A leading bank, managing a $13 billion commercial loan portfolio, faced significant challenges: low relationship management ratings among peers, an inflated cost structure in loan administration and operations, and lagging profitability.

To reverse course, the bank redefined relationship manager roles by shifting administrative tasks to newly optimized support teams-freeing up time for client engagement and business development. Support functions were redesigned with streamlined roles, eliminating redundancy and reducing handoffs. Back-office operations were brought closer to the front line through digital upgrades, boosting responsiveness and efficiency.

The results were noteworthy. Operating costs dropped by over 20% in just one year, client satisfaction surged past 90%, and relationship manager performance climbed sharply, surpassing peer benchmarks. Revenue and profitability exceeded expectations, demonstrating that the right structural changes can enable profitable growth.