The Nation Newspaper

Tag: customers

  • 100 civil servants trained to serve customers better

    With research showing that government would earn more revenue if its customers, the members of the public, were more satisfied with public service delivery, the Lagos State government has trained 100 senior civil servants to give quality service.

    At the training tagged: “Charting the path to customer centricity in the Lagos State Public Service”, Dr Akintola Benson, Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions, urged the participants to change their orientation about service delivery to focus more on the customer.

    He said researches overwhelmingly showed that adopting the right attitudes to customers could increase productivity.

    “In making a case for a customer-centered public service, Christopher Brown noted that,  countless studies have documented the link between organizational culture and organizational performance. Specifically, many studies show that a customer-centric culture drives superior service and value for customers resulting in an experience that creates customer satisfaction and advocacy. This in turn drives exceptional organizational performance in terms of productivity, new product/service success, innovation and financial performance,” the commissioner said.

    In light of the important activities of governance and the vital messages government agencies have to pass across to citizens of the state and the additional cost to the government when they do not get it right, Benson said public servants should learn to respect the people they serve and genuinely care for their need.

    He also they should learn to leverage on the advantages technology provides to deliver prompt, quality service, like the private sector does.

    He said: “I-t is my view that the following strategies will be central to any effort to ensure that the Lagos State Public Service adopts a positive change in perspective and orientation by adopting more extensive customer-centri policies and practices.

    “In the first place, stakeholders should begin by building a customer-first culture of government service with customers as the primary focus of interactions. This can be achieved by meaningfully consulting with citizens about their needs and experiences.

    “In the second place, efforts should be made to organize government to make its interactions simpler and easier by experimenting with new digital and other techniques and service-delivery tools,” he said.

     

     

     

  • Ex-banker ‘steals’ N5.1m from customers

    Ex-banker ‘steals’ N5.1m from customers

    A 31-year-old former bank worker, Augustine Ononiwu, was yesterday arraigned before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court for allegedly stealing N5.1 million from customers.

    The defendant, who lives at Ikeja, is facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing before Magistrate  J.O. Awope.

    The prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ezekiel Ayorinde, told the court that the defendant and others still at large conspired to steal the cash.

    He said the offence was committed between August 2017 and January at Ogba, Lagos.

    Ayorinde said the defendant, who worked in the domestic fund transfer unit of the bank, was to process recall of erroneous customers’ transfer with the bank.

    He alleged that the defendant instead of processing the recalled faulty transfers  diverted the cash to personal use.

    According to him, “the defendant diverted several customers’ recalled funds that were expected to be credited to other banks to his personal use. The theft was discovered when one of the beneficiaries who had yet to be credited came to the bank to complain”.

    The prosecutor when the bank investigated the matter,  it was discovered that the defendant debited the bank and “fraudulently credited his accomplices”.

    T he defendant, he said,  was arrested and handed over to the police.

    The accused pleaded not guilty.

    Magistrate Awope granted him N1 million bail with two sureties in the like sum.

    She ordered that the sureties should be  employed and show evidence of two years tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    The case continues February 19.

  • FCMB to motivate 100 customers

    First City Monument Bank (FCMB) is set to motivate over 100 customers among its youth segment with cash rewards, other exciting prizes and engagements to commemorate this year’s Valentine’s celebration.

    In its annual campaign tagged, “Banking on Love”, the lender said many young and even some older people view the February 14th Valentine Day celebration as solely defined by the day’s activities with their chosen partners and loved ones.

    Today, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Limited thinks differently. The bank, speaking through its Head of Corporate Affairs, Diran Olojo, enjoined the youth to see love as a virtue that is all encompassing. FCMB said love is more about care, giving, commitment, passion, trust and responsibility for the comfort, protection, security and happiness of the next person with an open mind and genuine of purpose. He stated that the position further goes to define some of the activities engaged in by the Bank which pays close attention to many segments of the Nigerian society.

    According to Olojo, “at FCMB, it is not all about business at all times. There is a strong propelling philosophy which also drives us to be concerned about the best way to positively affect our immediate environment. How best to reach and impact the less-privileged. We always think about the best strategies to adopt to help the needy people in our society. We care about the orphans, the widows, the aged people, our youths and the internally displaced persons (IDPs) who have been affected by insurgency, man-made and other natural disasters.  We believe one of the positive outcomes of sound corporate governance, is impacting positively on lives and communities in Nigeria.

  • Lafarge Africa rewards customers

    Building Solutions and Infrastructure Company, Lafarge Africa Plc, will continue to appreciate its customers across the country for their loyalty over the years has accounted for the success of the company in Nigeria and beyond.

