SABB to set up a regional call centre

The agreement was signed by Richard Groves, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, at SABB and Ken Matheson, Regional Chief Operating Officer, HSBC in Dubai, at a ceremony attended by SABB and HSBC senior managers.

The new SABB unit will be phased in during the second half of this year and by December will be handling around 3,000 calls a day covering a full range of credit cards and banking services, as well as dealing with marketing, new product campaigns and contact with prospective customers.

Richard Groves commented: "The project is highly significant for SABB. It demonstrates the confidence that HSBC Group has in SABB's ability to deliver an essential service to a world class standard. This is an enormous compliment to SABB and its staff. The co-operation between SABB and HSBC is already at a high level and we strongly believe that our close relationship will continue to create frequent opportunities for strengthening our working partnership."

"This strategic alliance with SABB is very much about being "Joined Up" and a true demonstration of what we can do together and how we can make our businesses more efficient through the use of technology.," said Ken Matheson.

SABB's current call centre operations have won global recognition as being among the world's best. At the "2007 World Call Centres Awards", SABB won the silver medal for best call centre in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the silver medal for "Best Call Centre" among medium sized operations, in addition to "Best Outbound Campaign".