Q & A :
An Extraordinary Cultural Journey
As a company commited to consistently delivering extraordinary customer service , Sterling National Bank develops new Execute Extraordinary program .
Q : Why was Sterling National Bank ’ s Execute Extraordinary program created ?
This is a performance-oriented program designed to ensure that the organization continues to meet the needs of all of our stakeholders . Sterling continues to experience rapid growth and an expansion of capabilities . In order to continue to fuel that growth , to meet or exceed our clients expectations , and to always provide the best products and solutions , it is vital that we continue to deliver exceptionally high quality in all that we do . We do this by systematically defining and measuring quality , setting a high bar as to what excellence is , and inspiring top performance . Fundamentally , Execute Extraordinary is a commitment to perform extraordinarily with every client , every day , and at every opportunity .
Q : How do you ask your employees to Execute Extraordinary on a consistent basis ?
First of all , we make it clear that this is not a program with a beginning and an end . It is an ongoing journey — one that will define Sterling ’ s way of thinking , acting , and working now and into the future . We have a talented and dedicated team at Sterling . They ’ ve embraced the importance of our brand promise — Expect Extraordinary — and they ’ re committed to delivering on it . So really , the program is a means to that end . It provides resources and removes barriers to empower our colleagues to improve processes and create efficiencies . To get them thinking , we challenged everyone in the organization to ask : What am I doing ? How am I doing it ? And , what value does this bring to the client ? By getting colleagues to evaluate their daily processes , we improve efficiencies , reduce risk , eliminate errors , and boost quality , each of which allows us to deliver a better overall client experience .
Q : What are the building blocks of the Execute Extraordinary initiative ?
If we are going to continue to be a high-performing bank — one that delivers an exceptional client experience — it ’ s of the utmost importance that we understand our clients ’ needs and wants . Thus , the first component is Client Focus . At the core of this is really listening to and learning about our clients . We are now in the execution stage of research to understand the voice of the client . Beyond that , we ’ re also going to be working closely with our clients by participating in shadow programs in order to get a greater sense of how we can improve their banking experience . The second component is our Culture . At the core of Execute Extraordinary are the colleagues of Sterling , the values that guide them , and the competencies that enable them to deliver quality products and services . We are focused on continually developing , recognizing , and rewarding the attributes that drive our culture . We also focus our efforts on the attributes we want our clients to associate with Sterling : products and services that are simple , intelligent , sophisticated , and trustworthy . The third component is Business Process Optimization , or BPO . Using a world-class BPO methodology , we follow a systematic quantitative approach to continuously improving and managing the many business processes that define our business operations . We train our colleagues to look at these processes though a critical lens — to analyze and improve them — so we can deliver a consistent high-quality of service .
Q : What are some of the initiatives you have launched to illustrate your culture of excellence ?
Our initiatives range in focus and complexity , but together they are driving growth for the company and have given our colleagues a fresh perspective and have inspired enthusiasm and excitement . We began with an enterprise-wide campaign
Rodney Whitwell to introduce Chief Operating Officer the Execute Sterling National Bank Extraordinary
program . From this introduction we have kept momentum going by continually sharing success stories of employees and departments that are demonstrating Execute Extraordinary . Examples range from delighting clients by going above and beyond their expectations , to innovative new approaches , to outstanding process execution . We ’ ve also conducted bank-wide training of all colleagues on the principles and techniques of Lean Six Sigma , our chosen BPO methodology . We recently rolled out the Sterling Standards of Service , which is a comprehensive set of professional expectations in delivering exceptional service so that all colleagues have the same clear and measurable standards by which we operate . We ’ ve also recently launched the Idea Lab , an idea generation platform . What makes this program interesting is that it not only captures new innovative ideas , but it also leverages contemporary practices in collaboration across the organization to collectively solve problems and build new ideas though an online community . Finally , we updated our recognition programs to provide colleagues and managers with tools to recognize individuals demonstrating the principles of Execute Extraordinary . An example of one such form of recognition is the Execute Extraordinary Commemorative Coin , which can be issued by senior leaders to anyone in Sterling for outstanding efforts that are truly extraordinary . All of these initiatives , working together in support of the Execute Extraordinary program , provide an environment in which excellent performance is achievable , recognized , and rewarded . It ’ s become the foundation for how our organization operates every day .
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