Agriculture
In 1989 HSBC was the first bank to introduce a team of specialist agriculture banking managers dedicated to agriculture and farming-related businesses. Today they relationship manage over 7,000 of the largest farm businesses from 11 offices throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland – although much of their time is spent at their customers’ farms. As well as exceptional levels of support and financial expertise they provide in-depth industry understanding on current issues such as the reform of CAP and the introduction of Single Farm Payment. In addition to this team we have established a team of Corporate Agrifood Managers. They serve the needs of existing agrifood companies, especially those wanting to create closer links in the supply chain between supplier and consumer. They are also responsible for meeting the financial needs of primary food producers who have become involved in processing and retailing.
Business Banking - Commercial Core Products
Commercial Core Products is responsible for developing and implementing segment strategy, so as to increase customer satisfaction and increase sales and profit. They also determine how to enhance customer experience, drive sales and maximise long-term profitability of current accounts (SBT, Treasurer, Schools and Colleges), savings accounts (all segments), small business loans, packaged overdrafts and business debit and credit cards. They achieve this by developing, pricing and promoting the product proposition and co-ordinating the activities of product managers and channel owners in a number of business areas.
Business Banking - Retail Commercial
Retail Commercial establishes and implements the strategy for the Retail Commercial customer segment so as to maximise the long-term return to the bank. They also design and deliver competitive, value-adding, segmented propositions, enhancing the new customer recruitment experience, to increase customer satisfaction and sales conversion rates.
Business Banking - Business Marketing
Business Marketing focuses on acquiring and optimising business banking customers, to contribute to the overall Commercial banking strategy. Their customers comprise UK business of various sizes who are served by a number of teams including: the Business Team (start-ups and existing small business customers); the Commercial team (business customers with more complex needs who often trade internationally); the Corporate team (business customers with sophisticated needs who are managed by our most experienced Heads of Corporate banking); Market Planning and Analysis (providing competitor analysis across segments to identify opportunities, threats and trends. It also co-ordinates planning and production of management information as well as proposition development, and provides support regarding external third-party relations).
Business Banking - e-Commercial
e-Commercial (eCMB) has a key role in helping to define and deliver Straight Through Processing (STP) for Commercial banking in support of the banks strategic STP programme. They work closely with Marketing, fulfilment areas and product teams, and are responsible for: the Commercial website as a delivery mechanism from a sales and service perspective; generating and improving the sales experience, increasing the level of leads and applications and improving the ratio between leads, applications and sales; creating and enhancing online propositions; managing the Business Internet Banking (BIB) channel, driving registrations and usage; enhancing the service and functionality of BIB and the website to improve customer satisfaction levels and usage; and leveraging BIB to generate sales activity using Individual Solutions, sales campaigns and online application tools.
Commercial Broker Unit
The team consists of relationship managers whose objective is to develop relationships with quality commercial brokers, with a view to inviting them to submit business introductions to HSBC in exchange for commission payments for successfully completed introductions. In doing this they manage the relationship with the commercial broker, manage and control a central database of all broker introductions, conduct initial vetting of broker introductions prior to allocation to the network and manage and control commission payments made to commercial brokers.
Commercial Centre Proposition
The team provides support to the UK Commercial relationship managed segment and helps ensure Commercial Managers (CM) can deliver to plan. They work closely with Regional Commercial Managers and are responsible for: Commercial Centre strategy and its successful implementation, including CM headcount, reward schemes, training and marketing support; implementing and reviewing the Making Relationships Count philosophy; achievement of this segment’s plan; liaising between CMs and other departments; continual assessment of the locations and size of each Commercial Centre); development of robust commercial management information to aid growth and management within the Commercial centres; and influencing the development, management and communication of the customer contact strategy and opportunities to this segment.
Corporate and Structured Banking
This is a national business which provides tailored financial solutions for the Corporate customer with turnover typically in excess of £25 million and up to £750 million. Services are provided via a network of 13 Corporate banking Centres, each of which is headed by our most experienced Relationship Managers – Head of Corporate banking. The teams comprise in excess of 140 Senior Corporate Banking Managers, some with particular expertise in real Estate, together with support staff, who provide relationship management for 2,800 corporate relationships nationwide. In addition, Specialised Finance teams across the country and a corporate finance Advisory team provide assistance on a range of solutions, including: mergers and acquisitions; leveraged finance (debt and equity); syndicated finance; management buy outs; and corporate finance advisory services.
Customer Experience
Customer Experience is responsible for developing and driving the changes needed to improve customer service for our commercial customers. They work to the following aims: to get 55 percent of commercial customers to be ‘very satisfied’; to improve loyalty and recommendation levels; to ‘fix’ commercial customers’ problems within 24 hours; and to be the most recommended bank for service. The team works with colleagues throughout Commercial, the Network, Customer Service Delivery, Customer Telephone Services and Electronic Services to identify and implement areas for change that will delight our customers.
