Retail Banking in Spain: Recent Changes and Their Effect on the Content and Culture of Front‐desk Jobs

Abstract

Spanish retail banking can be considered largely representative of retail banking in other developed European countries. The transformations in the Spanish retail banking system since the 1960s, especially the shift in emphasis from production to delivery/sales, brought about by a combination of technological change, heightened competition and increased client sophistication, are analysed from the point of view of their effect on the tasks carried out by front‐desk staff and the skills required to carry out those tasks. The changes in the prevailing culture of front‐desk staff is also discussed. It is concluded that the attempt to change the mentality, or culture, of front‐desk staff from that of “clerks” to that of “salespeople” is unnecessary. Rather, they should be thought of as “salesclerks”, and their culture should be client‐centred rather than sales‐centred.