Interview with the Executive Director, Dr. Célia Santos



Let's talk a little about the ISO 9001 Certification that Caixa celebrates a decade after it was entrusted. What does it mean for Caixa to incorporate these international standards in its service to customers?

ISO 9001 is an international benchmark for quality management, applicable to all organizations, regardless of size or sector of activity.

Quality is synonymous with conformity: it means writing what we do and doing what is written. We have always had a strong ambition to see CAIXA's management system recognized as a credible institution.

CAIXA obtained its first certification in May 2012 with successive renewals. 

However, the hard work started long before that, which made the process effortless. We started with the project in 2003, through the creation of an Organization and Quality Office, which prepared the basis for conducting a pilot (in August 2011). 

We started with preparing documents in which our values and principles are preserved, and the challenge was to find a common ground for conducting our activities "the Caixa way", where our diverse customs and practices are married to become the institution's standard, further making the necessary adjustments to ensure smooth operations. 

Next, we proceeded to identify processes, defining of indicators, setting of objectives, and monitor results. Over the years, Caixa has been subject to successive audits by international and independent entities, having obtained its recertification and transition to ISO 9001:2015 in May 2018.  

The benefits of implementing a quality management system in an organization are countless. It is certainly a differential between popularity and a strong commitment to Customers, Employees, Shareholders, Regulators, and Society in general.  We are ecstatic to see Caixa recognized nationally and internationally for its high levels of quality. 


What impact has ISO 9001 certification had on Caixa? 

On an institutional level, the commitment to quality and customer satisfaction has been adopted and incorporated as a value, objective, and on Caixa's action agenda. 

It has also promoted a greater understanding of the role of each person in contributing toward positive results and, therefore, greater alignment and team spirit. Each person became more aware of how they can contribute objectively to the result of their process. 

On the other hand, it also allowed greater internal organization and standardization of work methods (the "doing it the CAIXA way", which means doing it well ) and consequently a positive perception and reputation of the brand CAIXA.

Another benefit was (and has been) greater efficiency in resource management: key activities at CAIXA were identified and began to be monitored and the results emerged: in fact, you can only manage what you can measure; so another advantage has to do with improving measurement processes, which in turn allowed for cost reduction, innovation, efficiency, and better results.

Quality is already part of and in Caixa's DNA. Today Caixa serves as an example and inspiration to several other organizations in quality matters, in the country and internationally.    


For Caixa's customers, what are the advantages of this ISO 9001 Certification?

Certification lives on trust! 

CAIXA has a strong commitment to all aspects that promote trust (a bank's main asset) with quality and customer satisfaction.

The confidence entrusted has seen Caixa transform itself into an increasingly creative and innovative organization, with solutions that are customized to suit customers' needs. Another of the main advantages of ISO 9001 implementation is the focus on the customer, i.e. the company's focus is no longer centered on the "product" but on the customer.
 
The entire process of building and implementing the strategy is now focused on the Customer and on the Satisfaction of the interested parties (stakeholders); namely: Customers, Employees, Suppliers, Suppliers Shareholders, Regulators, and Society in general. 


And for the remaining stakeholders?

The promotion of mutually beneficial relationships in which everyone wins.

For the shareholder: maintenance of an adequate level of profitability and return on invested capital; For the regulators: promotion of compliance and as a consequence confidence in the system; 

For suppliers: improved relationship and transparency in the procurement process. For employees: creating an internal environment that promotes the identification of employees with the company's objectives and that unites people around a common project in which everyone feels fulfilled.

For society in general: contributing towards the sustainable development of the financial system and the country. 

How does Caixa plan to maintain its competitive conditions in the medium and long term?

By investing heavily in innovation, sustainability, and people-centered management. 

Digitalization - focused on customers' real needs, with the aim of creating comfort and accessibility.   

Actions that involve accompanying the evolution of internal and external customers' habits and expectations). 

 

What are the biggest challenges that Caixa will face in the coming years?

- Implementing the strategy: transforming all the objectives defined into concrete actions;

- Promote inclusion, literacy, and financial and digital freedoms;

- Being recognized as the bank that most identifies with and contributes to Cape Verde's sustainable development, in an environment of high uncertainty, but full of challenges and opportunities! 

 

Now, to conclude, what is your vision of the future of the Caixa institution, considering the strong commitment to digitalization and quality?

The vision translates into an image that the organization believes can represent its future, in terms of the use of its resources, products, and services.

The vision is our aspiration for the future and a source of inspiration! 

For us, it is reflected in the text: To be recognized as the unavoidable reference bank in the Cape Verdean financial system, sustained by technological and commercial innovation, and careful risk management.

That a strong commitment to quality and customer satisfaction prevails. 

Caixa should continue to be viewed and recognized as a benchmark institution with a reputation for quality and an organization with its own quality promotion and ingrained optimism culture.