The Importance of Employees as High-Value Customers in the Banking Sector

Abstract

This thesis researches the factors affecting the employees of Arina cooperative use of S-Pankki´s services. The research problem addresses in this thesis is to understand why em-ployees of the case company (referred to as S-Pankki and the Co-Op membership program) are not using the company's services to their full benefit. The study aims to find out and understand the reasons behind the passiveness of the target group and the focus will be on human resource management and the compensation and benefit program of S Group. The research questions aim to comprehend the problem and provide solutions to convert passive users into high-value users. The study is conducted as a case study to understand the behavioral aspects of the re-search problem. The target group of the research is employees of the Arina cooperative in Oulu, who represent a significant percentage of the bank's overall customer base. The study is qualitative research which is carried out as a case study. The research inquiry is gathered with a semi-structured survey. The survey was published in Workplace which is a platform used as a messaging and informing platform within S Group. The research involved a comprehensive literature review on the concepts of customer relationship management, loyalty programs, human resource management, and compensation and benefit program within organizations. The compensation and benefit programs´ impact on employee satisfaction and retention was studied and analysed. The findings of the study suggest that employee benefits play a crucial role in enhancing employee satisfaction and loyalty. The study also revealed that S-Pankki's services, such as online banking, mobile applications, and customer service, were highly rated by its employ-ees. Furthermore, the study identified some areas of improvement for S-Pankki, including the need to enhance communication and training programs for its employees of the service offering. Additionally, the benefits program of Arina cooperative were utilized widely among the employees. However, the need to update the benefits program was raised to meet present demands.