Aspiri builds process optimization roadmap for business banking & SBA

We were honored to be engaged to conduct a focused assessment to help a regional U.S. bank to strengthen its Business Banking and SBA lending processes. This initiative centered on improving speed, consistency, and customer experience while maintaining strong risk management practices.

SITUATION: The client was experiencing friction within a lending process designed to efficiently handle business credits under $5 million. Key challenges emerged in the middle stages—deal analysis, approval, and closing—where process hand-offs created breakdowns that led to:

• Elongated processing times

• Errors and rework

• Frustrated employees

• A less than optimal customer experience

ACTIONS: Recognizing that complex, multi-step processes often introduce inefficiencies, we facilitated a structured, cross-functional improvement sprint over approximately 5½ weeks. The approach included:

• Establishing a shared understanding of challenges through end-to-end process 18 workshops with fifteen key cross-functional stakeholders

• Identifying 59 issues, classifying them by frequency and severity, and conducting root cause analysis

• Leading collaborative brainstorming workshops to develop and prioritize 73 targeted solutions focused on clarity, consistency, risk alignment, and customer experience

RESULTS: The engagement delivered:

• A comprehensive current-state assessment, including a detailed inventory of issues and root cause analysis

• A prioritized set of 12 solutions (each supported by a project charter with objectives, approach/ project steps, and associated pain points) spanning people investments, process refinements, and technology enhancements—tailored to the client’s environment

• A path forward with s

  ix next steps, a program governance model and templates, a phased roadmap taking into account prioritization, sequencing, and proper pacing, along with six keys to success as the client transitions into execution mode

Ultimately, this effort positioned the organization to align on and implement improvements that drive efficiency, enable well-governed decision-making, and create a smoother, faster, and more transparent lending journey for both customers and employees.