CEO confident in employees
Bank of Montreal chief exec says bank not in business to push products
Bank of Montreal chief executive Bill Downe says he has confidence his employees know they are “not in business to push products.”
“We guide our customers in picking services that best meet their needs,” he said in prepared remarks that was to be delivered at the bank’s annual shareholders meeting on Tuesday.
Downe said customers are increasingly doing transactional banking on their own, but they still deal with bankers for new services such as mortgages and investment accounts, and to enhance existing products and services, such as raising a limit on a create card or increasing a line of credit.
More than 7 million such interactions took place last year, he said, adding that the bank has “a robust set of disciplines” to ensure that unwanted products are not being pushed onto customers.
These include performance scorecards that weight customer satisfaction. For example, when a customer purchases a new service, it only satisfies a banker’s objectives if it’s used.
In addition, any account cancelled soon after opening is scrutinized, and “the incidence of this is very low,” Downe said.
His comments come as the Canadian banking industry has come under increased scrutiny since CBC News reported allegations of high-pressure sales tactics at Toronto-Dominion Bank. It was reported that some employees, whose identities were not revealed by the public broadcaster, said the conditions had led them to do things that weren’t in customers’ best interests.
Subsequent CBC News reports quoted allegations from unidentified employees and former employees from the other Big Five banks, who said they felt pressure to upsell and meet difficult sales targets in order to keep their jobs.
The allegations prompted the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada to move up a planned review of the financial sector to April.
The watchdog’s commissioner, Lucie Tedesco, “expressed concern” at claims that financial institutions were selling products and services without obtaining the express consent of customers. That will be the focus of the FCAC’s review. The FCAC expects to publish a report on its findings by the end of the year, but may release some interim reports before then.
In his remarks Tuesday, Downe said each of BMO’s businesses has “clear, easy-to-access process for customers or employees to escalate concerns” that cannot be resolved at the initial level. This process includes an internal ombudsman, and ultimately the independent Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments.
“The rigour with which we safeguard our policies and processes reinforces our confidence in the integrity of the bank’s practices,” Downe said. “And we have fostered a culture where we are all protected from retaliation. Everyone at BMO can voice concerns without fear.”