    To this end, the cement maker, over the weekend, held a Customer Appreciation Dinner for its customers from the Southeast and Southsouth regions.

    The event held at the Ibom Hotel and Golf Resort, Uyo.

    Lafarge Africa Plc Marketing Director Mr. Vipul Agrawal said Lafarge was committed to providing world-class service to its customers. “We have put processes in place and made adequate investment to allow us attend to customers better. Outside our numerous customer touch points, we value moments such as this when we have the opportunity to say thank you in a special way and celebrate the customer,” said Agrawal.

    The forum provided an opportunity for Lafarge customers to engage in frank and open discussions with the brand and it also enabled the company’s senior management to feel the pulse of its customers, as well as resolve critical issues and complaints.

    Some of the customers were rewarded for their loyalty to the brand and performance in 2017. Similar customer appreciation events are scheduled to hold across the country.

     

  • VAIDS: Banks to supply customers’ data to tax authorities

    VAIDS: Banks to supply customers’ data to tax authorities

    Banks have been mandated under the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) principle to submit information on their customers, especially  High Net-worth Individuals (HNIs) to the taxman, The Nation has learnt.

    A Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Esiri Agbeyi, said at the weekend that the move was part of the strategy adopted by the Federal Government to ensure the success of the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS), which is meant bring more people into the tax net and move Nigeria’s tax to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from six to 15 per cent.

    Agbeyi was speaking during the Premier Banking/ Securities, Wealth & Asset Management (SWAN), Ecobank Capital joint breakfast session with the lender’s top clients in Lagos.

    HNIs are bank customers with at least $1 million in investible assets. Of such customers, 12,000  live in Nigeria, according to Agbeyi.

    There are 6,800 HNIs in Lagos; 4,000 in Abuja. The rest are shared between Port Harcourt and other parts of the country. Many bank Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), executive directors and directors fall within the HNIs group.

    Esiri, who is a private wealth manager for HNIs and family offices, said Nigeria is operating under a high interest rate regime because it does not collect enough taxes. “The key issue is high interest rate. And why we have so much pressure on that is simply because we do not collect enough taxes.

    We have a dip in oil prices and there is pressure on borrowing and interest rates. One of the key moves initiated by the Ministry of Finance is the VAIDS because Nigeria’s tax to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio is very low at six per cent but the target is to get it to 15 per cent. Bank’s executive directors and even top bank executives fall within the HNIs and are the key targets for government. The idea is that people come in to voluntary declare assets both home and abroad,” she said. She said Nigeria does not have the number of people it should have in the tax base, adding that a lot of HNIs do not pay taxes.

    Esiri said the CRS, which Nigeria has signed on to, is an automatic exchange of information programme between the banks and tax authorities. “Every bank has to submit information on their tax payer to the tax authority, which shares the information with other countries that have signed on with the CRS, and the countries will share information with Nigeria. So, it is the exchange of information through border. Nigeria signed on to it in August 2017,” she said.

    She said the Federal Government will need a lot of information to drive VAIDS in the manner they would want to drive it. “What is now required is for the banks to have the technology that is required under CRS, for them to be able to collect that data and for the tax authorities themselves to have similar technology that they can use to submit it. One of the key requirements is security. Nigeria is not there yet, it will take us a while to get there. I am not even sure that all the banks are aware about the requirements for CRS. There might be additional fields to be put on board. What happens is that may be in the next course of two years, we might have Nigeria fully take on CRS,” she stated.

    Esiri explained that it is on the back of the CRS that the tax authorities will come after those who have not taken advantage of the amnesty period provided by VAIDS to prosecute them.

    The CRS was developed in response to the G20 request and approved by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Council on 15 July 2014 and calls on jurisdictions to obtain information from their financial institutions and automatically exchange that information with other jurisdictions on an annual basis.

    The CRS sets out the financial account information to be exchanged, the financial institutions required to report, the different types of accounts and taxpayers covered, as well as common due diligence procedures to be followed by financial institutions. “Ghana is one of the first African countries that have signed on to the CRS. So, Ghana will be submitting information already to the tax authorities this year,” she said.

    It was learnt that data mining on HNIs is ongoing in key institutions, including the Nigerian Customs Service and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) for all payments and receipts over N100 million between 2010 and 2015 while collection of data from personal bank accounts would follow.

    There will also be data collection from the Federal Inland Revenue Service, state lands departments, Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), land registries, treasury bills and Nigerian Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and e-payment platforms.

    To drive the programme,, the Enugu State Government will on Thursday host officials of VAIDS, business leaders and traditional rulers.

    Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun will lead the VAIDS team to be hosted by Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and members of the state Executive Council.

