Features
Staff involvement in fraud …A great concern
The Bank of Ghana, among others, ensure effective and efficient operations of the
banking and credit systems, and support general economic growt
It is becoming increasingly clear that some personnel of financial institutions are involved in fraudulent activities to dupe their customers and make more money to meet their own selfish ends.
This is a matter of great concern to the Bank of Ghana as well as management staff of some of the financial institutions. What this means is that the financial institutions are expected to put in more measures aimed at exposing all those involved in this shameful practice.
WHY FRAUDULENT DEALS?
The question is why the staff of any financial institutions be involved in such fraudulent deals?
Many young people of today do not pay attention to integrity but are only concerned with making money in the shortest possible time. Again, many of the institutions take things for granted and, therefore, give room to some of their staff to engage themselves in fraud. More importantly, however, young people of today as well as some adults think of acquiring wealth without recourse to the business growth of the organisations that they work for. This is a very unfortunate situation.
Such fraudulent deals erode the confidence that customers have in the various types of institutions that operate in the country. If nothing is done about it, many people will begin to lose confidence in making use of the services of these financial institutions.
ROLE OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
Banking institutions in any country play a great and significant role in economic development. Banks and other financial institutions help to mop up savings from people and use such savings as a financial resource to facilitate the operations of business enterprises. These business enterprises may operate on a large, small or medium scale, so without the mobilisation of funds from individuals and organisations, it becomes very difficult for the central bank and the government to get enough funds to finance economic activities in the country.
Without such financing, business operations will come to a standstill and show very little growth in the economy. Start-up business entities as well as existing ones are able to help business organisations to expand through such financing. The mopping up of financial resources to make it possible for business organisations to get access to finances for business purposes is, therefore, important if we are to ensure business growth and economic expansion. Such growth and business expansion is what helps to bring about enhanced economic welfare in the country.
STAFF COMPLICITY IN FRAUD SOARS
According to the Bank of Ghana, staff involvement in fraud has seen an increase since last year. This unpleasant development must be discouraged without delay.
Staff of Banks and other Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions involvement in fraud, constituted 53.46 per cent of total fraud cases in 2021, a report by the Bank of Ghana has noted. This canker continued to increase in the year under review.
Statistics indicate that staff involvement in fraud cases increased to 278, as compared with 253 in 2020, representing an increase of 9.88 per cent in year-on-year terms.
For 2021, the Rural and Community Banks recorded the highest rate of staff involvement in fraud with a figure of 46.04 per cent. The Universal Banks accounted for 28.06 per cent, while the Savings and Loans Companies accounted for 16.55 per cent.
LACK OF HONESTY & INTEGRITY
The banking staff are getting involved in such disgraceful acts because of the lack of honesty and integrity on the part of many of them. The way the banks recruit their personnel must be made more rigorous, so as to weed out all those who are likely to fall prey to fraudulent activities with the aim of making massive wealth for themselves within a very short time.
Also, staff of financial institutions found to be involved in fraudulent deals must be made to face the rigid consequences of the law, so as to deter others from doing same.
LACK OF ADEQUATE CONTROL SYSTEMS
This issue, unpleasant as it is, cannot be swept under the carpet. The Bank of Ghana said the consistently high rate of staff involvement in fraud cases reported by Banks and SDIs may be due to lack of adequate control systems in the financial institutions (especially the Rural Banking sector), poor background investigations on prospective, newly appointed and temporary staff, poor remuneration in the Banking and SDI sectors, among others.
These factors accounting for the fraudulent behaviour of some staff of the financial institutions must be eliminated from our society by hook or crook. Things should not be taken for granted.
APPROPRIATE CORRECTIVE MEASURES
Rather, the appropriate corrective measures needed must be put in place to ensure that the banking and financial sectors are sanitised once and for all, so that business growth in the country can be guaranteed.
It is this guarantee that will smoothen out all the rough edges to make it possible for business operators to be encouraged to carry out their successful business activities without any fear.
By Dr. Kofi Amponsah-Bediako
Features
Fix It Fast or Lose Them Forever: The Ever-Rising Importance of Service Recovery in Competitive Industries
Yes, in literature and in practice, differences exist regarding customer service, service failures, and service recovery.
But have you ever considered the latter (service recovery) and its potential impact on service experience, brand building, and sustainable growth?
Well, in today’s fiercely competitive service economy, customer experience has become one of the most powerful determinants of business survival and long-term success.
Across industries, from aviation and banking to telecommunications, hospitality, healthcare, retail, and digital platforms, customers now expect fast, seamless, and reliable service delivery at every touchpoint.
Yet despite technological advancements and operational improvements, service failures remain inevitable.
Systems experience downtime, deliveries are delayed, reservations are misplaced, payments fail, customer inquiries go unanswered, employees mishandle interactions, and digital platforms experience disruptions.
In the midst of these, what increasingly separates successful organisations from struggling ones is not whether failures occur, but how quickly and effectively they recover when they do.
Service Recovery
Simply put, it is the process of fixing a service problem and restoring customer confidence after a failure has occurred.
Examples of service recoveries are; an airline offering compensation after a flight delay, a telecom company restoring interrupted service and providing bonus data, a restaurant replacing a wrongly prepared meal at no extra cost, a hotel upgrading a guest’s room after a booking problem, and finally a bank reversing an erroneous transaction and apologising promptly.
As competition intensifies and customer expectations continue to rise, service recovery is rapidly evolving from a routine customer service function into a critical strategic capability.
