Bringing German Cooperative Bank Berlin back on track: Can a rural bank thrive in the city? (A)

Abstract

This is part of a case series. The GCB Berlin cases describe a strategic transformation process of a German bank. Over a period of 3 years, GCB Berlin has transformed into a customer-intimate financial institution. The management team of the company used Strategy Mapping, the Balanced Scorecard, and a new sales-and-service approach as transformation tools to get the entire organization more strategy-focused. The (A) case, 'Bringing German Cooperative Bank Berlin back on track: Can a rural bank thrive in the city?,' sets the scene and describes the challenges Arthur Berthold faced when he entered as a newly appointed director. The (A) case provides more information on the personal background of Arthur Berthold, and on his track record with previous employers. Furthermore, the case describes German Cooperative Bank (GCB) Berlin, a subsidiary of the German Cooperative Banking Group. After working some weeks in this new organization, Arthur detected fundamental financial and cultural problems. He decided to tackle the challenges by launching a Balanced Scorecard project, but was struggling how to do it. Should he opt for a top-down approach, or is a bottom-up approach more appropriate? The case, 'German Cooperative Bank Berlin (B): Managing people, customers, and financial results,' describes the start of the change process at GCB Berlin. The (B) case describes how Arthur Berthold transformed GCB Berlin from an undifferentiated and unprofitable bank into a real customer-oriented, profitable financial institution. The top management team launched two strategy maps, one for the Retail Division and one for the Corporate Division. The (B) case describes how the strategy maps were introduced and what were the effects on the management culture and the operations of the organization. The (B) case also describes a change in the sales-and-service culture within the Retail Division through the introduction of the Cohen Brown program.