Talk:First direct
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I deleted the reference to First Direct being the first UK bank to deal solely over the telephone as this is factually incorrect. The Girobank had operated this way since at least 1975. Like First Direct it did not have any retail branches. Girobank allowed its customers to use the retail branches of its then parent, the Post Office, for cash transactions requiring branch services in the same way that First Direct used the branches of Midland Bank. Some dealings have to be done contractually in writing which is done by post and in that respect, as with telephone banking, First Direct is no different to Girobank. The Girobank "Telebank" telephone account service was operational in the 1970s and featured telephone based identity checking, fund transfers and balance enquiries well before First Direct was established.
[edit] Ethos section
I will delete this section as the content does not seem worthy of an encyclopaedia article. Its language is rather loose and wishy-washy and a bit commercial.
Examples
"The ethos of the bank is to provide good, personal customer service."
- This is nothhing remarkable. Are there any banks that aim to provide bad, impersonal customer service?
"the customer is immediately connected ..."
- Are calls answered immediately? If so, how is this feat achieved?
"..to a call centre operative..."
- This might be meaningful if it was the only bank to answer the phone personally, but I suspect that it is not.
"has of yet announced no plans to transfer call centre jobs to the Far East."
- Notwithstanding the strange construction of the sentence, it is declaring something that has not happened. This has no place in an encylopaedia entry. The next sentence does give a clue to what is being implied, but again it is not very encyclopaedic.
Staff benefits paragraph
- Most banks have staff benefits. I do not think First Direct is the only one to do so.
"First direct do not 'hard sell' however employees are expected to reach sales targets."
- This sentence contains two propositions that do not seem to sit well together but realistically, most bank managements have the same dilemma. Unless FD it is demonstratively unique in the way it resolves this, then that deserves a mention. Otherwise, it is a truism. --Tom 15:45, 16 August 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Malaysia and Bangalore
An a anonymous user has removed a reference to administration tasks being carried out in these two places outside the UK. Is that because it is wrong? I feel inclined to add it back because it seems to be a significant fact about the company.--Tom 09:37, 2 November 2007 (UTC)
