When asked which service dimensions investment banks should measure, key decision-makers from Fortune Global 500 and Forbes Global 2000 companies ranked trustworthiness first, followed by highly knowledgeable employees, and effective needs-driven service. Most respondents defined ‘trustworthiness’ as “fair,” “predictable,” “solid,” “candid,” “reliable,” “straightforward,” “precise,” “open,” or “honest.”
What follows are the overall average scores (each research participant allocated 100 percentage points across 10 items): Investment bank X .......
- Is a trustworthy firm [19%]
- Has highly knowledgeable employees [17%]
- Addresses our needs effectively [17%]
- Proactively supports us strategically [13%]
- Provides cutting-edge services [9%]
- Completes transactions on time [6%]
- Demonstrates being a partner [6%]
- Quickly mobilizes support [5%]
- Is good value for money [4%]
- Treats us as a valued client [4%]
Superior relationship management (RM) is an essential source of strength, but measuring it precisely and reliably is not easy, since its meaning is influenced by many ‘soft’ factors, such as national culture, firm culture, specific business circumstances, the personality types of individuals involved, and so forth. RM in investment banking is far more complicated than it was ten or twenty years ago. More players, greater variety among players, clients’ much easier access to data, the erosion of barriers to entry, and lower switching barriers among competitors, to name a few, have culminated in a more challenging environment for investment banks.
Investment banking is brutal, especially from an RM perspective: low-quality service means ‘game over.’ You cannot score on the rebound. More than half of the clients I surveyed across several industries and countries said they’d had at least one ‘bad’ experience with an investment bank. Over 60% of clients who had even one bad experience stop doing business with the firm in question. Investment banking is the ultimate winner-takes-all business.
Except for the ‘12% Club’ — the elite, such as Goldman Sachs — there is much to improve for the remaining 88% of the industry. In evaluating service, firms should [1] monitor and measure all client interactions, products, and services across all market segments, [2] determine the root causes of problems (which too often persist because many clients still do not complain; they simply want the transaction completed), and [3] make any necessary improvements. Alienated clients too often disappear without the slightest warning.
More details are available at www.pieterklaasjagersma.com/reports.
— published on LinkedIn | 02.19.26