Loans Workflow Digitalization & Process Control Initiative at ABC Capital Bank Uganda

Context

When I joined ABC Capital Bank, loan processing between Relationship Managers (RMs), Credit, Legal, and Credit Administration was largely manual and unstructured. Applications moved physically and informally, tracking was fragmented, and delays often resulted in blame cycles rather than resolution.

Leadership lacked real-time visibility into:

• Where applications were stuck

• Which team owned delays

• Turnaround time (TAT) per stage

• Exposure value sitting idle in the pipeline

The friction was cultural, not just operational. I led the design and implementation of a digital Loan Workflow & Movement Tracking System to address this.

The Problem I Solved

• No single source of truth for loan applications

• No SLA accountability per stage

• No timestamped ownership tracking

• No aging or bottleneck visibility

• Escalations based on opinion, not data

• Revenue delays caused by internal inefficiencies

This was not a tooling gap - it was a governance gap.

What I Built

I designed and implemented a structured, automated Loan Workflow Control System using Trello as a lightweight workflow engine.

Key Design Principles

• Each card = One loan application

• Structured stage-based workflow ownership

• Mandatory submission checklists

• Automated SLA timers per stage

• Automated escalation triggers

• Real-time dashboard counters

• Weekly and daily pipeline reporting

• Board-level visibility

Platform Architecture

1. Stage-Based Workflow Engine

I restructured loan movement into clearly defined operational stages:

• RM Origination

• Credit Analysis

• Credit Committee

• Legal Documentation

• Credit Administration

• Ready for Disbursement

• Disbursed

Movement between lists automatically reassigned ownership and triggered SLA clocks.

2. SLA Automation & Escalation Logic

For every stage:

• Entry timestamp recorded

• Due date automatically assigned

• SLA breach automatically labeled

• Escalation triggered to management

This replaced manual follow-ups with system-enforced accountability.

3. Governance Controls

I introduced:

• Mandatory submission checklist for RMs

• Documentation completeness enforcement

• Timestamp-based aging identification

• Board as official operational source of truth

• No disbursement without digital record

This shifted the culture from reactive to structured.

4. Real-Time Operational Dashboards

I configured performance counters including:

• Active Pipeline Count

• Total Pipeline Value (UGX exposure)

• SLA Breaches

• Aging Loans (>5 days)

• Applications per RM

• Disbursements this month

• Ready-for-Disbursement backlog

Leadership could instantly see bottlenecks and revenue at risk.

Results & Impact

While lightweight in tooling, the impact was structural:

• Reduced cross-department friction

• Introduced measurable SLA compliance

• Created transparent ownership per stage

• Improved submission quality from RMs

• Reduced processing ambiguity

• Enabled data-driven performance discussions

• Increased leadership confidence in operational control

Most importantly, it transitioned loan movement from a personality-driven process to a system-driven process.

Strategically;

This initiative was not about Trello. It demonstrated:

• Platform thinking within operational constraints

• Governance design capability

• Change management in a bank environment

• PMO-style process structuring

• Execution under limited systems infrastructure

It reflects my approach to digital transformation and that is: Start with process clarity, Embed accountability, Automate friction points, Make performance visible, and Scale from there.

This initiative complements my broader work at ABC Capital Bank where I:

• Drove the E-Banking transformation roadmap

• Led digital strategy implementation

• Introduced PM governance frameworks

• Managed multi-vendor integration projects

This Loan Workflow Digitalization Initiative represents the operational backbone mindset behind those larger digital programs.