    The event will hold at Base Event Centre,Enugu.

    VAIDS, which began last July,is a tax amnesty programme that  provides a time-limited opportunity for tax defaulters to truthfully declare their assets and incomes and spread payment of taxes owed on previously undeclared income and assets over a maximum three-year period.

    VAIDS also provides that voluntary declarers will be free of penalties and interests on owed taxes, tax audits and escape prosecution.

    Non-declaration at the expiration of the window on March 31, will lead to prosecution, which the Federal Government has repeatedly said it is willing to carry out.

    An estimated sum of $1billion is expected to be raised in taxes from the implementation of VAIDS.

  • Skye Bank rewards customers

    Winners in the ongoing Skye Bank’s Reach for the Skye Millionaire promo have praised the bank for creating a reward scheme they were sure would inspire Nigerians to rediscover the values of saving portions of their income.

    Speaking shortly after he was announced winner of the grand prize of N1 million, at the live draw held at Iyana Ipaja, Lagos, Bello Sarafa, an ex-staff at the Ota office of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria Plc., (PHCN), expressed his delight that the culture of savings he has cultivated appears to have paid off and commended the bank for initiating the savings promotion, saying the promo will enable the inculcation of the culture of savings especially among the younger generation.

    Sarafa who was full of joy when contacted over the phone to communicate to him his good fortune said with such an opportunity, he has got the motivation to even save more and urged the bank not to relent in his quest to encourage its customers to adopt the savings culture irrespective of the size of their income.

    Also speaking, Ajarat Olabisi Yusuf, who hawks Agege Bread around the Ago Palace Way Okota Lagos and who won N100,000 at the draw, thanked Skye Bank for giving her the opportunity to get a reward from her savings and was convinced that with the money she just won, her small business will receive a boost that will even enable her save a lot more.

    Head, Retail Banking, Skye Bank, Mrs. Ayodele Olojede said Skye Bank’s Reach for the Skye Promo was carefully created as a platform to enable people ramp up savings and by so doing, plan for their future or grow their businesses.

     

  • Prepaid meter producer wants direct sale to customers

    Prepaid meter producer wants direct sale to customers

    An indigenous prepaid meter manufacturing company, Sabrud Consortium, has advised the Federal Government to allow producers to sell prepaid meters directly to electricity consumers.

    Its Chairman, Chief Bright Nwangwu, made the suggestion in Awka yesterday at the company’s Mandatory Compliance and Assessment Programme (MANCAP).

    Nwangwu said direct sale would go a long way in achieving the Federal Government’s objective to have all electricity consumers metered at the shortest possible time.

    The chartered engineer said the direct sale and distribution of prepaid meters would increase efficiency in the power marketing and save customers from the nightmare of estimated billing.

    He said this would be the best way to solve the estimated billing problem and relieve the distribution companies of the task.

    According to Nwangwu, prepaid meter producers have enough capacity to boost effectiveness in power distribution.

    “We appeal to the Federal Government to allow prepaid meter manufacturing firms to sell directly to local customers.

    “Prepaid metering is a crime in advanced countries it should be discouraged here; selling directly to customers will eliminate the practice.

    “We also call on the Federal Government to enforce the local content policy in the sector which says that all government and private companies spend 80 per cent of their procured goods and services on indigenously manufactured meter,” he said.

  • Access Bank’s customers win house, car

    Access Bank’s customers win house, car

    Access Bank Plc has rewarded over 137 of its  customers who won several prizes in the ongoing  Family Fortune promo.

    The prizes won  include a four bedroom terrace house in Lekki, a 2017 KIA Cerato car, two 15 KVA soundproof generators, three all-expense paid trip to Dubai by a family of four and  five scholarships worth N1 million each for any member of the family.

    Others are 20 shopping spree worth N25,000, 50 DSTV decoders with  one month  subscription and 50 GOTV decoders with one month subscription each.

    Celestine Ikwuka Obinabor, resident of Oka Afa in Ejigbo area of Lagos won the four bedroom terrace house in Lekki, while Ayoola Olayiwola Noah, resident of Jos, Plateau State won the KIA Cerato car.

    The well attended event was graced by officials of National Lottery Regulatory Commission, Ernst& Young, Lagos Lottery Board and the Consumer Protection Council.

    A total of N150,000 for seven days is the least cumulative amount a family must retain to qualify for the weekly selections. For the monthly and mega selection, a total of N300,000 cumulatively for 30 and 90 days respectively is required to automatically qualify.

