Baldwinsville branch is the first within the bank to introduce ‘universal banking’ system
By Mary Beth Roach
At the Baldwinsville branch of the Fulton Savings Bank, gone are the windows where the tellers worked and the cubicles for the customer service representatives — as well as those titles.
Instead, these employees are now called universal bankers and they can assist customers at one of the five new desks on a variety of transactions, from simply cashing a check to more complex fiduciary services, according to Tina Stephens, vice president of branch administration.
The universal banker model has been growing in popularity in the banking industry for the past several years, especially as this industry has experienced significant changes in how people do their banking. With more customers using online options, the banks are evolving.
Stephens explained that now there is one set of employees who can help anybody rather than having to determine which staffer could help them best.
“We wanted to make that customer service experience a little more streamlined for those that aren’t used to coming into banks as often as they used to,” she said.
The customers are better served, she added, since they now have more employees with the expertise to handle a wide range of functions.
For those who might just want to cash a check or make a quick deposit or withdrawal, there is still the drive-through option and some of the banks will have an express station.
She explained another benefit to the customers. They have known customers who have gone to a bank with a specific need and there might only be one staff member who could handle that particular matter. If that individual wasn’t available, the customer would have to come back another time. With the universal banker model, there are more people trained on all facets, so there will someone at the bank to service that customer.
When Fulton Savings Bank’s transition to the universal banker model in its six branches is completed in 2026, it will join a growing number of banks utilizing this business model.
Staff members undergo extensive cross-training to take on these new responsibilities. The training has taken about 12-18 months, Stephens said. Because there have been a number of long-term employees were who tellers and perhaps not familiar with some of the more involved transactions done by customer service representatives, a training manager was designated to facilitate the transition.
Those who were tellers and are becoming universal bankers are not only seeing a change in their job responsibilities, but in their salaries, as well.
“We took all of our tellers and we’ve elevated them to our customer service people, which allowed us to be more competitive in the market for pay scales,” Stephens explained.
The change at the Baldwinsville branch began this past spring and they have spent the following months fine-tuning the operation.
Stephens said that the main branch in Fulton is due to transition to the universal banker model by early 2025; followed by Constantia in the spring-summer of 2025; Phoenix in the fall to winter of 2025-26; finishing up with Central Square and Brewerton.
