The prize goes to one of the newest registered banks in New Zealand, SBS Bank which until October last year was a building society.  SBS also celebrated their 140th anniversary in October which I don’t think many businesses in New Zealand can claimed to have done.

The SBS Bank Contact Centre was established in Invercargill in August 2000 with 12 fulltime and part-time staff and now boasts 31 staff.  They have two inbound teams taking banking-related calls from new and existing customers. They also support 15 retail branches from Invercargill up to Hamilton.

They receive approx 208,000 calls annually and are open 8:30am to 5:30 pm Monday to Friday with outbound calling hours of 10:30am to 7:00pm Monday to Friday.

Contact centre manager Christine Hollingworths over riding vision for her team is; ‘To focus on a customer-driven strategy with technology as the enabler, not the driver. Every day it is about the customers and our team providing exceptional service. When a customer rings the SBS Bank Contact Centre they are always greeted by a person – not a recording.’

It sounds like a traditional customer focused bank, you get to sit down and enjoy a cup of tea when you first walk into a branch and they have a hearty chat with you, about you before anything else happens. And this customer experience seems to flow through to the contact centre. Just like the old days.

To read the full profile of New Zealand’s most southern contact centre, click here