ICICI Bank to adopt six-sigma initiative

Pune: ICICI Bank has announced that it will take up the six-sigma initiative as a key cornerstone of its strategy in the future to reduce customer transaction time across all modes and to improve its processes to provide maximum benefits to customers.

The formal adoption of the programme, expected to take place at its strategy meet next week, will make it the first Indian bank to adopt such a programme. The initiative will reduce its cost to income ratio, making it globally one of the most competitive banking operations, says ICICI Bank managing director and CEO K V Kamath.

The first results of the programme, which will involve half a dozen branches initially, will be visible in improved performance, with transaction time coming down to one-third of the current levels, says Kamath. "The effort is now to benchmark the banks performance on every aspect with the best banks in the world."

The sigma project, to be personally steered by Kamath, will be rolled out to hundred branches within a year. The bank has appointed consultants to guide it on the sigma roadmap.