Signposts to the Provision of Market Led Microfinancial Services

This paper identifies and lists the 'signposts' that indicate that a MFI is moving towards becoming a market-led institution.

It finds that a commitment to providing market led micro-financial services touches upon every aspect of a financial institution. These include:

• Vision and mission statements - focus on profitability through designing, developing and delivering quality customer-responsive financial services;
• The executive functions that:
  • Focus on customers;
  • Ensure congruence of goals and activities between marketing and operations
    functions;
  • Develop a competent senior management;
  • Are knowledge based and opportunity focused;
  • Bring awareness of the competition.
• Development and retaining customer focused staff through investing in:
  • Training on delivering client focused services;
  • Internal communications;
  • Innovative mechanisms to build staff capacity;
  • Well-designed incentive schemes.
• Retaining a strong customer focus throughout the 'front office" operations such as:
  • Annual marketing audits;
  • Customer-focused research into customer requirements;
  • A strong brand name in the marketplace;
  • A customer charter;
  • A feedback loop;
  • A pleasant banking environment;
  • Proactive customer communications.
• "Back office" operations that support continually improving products and processes, such as:
  • Well-developed costing systems;
  • Regular process audits;
  • Well-written, self-explanatory procedure manuals;
  • Demand-led market research;
  • Well-developed information technology systems;
  • An innovation reserve;
  • Active data-mining to ensure delivery of high quality services;
  • Active risk assessment and management.