#LEAwards spills: RHB looks forward to turning 60 in 2021 in style

Two main entities encompass RHB's operations in Singapore. These are RHB Bank and RHB Asset Management. Although numerous efforts were put in place to unite employees of the two entities, the initiatives were adhoc and had no continuous engagement. 

With gusto, over the past year, the team embarked to change that through the RHB employee engagement transformation campaign. The campaign was a resounding success and saw the company eventually take home the gold award for "Best Employee Engagement Strategy" at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE's recent Loyalty & Engagement Awards 2020. 

As 2021 rolls in at break neck speed, the bank remains steadfast in empowering its taskforce to take on the digital world head on, and ensuring no one is resting on their laurels. Luke Diep, head of brand marketing and communications, RHB Singapore, tells MARKETING-INTERACTIVE what are some marketing trends the agency will be carrying into 2021, and how it will be gearing up for the new year. 

This interview is done as part of MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’s winners and finalists’ interview series for Loyalty and Engagement Awards 2020. To find out more about the awards, click here. 

What are some of the expectations your consumers now have for your brand?

Diep: For almost 60 years – yes, we will turn 60 next year – RHB Singapore has garnered invaluable experiences and insights which we turn into innovative solutions designed to help our customers grow and progress. Throughout the decades in Singapore, we have formed lifetime relationships with our clients and partners who have made us one of the most trusted financial institutions.

As we progress together, our customers have come to be accustomed with excellent service and personalised attention. Along with the evolution and rampant adoption of technology, they are also now expecting even better and more efficient service and faster delivery time. They look forward to straight-through and convenient processes, such as online application, account opening and getting their answers immediately. The expectation for round-the-clock service on digital platforms, 24/7 responsiveness and additional options to fit in to busy lifestyles will keep getting more and more demanding.

How has your marketing/your clients marketing plans shifted this year?

Diep: The transition to a digital world means it is inevitable for us to move from traditional channel-focused to digital channel-focused. With the explosion of information available in the online world, your content gets drowned easily. Your audiences’ attention span has became much shorter, and the quest to capture and retain their attention means we need to do more, and do better than before. Bulk of our activities were brought online, and we built on opportunities presented digitally as the world went through phases of lockdown and uncertainty.

The unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic has given rise to much opportunities in the midst of a crisis, and instead of becoming handicapped by the situation, we geared up to offer more to our clients and give back to society by pushing out informative webinars and engaging the community through our CSR programme.

What are some of the trends you see carrying on post-pandemic, and how are you readying your workforce to be ready with these trends?

Diep: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a structural change in work places around the world. Flexible working schemes and mobility of work force will take centre stage in future planning. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning has proven to be extremely useful and having personally experienced the impact and activation, RHB employees are better aware of the importance of BCP plans and exercises.

The pandemic has also accelerated digital transformation of companies, prompting us to continuously develop and strengthen our digital financial solutions, and digital capabilities, to help customers achieve sustainable business growth through productivity enhancement.

We do not rest on our laurels, even with a highly engaged workforce – we continue to encourage and nurture our people to learn and upgrade themselves, and we provide them with the tools and resources such as LinkedIn Learning, so that they are well-supported and equipped for massive changes ahead.

What do you think makes for great marketing these days?

Diep: Unlike in the past, the current world we live in now moves at quite a different pace. Companies are expected to respond quick, and always-ready to switch mode according to the situation. Likewise, consumer preference and expectations change rapidly, and the move to keep up to their needs should be equally quick, otherwise it is easy to become irrelevant.

Marketers today are expected to be great storytellers, have a creative mind, push boundaries, and has the ability to identify and leverage on data and insights to make decisions. They must also be willing to try new things, take on more challenges and tap on new technology to pivot the business.

How are you planning for 2021?

Diep: We are reeling from the effects of an eventful year, and coming to terms with the fact that life may never be the same again after this worldwide pandemic. The much talk-about “new normal” of life in general and of how we perform our tasks means we are now doing more than ever before, and we are also more aggressive in our approach.

While we navigate a gradual re-opening of the economy and bringing back some physical activities, much of future engagements will continue to take place in the virtual space. Engagements such as events, sharing, networking, learning, working etc – the option of doing all that digitally has now been proven to be viable, and the opportunities lies in how we may tap on this to amplify our efforts.

As RHB Singapore celebrates our 60th anniversary in 2021, we will be marking this milestone under very different and challenging circumstances. That said, it will still be important to us to sustain the excellent customer journey that we take pride in, and we look forward to more tactical promotions and offers, boosting our product offerings and improving our platforms and processes so that be it good or difficult times ahead, we remain true to our brand promise of Together We Progress.

Related Articles:
Biggest winners of Loyalty & Engagement Awards 2020
#LEAwards spills: NTUC Link wants to be even more customer-obsessed in 2021