BPI President and CEO takes on customer complaints in podcast

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is serious about improving and reinventing its customer service. This comes after BPI released a special episode of its podcast, Dream Bayan. President and CEO TG Limcaoco responded to customer concerns posted on social media regarding the bank's services.

Hosted by veteran journalist Roby Alampay, the episode featured a casual yet candid conversation with Mr. Limcaoco, who was game in responding to actual client inquiries and sentiments.

During the podcast, Mr. Limcaoco said BPI hears its clients and is striving to deliver high-quality, delightful customer experience to become a more customer-centric bank. The podcast produced by BPI and Pumapodcast aims to reimagine how Filipinos can build a new normal amid the pandemic by featuring conversations with a diverse group of people whose inspiring stories can help build a better Philippines.

"Banking is a business of trust. And you cannot have trust if you don't have customer-centricity. Because that's where trust is built on. You need to think of your customers. And that's the only way customers come back to you, when your customers believe they can trust you," he said.

A customer concern Mr. Alampay posed during the podcast is the common frustration among clients about long wait times when calling the BPI hotline.

To address this, Mr. Limcaoco said BPI is currently implementing a new sales force system to make its hotline more responsive. "We're trying to work on that. What we're doing is we're trying to put more people on and to upgrade our systems," he said.

Mr. Alampay threw another question relating to customer feedback: "What's the most hurtful comment that you see on two levels—because it's not true or, more importantly, hurtful because you actually know it's true?"

"You know what's hurtful is when people say that it's our fault that they got scammed," said Mr. Limcaoco. "I think not only BPI, but also the whole banking industry, has tried to educate people on security. We have been very proactive in encouraging the use of OTPs or mobile keys. But the reality is people get scammed and my heart goes out to the victims."

But the BPI head said he doesn't take criticisms personally. "I understand why people feel they need to complain. They work hard for their money, to earn it. So we try our best to address their concerns."

He assured customers that there is a lot more to expect from BPI as it reinvents its services, both online and offline, to enable the bank to further build customer trust.

Soon several apps that specifically cater to the different market segments and customer journeys will be rolled out, said Mr. Limcaoco.

"But the other thing is you can have the best apps, you can have the best-looking apps, the most functional apps, but you need to complement that with the best customer service also," he added.

"Customers are looking for banks that can serve them well. And the only way you last this long is when you are constantly changing with the times and meeting the changing needs of your customers. In ten years, we will be a very different institution from what we are today. But one thing won't change, BPI will continue to provide trusted advice to our clients because that's what made us what we are."

To listen to the Dream Bayan podcast, tune in to Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.

​​​​​​​Published on September 13, 2021