Rajini Matur

English 1123, 406___

T. Moore

TO:             Board of Trustees of Bank of India

FROM:       Rajini Maturu

DATE:         February 10, 2003

Subject:       Proposal for institution of new check-cashing policy

PROBLEM: Customer dissatisfaction with the present check-cashing procedure of the Union Bank of India Branch at                          Secunderabad

ANALYSIS OF PROBLEM:

Presently, there are four staff members of the Bank taking care of the four steps of the check-cashing routine. During the banking hours between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., there are about 70 customers. The customer first presents the check to a clerk, who enters the check number and amount in a register. The clerk gives the customer a metallic coin, called a token, with a number.

The customer then goes …

CRITERIA:

• Must not exceed a budget of $2000.00
• Must save time
• Must satisfy both customers as well as tellers/bankers

ALTERNATIVES:

• Increase the number of staff members by three
• Open a teller counter
• Computerize all customer records

EVALUATION:

• Having three additional staff members to help cash checks would enable more customers to be served at any given time. The cost of this change would mean $500 per clerk, a total cost of $1500, which is within the budget limit. However, the main drawback to this proposal is that the customers would still have to wait for at least fifteen minutes to cash their checks.

• Opening a teller counter would mean creating a separate cubicle with ledgers containing customer information. The sample signatures of the customers …could be managed by one employee called the teller officer. When a check is presented for payment, the teller… This proposal would cost $1900; hence, the expense… This would mean a considerable reduction in the customer’s wait.

• Computerizing customer records would allow check to be cashed in two minutes. This is the best proposal as far as the time element is concerned. The cost involved … would be $4000, however. The disadvantage is that it does not meet the budget requirements.

RECOMMENDATED ACTION:

The second proposal of creating a teller counter appears to be the most suitable action at this time. This proposal reduces the waiting period to cash a check from thirty minutes to eight minutes, and the expenses involved are within the budget specifications. Therefore, I strongly recommend that the Board act immediately to institute this new policy as it will prove beneficial to the bank as well as to its customers.