Businesses are discovering a hard truth of the modern marketplace: fix customer problems quickly, or risk losing them permanently.
Customers are More Powerful Now Than Ever
Customers now possess more power than at any other time in business history. Digital technology, social media, online reviews, and mobile connectivity have fundamentally changed customer behaviour.
Consumers now easily compare competitors instantly, publicly share negative experiences, switch providers with ease, and influence the purchasing decisions of thousands of others online.
This evolution has made customer loyalty increasingly fragile. A single poor experience can quickly damage years of brand-building effort.
In highly competitive sectors where products and pricing are often similar, customer experience has emerged as one of the few sustainable competitive advantages.
Modern customers no longer evaluate organisations solely by product quality or pricing. Increasingly, they judge businesses by their responsiveness, reliability, transparency, empathy, and effectiveness in resolving problems.
Why Service Recovery Matters More Than Ever
Failures are no longer viewed as isolated operational incidents, especially in competitive service sectors. They are moments that directly influence customer trust, brand perception, and future purchasing behaviour.
Research across service industries consistently demonstrates that customers are often willing to forgive mistakes when organisations respond quickly, communicate honestly, show empathy, and resolve issues effectively.
Conversely, poor recovery experiences frequently create stronger dissatisfaction than the original service failure itself.
For many businesses, the greatest reputational damage does not arise from operational errors, but from delayed responses, poor communication, lack of accountability, and unresolved customer frustrations.
This has elevated service recovery into a central component of customer relationship management and competitive strategy.
Speed, a Competitive Weapon
In the modern service economy, speed is no longer merely operational efficiency; it is a basic customer expectation.
Consumers increasingly expect: immediate responses, real-time updates, fast complaint resolution, and proactive communication. Delays are often interpreted as incompetence, indifference, or organisational inefficiency.
Consequently, organisations are redesigning their service recovery frameworks to prioritize rapid intervention and customer reassurance.
A cursory assessment revealed that some businesses now operate dedicated customer experience teams, 24/7 support systems, AI-powered service platforms, automated escalation systems, and real-time issue monitoring dashboards.
The ability to resolve customer problems quickly is now a major source of competitive differentiation.
Technology Is Transforming Recovery Strategies
Technology is fundamentally reshaping how organisations manage service recovery. Across industries, companies are leveraging artificial intelligence, customer analytics, chatbots, predictive monitoring systems, and integrated digital support platforms.
These tools allow organisations to identify service failures earlier, monitor customer dissatisfaction, automate responses, personalize engagement, and accelerate resolution timelines.
Some organisations now proactively contact customers before complaints are formally lodged, using analytics to identify service disruptions in real time.
This means that the future of service recovery is increasingly preventive rather than purely reactive.
Service Recovery as a Brand Strategy
Forward-looking organisations are now treating service recovery as part of brand management strategy rather than operational damage control.
The logic is straightforward because, acquiring new customers is expensive, dissatisfied customers influence others, and loyalty is increasingly experience-driven.
Businesses are therefore measuring customer satisfaction, response times, complaint resolution rates, customer retention, and net promoter scores more aggressively than before.
In many industries, service recovery performance is now discussed at executive and board levels because of its direct relationship with profitability, reputation, and long-term growth.
A call to action
As industries become more digital, interconnected and customer-driven, service recovery will likely become even more important.
Therefore, organisations that succeed in the future will likely be those that respond rapidly, communicate transparently, empower employees, leverage technology intelligently, treat customers fairly, and place their (customers’) trust at the centre of recovery strategies.
Remember, customers now have more choices, less patience, and greater influence than ever before, a clear message to forward-looking organisations that when service breaks down, recovery is everything. Fix it fast or risk losing customers forever.
Writer: Mohammed Ali
Conflict at work is more common than you might think. According to 2022 research by The Myers-Briggs Company, more than a third of the workforce reports dealing with conflict often, very often, or all the time in the workplace.
Addressing a dispute might feel tense or awkward, but resolving the conflict is typically well worth it in the long run. Whether you are trying to mediate conflict between colleagues or are directly involved. Last week we looked at three and this week is the remaining four steps you can take to manage workplace conflict.
4. Find common ground
The best way to handle workplace conflict is to start with what you can agree on. Find common ground between the people engaging in conflict. If you are directly involved in the conflict, slow down and focus on results instead of who’s right.
If you are the mediator for conflict resolution between coworkers, observe the discussion and help point out the common ground others may not see.
5. Collectively brainstorm solutions
When deciding how to handle workplace conflict, it can be tempting to problem-solve on your own. Sometimes, it feels easier to work independently rather than collaboratively. However, if you want to achieve a lasting resolution, you will need to motivate your team to get involved.
Brainstorm possible solutions together, and solicit input from everyone involved on the pros and cons of each option until you settle on a solution that feels comfortable to everyone. This will help all team members feel a sense of ownership that can help prevent future conflicts.
6. Create an action plan
Once you have created an open dialogue around workplace conflicts, it is time to resolve them. Just like any other work goal, this requires creating a concrete plan and following through.
Create an action plan and then act on it. It does not matter what the plan is, as long as you commit to it and resolve the conflict as a result.
7. Reflect on what you learned
All conflicts offer an opportunity to grow and become a better communicator. Identify what went well and what did not.
Work with your whole team to gather learnings from the conflict so you can avoid similar situations in the future.