    Speaking at the draws, Access Bank Executive Director, Business Banking,Titi Osuntokun, said the mega draw is the first time in the country where people will win a house, car, 15 KVA soundproof generators two all-expense paid trip Dubai for three families, full scholarships worth one million for five, 125 consolation  prizes in one sweep.

    Group Head, Inclusive Banking, Access Bank, Ope Wemi-Jones, expressed appreciation to customers for their loyalty and trust in the bank, adding that the promo was initiated to add value to customers, who continued to do business with the bank.

    Access Bank’s Executive Director, Personal Banking, Victor Etuokwu, said the system under which the promo was conducted remains transparent making it easy for customers to win.He said there is benefits in saving .

    “You can imagine what has happened to the lives of the people that won. Family that saves together stays together.”

  • Great Place to Work targets 1000 customers in 12 African countries

    • Celebrates 5th anniversary

    Great Place to Work, a global research, consulting and training firm, plans to reach 1000 customers in 12 African countries within the next five years.

    The company helps organisations identify, create and sustain great workplaces through the development of high trust workplace cultures.

    The group launched five years ago, has been helping  to transform the level of productivity in Nigeria and indeed, African workplaces as well as their financial performance.

    Currently operating in five African countries, the company said it plans to grow its client base to least, 1000 customers by expanding its reach across 12 African countries including South Africa, Kenya and Cote d’Ivoire, among others.

    The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Great Place to Work Africa, Mr. Kunle Malomo, said part of the 1000 customers the company was targeting for the next five years will come from Nigeria, where it plans to reach six additional states.

    Malomo, who made these known  at the company’s 5th anniversary  in Lagos, said Great Place to Work has been in Lagos for the last five years, but targets to be in six more states by next year.

    He listed some of the states that will come on line in 2018 to include Oyo, Rivers, Kano and the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja), among others.

    Malomo said criteria for choosing the states include good business base, good economy and representation of a concentration of corporate employers that have typically worked with the company in Lagos.

    Preparatory to its aggressive expansion, the company had acquired a United Kingdom (UK) office through the help of its investors. “We wanted to be able to expand across Africa; that we needed the technical and research expertise of a similar business that has a lot of spread.

    That UK business was 16-year- old when we acquired it. It helped us to address some of the challenges in terms of finding the people, the talent to help drive growth,” Malome said.

    He said going forward, the company will also move beyond recognising companies that have created better workplaces to focusing on managers that help create those great workplaces. “We are going to honour specific managers who are transforming the workplaces,” he announced.

    Malome defined a great place to work as “….one where you trust the people you work for, have pride in what you do, and enjoy the people you work with.”

    Reviewing some of the company’s activities in the last five years, the CEO said it now serves over 100 corporate clients. According to him, more than 80 per cent of the biggest banks in Nigeria including financial services companies and multinationals make up the company’s huge clientele.

    “We have surveyed hundreds of thousands of employees who work across more than 100 of those companies so, we are already very excited,” Malomo said.

    He added that feedback from its clients also show that the company was on course, as many of the companies have changed their workplace practices, while others recorded improved financial performance.

  • Yultide: Binatone dazzles customers with new products

    Yultide: Binatone dazzles customers with new products

    Electronic Manufacturer,   Binatone   Industries,   has   introduced   a   wide   range   of affordable and value for money quality products into the Nigerian electronics market to cater for the various needs of its many customers during the festive season.

    Unveiling the company’s products  for its teeming customers, Mr Banerjee said these would include the  first of its kind, innovative, new Binatone tower music fan with Bluetooth pairing, Designer ITAL 1660 Stand Fan , New 18″ stand fan ES1850, TS 2020 –unique high power 20″ stand fan, Blender model BLG 595 with unbreakable jug and ice crushing facility, JE 580 fresh juice extractor, a range of three litre and four litre jug Kettles and the energy efficient Ceramic Cooking Plate for quick heating and cooking. He stated that customers will also have the unique opportunity of buying Binatone’s new pressure pot with free transparent lid, new economy model table top gas cookers, heavyweight   and   high   power1200w   dry   irons,   economy   value   for   money   steam   irons,   and premium garment steamer for ironing “babaringa” and “boubou” clothes.

    To take care of destructive voltage fluctuation, he pointed out that the company has a large stock of quality and durable voltage stabilizers on table top as well as wall mount insertions and a range of uninterrupted power supply solutions

    ‘’Another opportunity awaits members of the public to buy Binatone’s top of the range products   during   the   yuletide   as   we   offer   assurance   to   our   customers   with   two   years warranty on every Binatone product.

    ‘’Binatone wants to use the opportunity of end of the year bonanza to encourage our teeming customers to shop for the Christmas and New Year celebrations” Mr Banerjee added.