Equipment Finance (HEF)
The HEF team specialises in the term funding of medium to large structured asset finance solutions, where a customer’s proposed annual spend exceeds £50k, in either a single transaction or planned buying programme. The principal products are Hire Purchase (HP) and Finance Lease (FL). New business activities are currently focused on higher value transactions, with specialisms in a number of key sectors. HSBC is moving away from its reliance on traditional lending products and is instead seeking to structure its exposure across the full Commercial Banking products range. By structuring deals using HEF you will strengthen the relationship with your customer, add value through involving specialists and introduce appropriate structuring to the lending, which is important to the bank.
Franchise Unit
The Franchise Unit provides specialist advice and guidance to lending managers on franchises through contracts with franchisors, franchising professionals and franchising trade associations. A key part of the unit’s role is to provide a ‘help desk’ facility to the network which includes an assessment of the franchise and guidance on whether or not we want to do business with them. Through its work, the Franchise Unit is able to understand current issues faced by the sector and build and maintain strong relationships with influential members of the British Franchise Association (BFA), which includes franchisors, franchisees and professional advisors. This enables it to maintain a high profile and a high level of customer service. The unit shares business development experience with other HSBC Group members and is already working with a number of countries to help them develop franchise propositions.
Global Commercial Banking
The focus for this team is to proactively develop the Group’s Commercial Banking business across Europe, in line with the Group Commercial Banking Strategic Plan. They achieve this by: formulating and implementing regional business development strategies; monitoring financial performance and ensuring that action is taken if targets are not being met; originating and driving the spread of best practice; implementing product and service propositions on a global basis; offering leadership and guidance to in-country Commercial Banking Heads; and contributing towards evolving Global Commercial Banking strategies.
Global Transaction Banking (GTB)
GTB is a global business with regional units located in Europe, Asia Pacific, the Americas and the Middle East. GTB is responsible for delivering and supporting the cash management and trade needs of our corporate, commercial and financial institution clients. GTB delivers market-leading transaction banking solutions that deliver tangible benefits such as: real-time cash flow co-ordination; reduced costs and operating expenses; simplified reconciliation and risk management; enhanced import and export transactions; and enhanced Straight Through Processing. GTB comprises the following functions: Product Management and Marketing; Sales; Business Implementation; Technical Support and Implementation; Product Market Management; Best Practice; and Finance and Planning.
Insurance and Investments
Commercial Insurance and Investment is the bank’s global initiative to provide corporate and commercial customers with solutions to their protection, healthcare, retirement and investment needs. HSBC is uniquely placed to understand these needs and here in the UK we have three groups of sales people dedicated to growing the bank’s reputation in this market: Commercial Independent Financial Advisers (CIFAs), selling open-market solutions; Commercial Financial Planning Managers (CFPMs) who sell multi-tied solutions; and Employee Benefit Managers (EBMs) who work in a non-advisory capacity selling tied pension schemes and healthcare schemes. All three groups support each other and report into the Commercial Sales Managers at Area level.
Lending Product Management
Commercial Lending product Management works closely with Commercial Core Products to enhance profitability of our core lending products, through product pricing and development. The team is responsible for the ongoing maintenance and development of the following products: Flexible Business Loan; Commercial Property Lending; Small Firms Loan Guarantee; Standard Life SIPP; Overdrafts; and Invoice Finance. In addition, they research products available from our competitors in the UK and abroad, design and implement new banking products, ensure business lending products meet regulatory requirements in liaison with the appropriate departments and ensure the effective communication of the product suite both internally and externally.
Strategic Propositions
This team co-ordinates the plans for, and drives the implementation of, a small set of significant longer-term projects that involve various parts of commercial banking and other parts of the bank. Their current responsibilities include: achieving improved customer acquisition and product sales in all areas of international business and covering all types of trade flows; developing the bank’s approach to solicitors, accountants, doctors, vets, architects, surveyors etc. as customers in their own right; managing commercial banking requirements in the branch refurbishment programme; and understanding our customers’ changing needs and planning for a world where our primary customer interaction is through the web.
Trade Services
Trade Services meets two overarching business needs for companies, cashflow and the protection / security of trading. The team operates out of three Trade Service Centres – Leicester, Manchester and London – but comprises a UK sales force of some 40 International Business Managers who are located throughout the UK and assigned to Commercial and Corporate Banking Centres to develop new business in their respective areas.
Vehicle Finance (VF)
VF has over 40 years’ trading experience and in January 2007, had over 50,000 cars and light commercial vehicles on its fleet, making it one of the UK’s top ten suppliers. The team provides company vehicles and management support to business of all shapes and sizes, and to Retail customers too. VF signed an agreement in 2005 to outsource its service delivery to the industry’s No.1 supplier. This gives access to its partner’s buying power and economies of scale, at the same time allowing VF to develop its customer service proposition on the back of its partner’s industry-specific operational systems and infrastructure. In addition to Contract Hire, the core VF product for the business user, VF can also provide a range of value adding services to save the customer time and money. These include: Accident Management; HSBC Rental Direct; and HSBC Service Direct.