BAI: Future-Proof Branch Design With This Three-Part Approach

Branches, with upgradable self-service features and huddle spots, are an integral part of omnichannel banking. That’s why
HR and CX visionaries need a role in the design process.

Branches continue to evolve—and forward-thinking financial institutions, including those with a healthy omni-channel ecosystem in mind, are taking a holistic approach to design and functionality. They are equally prioritizing aesthetics, technology and human staff. 

"Yet even with the best intentions, most banks and credit unions still focus primarily on the physical design of the branch without balancing the other two elements," says EJ Kritz, Chief Experience Officer at DBSI, a design-build firm specializing in financial institutions.

“That’s the sexy part—things that look sleek, stylish and modern. That’s the part that looks great in photography, that looks great in marketing and that looks awesome to the board,” the Chandler, Ariz.-based Kritz says. “But often these locations struggle with function. Instead, when you take that three-legged-stool approach with holistic branch
design, it opens a world of possibility.”

While many institutions might integrate a la carte technology upgrades like cash automation, roaming service providers with tablets and digital signage, Kritz sees greater success in “future-proofing” branches—that is, having the right flexible technology and integrated customer experience to meet the needs of the branch over the next 10 to 15 years, he says.

Planning based on a wider lens will help ensure that the institution won’t be facing a large-scale renovation five years down the road simply because their contractor didn’t forecast the emerging and changing needs within financial services.

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