Watch the 5:19 clip above and/or check out the entire episode below the show notes.

We all know how important data is to better serve credit union members -- especially this year. But what exactly does big data and data-based decision making mean for credit unions moving forward?

To answer this question and more, we invited Jack Smith, CEO/Co-Founder of PURE IT Credit Union Services; Kyle Stutzman, VP/CO-Founder of PURE IT Credit Union Services; Jaime Jackson, Founder/CEO of Arkatechture; and Pat Lapomarda, Director of Data Science at Arkatechture on the show. The group also shared how data is the new game changer for credit union strategy.

Here's what we asked them:

• How is data the new game changer for credit union strategy?
• What does “Big Data and Data-based Decision Making” really mean for a credit union?
• How does the fusion of data, technology, and security position credit unions — and the industry as a whole — to fulfill their service mission?
• When you combine internal credit union specific data with external public information, new behaviors are mapped and thus unfolds a customized operational strategy for the credit union that is based in data. Can you expand on this statement?

Check it out and let us know your thoughts.

Watch the 7:03 clip above and/or check out the entire episode below the show notes.

Ever since Alexa invaded our homes, voice has pretty much gone mainstream. It's in our homes, it's in our cars, it's everywhere. So why not your credit union?

Well, if it isn't there yet, it will be soon enough -- especially as an authentication tool for contact centers.

We invited Illuma Labs Founder/CEO Milind Borkar and Director of Business Development Austin Wentzlaff to discuss how important voice authentication is for today's credit unions. Milind and Austin share that it's more important now that ever before because of its efficiency in member ID and its effectiveness in fighting fraud -- which is off the charts today thanks to COVID.

Here's what we asked them:

• What's exciting about voice authentication for credit unions?
• Why should credit unions consider voice authentication in their contact center?
• What do you see as the biggest benefits of this technology for credit unions?
• How would credit unions protect sensitive member information when using such a technology?
• How difficult is it for credit unions to integrate voice authentication technology into their contact center platforms?
• Are there other use cases for voice authentication outside the contact center?

Check it out and let us know your thoughts.

Watch the 6:38 clip above and/or check out the entire episode below the show notes.

This year, more than ever, the virtual branch has been discussed quite a bit -- for obvious reasons surrounding the pandemic. It's topic that's increasing more and more for credit unions, as they discover new ways to serve their members in our current, touchless environment.

For a deeper dive on the virtual branch and its benefits to credit unions moving forward, we invited Jed Taylor, POPi/o President & COO, and Tim Pranger, POPi/o Director of Strategy & Solution Consulting, on the show. Jed and Tim talked about the rapid changes POPi/o saw during those first months of the pandemic -- which resulted in its surge of client activity looking for digital answers.

They also discussed POPi/o’s customer data showing results of virtual branch benefits:

• Members always have access to product experts for meaningful and profitable financial solutions
• Never be over/understaffed in branches
• Improve both customer and employee satisfaction

Check it out and let us know your thoughts.

Watch the 5:04 clip above and/or check out the entire episode below the show notes.

Anytime credit unions can be promoted in the retail arena -- especially during the holiday shopping season -- it's definitely a good thing. And that's exactly what has happened with the MD|DC Credit Union Association and its recent partnership with the state of Maryland and its "Shop Maryland for the Holidays" campaign, where credit unions are being promoted for use this holiday season when shopping local.

To get the details on this amazing partnership and how it works, we invited John Bratsakis, President/CEO MD|DC Credit Union Association; Dave Sweiderk, President/CEO of SECU (in Maryland); and Stephanie Peltzer, Chief Marketing Officer at First Financial  Federal Credit Union on the show.

John, Stephanie, and Dave discuss MD|DC Credit Union Association kicking off a statewide partnership with the state of Maryland and its ‘Shop Maryland for the Holiday’s’ campaign — and how the state's comptroller’s office promoting the use of credit unions this holiday season and shop local.

They also talk about what sparked this idea, how it works, what are their goals, and the overall message it sends to the surrounding communities about credit unions helping local businesses -- not to mention credit unions' notoriety within state and local governments.

Super cool story here on a move that could spread to other credit union leagues and associations nationwide -- if it hasn't happened already. Check it out and let us know your thoughts. And watch the entire episode below for all the details.

Watch the 2:38 clip above and/or check out the entire episode below the show notes.

CO-OP Financial Services has launched its CO-OP Insights Center, a web-based business intelligence and reporting platform that simplifies complex portfolio information to produce meaningful, actionable insights. The Insights Center gives credit unions within the CO-OP ecosystem the ability to quickly understand portfolio behavior and make decisions to grow their credit and debit programs.  

To get more details on the Center, we invited Bruce Dragt, Chief Product Officer for CO-OP, on the program. Bruce says in the wake of COVID-19, it is more important than ever for credit unions to understand the trends in member spending. He adds that CO-OP Insights Center aggregates volumes of transaction data and distills it into insights credit unions can use to make sound business decisions. With this new tool credit unions can track credit, debit and ATM usage, implement strategies to improve their portfolio’s performance and ultimately own more member moments.”

The new Insights Center includes user-friendly features and interactive, dynamic dashboards that make data analysis a simple, manageable process and enable easy identification of future opportunities for growth. This includes:  

• Key portfolio performance indicators over time; 
• Transaction spend analysis by day;
• Average card spend and transaction volumes;
• Transaction volume tiers based on monthly card usage;
• Merchant category analysis;
• ATM transaction and individual terminal analysis;
• Cardholder usage and analysis of payment approvals and declines; and 
• New cardholder onboarding.

Advanced tools include CO-OP’s data visualization technology, allowing credit unions to quickly assess the health of their portfolio, pull reports and e-mail them to key stakeholders, or export data into different formats for further analysis.

Check it out and let us know your thoughts. And watch the entire episode below for more details.