was one of the main problems. When people started working on a document, they would improvise on so many things: header, font, italics, footnotes, graphs, etc. Add to this that they were using different programmes. Over the last 20 years, many documents were created according to individual preferences. And as you can imagine, it is a bit tricky to get people to abandon well established routines and can rip people out of their comfort zone. A smooth transition therefore requires motivating employees to use and implement novelties and workflows.

We are aiming for a long-term change, that is introduced step-by-step, demanding a regular follow-up over the subsequent months. Regarding our print material, it was important to use up the existing stock before switching.

Carole: Approximatively 80% of all documents have been digitised and automated, whereas 20% still need to be handled manually. Our goal is to simplify these steps through automation and streamlining.

I was surprised to see how many different documents circulate in our bank, some of them only being used by a handful of people! We therefore took the opportunity to put into question the purpose of some of them together with the ambassadors.

Carole: We are still in constant exchange with our ambassadors and new documents are added to our list every day. We have set individual priorities, which are different for each unit and each type of document, and execute these according to plan. Slowly but surely everything is taking shape. It is sure that this process will take time.

Pierre: Through the implementation of the new graphical charter, we adapted our digital and print formats, such as our website. At the same time we revised all our templates in order to communicate in a clearer and standardised way with our customers.

Carole: On the downside, respecting a charter also involves that there will be less autonomy, since we will be working in a more structured way. Nevertheless, a certain amount of flexibility for the users will remain in case of individual requests.

I would like to emphasise that the collaboration with all our ambassadors is exemplary and they are all very understanding of the ongoing processes. To thank them for all their efforts, they were recently invited to a sneak preview, where the results of our work were presented and our new advertising spot was shown. Involving our colleagues on all levels is a way for us to show them that they are much appreciated for their daily input and work.

Pierre: We have already achieved a lot, but naturally the daily business continues within the Bank and has to be taken care of. That’s why we are confident that we will finalise this important project by the end of 2020.