Union Bank Simulation Case Study

Process analysis and system simulation tools are used by many banks to help operations managers improve customer service quality and resource productivity. These tools take into account the effect of variability, uncertainty and interdependency between customers and banking resources in various transaction processes. Union Bank of California used ServiceModel to improve their branch operations.

The Problem

One of the applications developed was the branch office simulation. It was developed to analyze the critical service elements of the branch including walk-in tellers, drive-up tellers, loans/new accounts service representatives, and ATM services.

The Solution

Union Bank of California developed the model of their branch operations. Animation was developed to visually show how long customer lines got under different operating scenarios. The on-screen statistics showed how current and proposed employee schedules handled variable transaction volumes.

The model demonstrated the effect of cross-utilizing the entire branch staff for customer and paperwork processing. The graphical and tabular output reports showed the effects of opening and closing teller windows based on the number of customers waiting.

The Results

The model was created as a template to be used for the entire branch network throughout California. Specific elements such as ATMs, drive-up tellers and employee schedules can be tailored to meet the needs of each branch office.

Using ServiceModel software, Union Bank of California demonstrated the benefits of specific scheduling practices that had been proposed and were under consideration. By implementing these scheduling practices, the bank will optimize branch operations.