How to Reduce Teller Workload: What to Automate and Redeploy

Walk into most bank branches at midday and the pattern is the same. A queue forms at the teller counter while advisors' desks sit quiet. Much of what tellers handle is routine: cash deposits, bill payments, statements and card requests. These transactions matter to customers, but they rarely need a skilled employee to complete them. 

This is where banks are rethinking how to reduce teller workload. By moving routine transactions to self-service and redeploying staff toward advice and assisted service, branches can serve more customers without adding headcount. The shift is already well under way. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects teller employment to fall 13% between 2025 and 2035, as enhanced ATMs and video kiosks take on tasks tellers once handled (BLS). 

This guide explains what to automate, what to keep with people, and how to manage the change.

  Where Teller Time Actually Goes 

Before deciding what to automate, banks need a clear picture of how tellers spend their day. The answer is often surprising. A large share of counter time goes to tasks that follow fixed rules: 

• Accepting cash and cheque deposits
• Processing withdrawals and transfers
• Taking bill and utility payments
• Printing statements and account letters
• Ordering or replacing debit cards
• Updating customer contact details

 On top of the transactions themselves come identity checks, counting cash drawers at the start and end of each shift, and recording every transaction. 

The best way to measure this is with real branch data. Transaction logs and queue management records show which services drive volume, how long each takes and when peaks occur. That baseline makes every later decision easier to justify.

Banks are already designing branches this way. Czech bank CSOB, for example, set a goal of moving all cash transactions from the teller to the self-service area, freeing staff to advise clients (Diebold Nixdorf, 2022).

Talk to SEDCO's self-service banking expert team to design a branch where staff focus on customers, not paperwork. Contact SEDCO today!

Transactions That Still Need a Person 

Not every service should move to a machine. Some situations call for judgement, empathy or regulatory checks that self-service cannot replace: 

• Large or unusual cash transactions: These often need extra verification and compliance checks.
• Disputes and complaints: Customers want to explain their situation to someone who can act.
• Complex account changes: Joint accounts, powers of attorney or inheritance cases.
• Vulnerable customers: Older customers or people less comfortable with technology may need hands-on help.
• Financial advice: Loans, savings and investment decisions benefit from a real conversation. 

Keeping these with people protects trust. The aim is not a branch without staff, but a branch where staff spend their time where it matters most.

Redeploying Staff: Advisors, Greeters and Assisted Service 

Reducing teller workload frees time. The value comes from what staff do with it. Most banks redeploy tellers into three roles. 

Financial Advisors 

Experienced tellers already know customers and products. With training, they can handle account opening, savings plans and loan conversations, turning routine visits into opportunities for advice and growth. 

Floor Greeters and Guides 

A greeter welcomes customers at the entrance, asks what they need and directs them to the right channel: a kiosk, an advisor or a counter. This one step prevents many unnecessary teller visits. 

Assisted Self-Service Staff

 Staff stationed beside kiosks help customers complete their first transactions, answer questions and build confidence. Over time, more customers use self-service on their own.

Sequencing the Change With Customers in Mind 

Moving transactions too fast can frustrate loyal customers. A phased approach keeps service steady while habits change: Start with the highest-volume routine services: Usually cash deposits and bill payments.

•  Pilot in a few branches: Pick locations with long queues and a mix of customer profiles.
• Place staff beside the kiosks: Assisted self-service in the first weeks builds confidence.
• Communicate the benefit: Shorter waits, longer service hours and faster card issuance.
• Keep a counter open: Customers who need a person should always find one.
• Reduce teller counters gradually: Adjust as self-service adoption grows.

 Retraining should start before the rollout, not after. When tellers know their new role in advance, they become champions of the change instead of worrying about it.

  Measuring the Effect of Reducing Teller Workload

 A clear set of metrics shows whether the change is working and where to adjust: 

• Self-service share: The percentage of routine transactions completed at kiosks.
• Teller transaction volume: The number and type of transactions still handled at the counter.
• Waiting time: Average and peak waits for teller and advisor services.
• Advisory conversations: The number of advice sessions and products discussed.
• Customer feedback: Ratings and comments on the new branch experience. 

Compare each metric against the baseline gathered before the rollout. Track pilot and non-pilot branches side by side to separate the effect of self-service from seasonal changes. Branch data from queue and kiosk systems makes this tracking automatic.

FAQs

 Which bank transactions can move to self-service?

 Cash deposits and withdrawals, cheque deposits, bill payments, statement printing, debit card issuance and simple account updates are the most common. They are high in volume and follow clear rules. 

Do self-service kiosks reduce staff numbers?

 Not necessarily. Many banks use kiosks to redeploy tellers into advisory, greeting and assisted-service roles, so the same team serves more customers and spends more time on advice.

 How do banks retrain tellers?

 Through product and sales training for advisory roles, coaching on guiding customers through kiosks, and shadowing experienced advisors. Training works best when it starts before self-service goes live.

 Looking to Free Your Tellers for Higher-Value Work?

 To reduce teller workload, start with your branch data, move routine transactions to self-service, keep complex and sensitive cases with people, and redeploy staff toward advice and assisted service. Roll out in phases and measure the effect at every step.

Explore how SEDCO's Self-Service Kiosk and banking solutions can help your branches serve more customers with the team you already have.