Many small-scale financial institutions are entering the market in the banking industry, and there is an increase in the level of competition. As a result, traditional banks, like Piraeus bank, are required to develop strategic measures in their operations to survive. These aspects include the optimisation of logistics, layout design, enhancing customer relationship management (CRM), and leveraging technology in operations (Sood, Jones, Atre, and Georgiopolous, 2019). The board of the bank has therefore decided to develop a more aggressive strategy and focus on customer service.
Operations management is the process of managing and controlling all the activities related to production and it helps to analyse the process of transforming inputs into outputs to filter and rectify any defects in the process (Heizer, Render and Munson, 2017). The main operations management decisions that govern the operation of the bank comprise of the layout design, the capacity design, the location, the human resources and the quality of services as well as the inventory management.
In relation to the capacity and layout design of the bank, there is lack of ample parking areas for clients and the banking halls cannot accommodate all clients during peak hours. In addition, the drive-through lanes should increase and there should be more tellers in the drive-through windows. The layout design includes the placement of equipment and workstations in the bank in order to ensure flexibility and convenience. It is therefore essential to provide one extra window for holders of commercial accounts to reduce their waiting time.
On the other hand, the location design involves the strategic placement of branches in various regions. Piraeus expansion plan indicates un-strategic planning due to the crowded branches. This growth strategy raises operation costs and does not lead into an efficient provision of services. Another indicator of inefficiency is an inadequate workforce to serve customers in the additional branches.
The expansion plan also shows mismanagement of inventory through un-strategic planning. The bank can re-evaluate their inventory management to ensure they offer better interest rates than their competitors while registering a good income to continue growing as the leading and most preferred banking partner. It is also recommended that funds spent on additional branches should be allocated to improve customer service and expand spacious parking.
The process of achieving the new strategy requires a change in its current operations to reflect its target objectives. It needs to enhance its human resource efficiency by increasing the number of staff in its branches (Bajwa and Raj, 2020). This strategy will enable the achievement of CRM through online banking and 24/7 services and improvement of customer service in banking halls. Access to timely financial services is critical (Kalaitzi, 2022). Therefore, this its operational duration during working days should be increased.
Another major challenge that hinders the achievement of competitive advantage in this bank is expanding at a high rate without improving customer efficiency. Due to the increase in competition, Piraeus should rethink reducing closing down some branches. It should then invest in digital banking systems to reduce customer visits to the banking premises (Muljani, Eliitan and Marajemen, 2020). The most optimal digital services include SMS services, mobile banking, online services and the introduction of the bank’s app to increase efficiency.
The management should reconsider working on its weak points to achieve its operational goals. Piraeus bank needs adequate personnel for efficient and timely services to its increasing number of customers (Bajwa and Raj, 2020). Strategic planning on its growth also enables allocating resources on more critical roles that increase growth and achievement of operational efficiency. Looking at the physical aspects of the bank requires expansion in its parking, thus increasing customers to their branches. There should also be increased telephone lines and online financial services to reduce customer visits to the bank premises. As Sood, Jones, Atre, and Georgiopolous (2019) suggest, banks require lean and digital measures to enhance competitive advantage with the current competitive market.
