Customer Advocate Guiding Principles assist banks when designing, appointing and reviewing the role of Customer Advocate. The principles were developed in 2016 and updated in June 2021 to reflect how the role has matured.
Customer Advocates are a voice for customers within the banks
Customer Advocates help their bank better understand what its customers and the community need. They have the power to escalate issues to the CEO if they think the bank isn’t keeping its promises.
Customer Advocates give customers a greater voice within the bank. The Advocates are there to help to build and sustain an ethical banking culture that acts responsibly.
Bank Customer Advocates
- AMP Group: Michelle Gibbon who reports to David Cullen, Group General Counsel.
- ANZ: Meg Dalling, ANZ Customer Advocate.
- Arab Bank Australia: James Gow who reports to Joseph Rizk, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
- Bank Australia: Chris Newey who reports to Patrick Ashkettle, Chief Risk Officer.
- Bank of China: Phillip Kong, Customer Advocate of the Bank of China, Australia.
- Bank of Queensland: Bank of Queensland: Ben Griffin, who reports into to the Office of the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
- Bank of Sydney: John Elisher, Bank of Sydney Customer Advocate.
- Bendigo and Adelaide Bank / Rural Bank: Hayley Bransgrove who reports to the Chief Customer Officer, Marnie Baker.
- Citi: Louise Beach who reports to the Director Digital, Delivery and Client Experience.
- Commonwealth Bank: Angela MacMillan, CBA Group Customer Advocate.
- HSBC: Ayela Thilo, who reports to Jessica Power, Head of Wealth and Personal Banking Australia and Antony Shaw, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Australia.
- ING: Claudia Lane, who reports to Head of Retail Banking, Glenn Gibson.
- Macquarie Bank: Rosalind Persaud, who reports to Shemara Wikramanayake, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
- MyState Bank: Melanie Rottier who reports to Mandakini Khanna, Chief Risk Officer.
- NAB: Brenda Staggs, NAB Customer Advocate.
- Rabobank: Michelle Metham, Conduct & Integrity Officer Australia & New Zealand and Customer Advocate Australia.
- Suncorp Bank: Anna Hussey, Executive Manager Customer Complaints and Advocacy, who reports to Katherine Zaia, Head of Strategic Delivery.
- Westpac: Adrian Ahern, who reports to Christine Parker, Group Executive, Human Resources.
If you have a complaint. The Customer Advocate role is to help with issues that impact customers generally. They are not usually involved in individual customer disputes.