Accessibility Directly Impacts Service Quality and Trust

For decades, the banking system has been geared toward the ideal customer, someone who needs no pausing, clarification, adaptation, or extra attention. A person who takes a queue ticket quickly, navigates processes easily, hears well, doesn’t ask for repeats, and doesn’t need extra time or explanations. However, the war has profoundly changed Ukrainian society. It seems to me that it has shattered the very concept of the faceless customer.

Nowadays, we see far more people who find it difficult to spend long periods standing, to concentrate, make quick decisions, or simply readjust to normal life after their traumatic experiences. There are veterans, wounded people, the elderly, and people with invisible traumas that are not apparent at first glance but significantly affect how they interact with the world.

This is when it becomes clear: accessibility is much broader concept than simply having a ramp, a lowered cash desk, or wide doors. In fact, it’s about a large organization’s capacity to adapt to real life, rather than expecting people to adapt to its rules.

Back in 2014, we took our first steps in that direction. We were the first in Eastern Europe to develop our own concept of a barrier-free branch and launch “Bank on Wheels.” But those were just the first steps.

These initiatives were logically followed by the launch of the “My Accessibility” program in 2023. At the time, we also saw infrastructure as the main challenge. Making branches more accessible. Redesigning the space. Adapting services. Training employees to follow basic principles of interaction. Soon, however, we realized that real change doesn’t start with renovations.

That’s why, over the past two years, we’ve focused on a systematic approach. Inclusion has become part of the Bank’s strategic program and is embedded in our mission and vision.

We were the first among banks to open mobile branches for frontline communities, and starting in 2026, we scaled this project up to reach far-flung regions where access to financial services remains limited. We established a super-inclusive branch, not as a showcase, but as an attempt to rethink the very principle of banking service.

At one time, we became the first bank to implement comprehensive standards for servicing customers with disabilities and to systematically bring together partners and businesses to address the issue of accessibility. We realized that large-scale changes require team training. Therefore, as early as 2023, our trainers underwent specialized training, and a basic two-day course was launched for front-office staff, which is now being delivered on an ongoing basis. In addition to internal educational programs and product launches for veteran entrepreneurs, we expanded our reach and began conducting barrier-free communication training for local authorities across the regions. It became clear that such transformations should not be limited to the financial sector.

It was crucial for us to determine whether this topic had indeed become an integral part of the Bank's internal culture, and whether changes were occurring within the system itself, rather than merely on the surface.

For this reason, we conducted an internal survey involving 68% of Oschadbank employees. I found its results far more meaningful than any transformation-related presentations.

Almost 96% of employees said that accessibility directly affects the quality of service, customer trust, and the Bank's reputation. 91% consider it to be part of their daily work. Only 1% perceive the implementation of accessibility principles primarily as a legislative requirement.

This is a very strong signal. It means that the topic is no longer perceived as something formal or optional. It is becoming part of standard professional service and corporate culture.

What struck me most, however, was another figure: nearly 98% of employees responded that they would try to help a customer or find a solution in an unusual situation.

At first glance, this may sound obvious. However, everyone who has worked in a large organization understands that it is much easier to train individuals to follow instructions than to see the person behind the instructions. Once employees begin to focus not only on processes but also on the human aspect of the situation, this indicates that real change is taking place internally.

At the same time, the survey highlighted areas where we still need to improve. 87% of employees themselves mention the need for additional training on interacting with various categories of customers. About 8% of respondents still perceive accessibility primarily as creating special conditions for people with disabilities, and nearly a third continue to use the phrase “person with special needs,” which is gradually being replaced by the more accurate term “person with disabilities”.

This is another important signal, as the worst possible outcome of any transformation is a sense of finality—the moment when the system decides it has understood everything and got everything right.

In fact, accessibility is not a final destination or a set of right solutions. It is a constant willingness to learn to see a human being beyond processes, rules, and templates. For banks. For the State. For communities. For society as a whole.

The country is currently undergoing an experience that will change the way people demand services and the very quality of interaction for a long time to come. In this new reality, trust will increasingly depend not only on velocity or technology, but also on the ability to be mindful of people.

It seems to me that this is precisely what is gradually happening today within large Ukrainian institutions. The process is neither quick nor perfect. But it’s happening for real.

The results of our survey demonstrate that accessibility is no longer an “additional burden” for thousands of our employees, but rather a matter of respect and standard professional interaction. This means that such changes have become embedded in the very culture of the larger system. It is precisely this kind of shift in mindset that is of utmost importance for the country today.