While attending the 4th annual CU Water Cooler Symposium in Nashville, TN, last week, I caught up with a couple of well-respected credit union pros who are up to something pretty cool for credit unions. Matt Davis and Denise Wymore have created a new biz for CUs called 6th Story based on the sixth cooperative principle. 6th Story is dedicated to helping cooperatives, especially credit unions, realize their potential through this sixth cooperative principle: cooperation among cooperatives.

It's a refreshing idea with some mighty talented people aboard, besides Matt and Denise, to launch this venture into the stratosphere for the betterment of this industry. Many thanks to Matt and Denise for braving the elements and doing this interview outside the Frist Center on a brisk fall day. But it turned out very well -- as I'm sure 6th Story will do for cooperatives nationwide.

Visit:
6thstory.com

Earlier this year, Symitar announced that it had signed 35 credit unions to adopt its core processing system during its fiscal year. Does this increase in signings for industry cores signal a trend that more and more credit unions are looking for new technologies to keep pace with the demands of today's increasingly mobile consumers? We find out in this candid conversation with Symitar's President Ted Bilke. We also discuss how big data plays a role in today's core processing, as credit unions are mining deeper and deeper for valuable member info to better serve them. Additionally, we discuss a number of other industry tech trends from which credit unions can benefit in today's highly competitive financial services arena. Many thanks for Ted taking time out to chat with us. Check it out!

Visit:
symitar.com

When it comes to social media, most stories focus on "likes", "followers", and "views". It's a numbers game and there's no shortage of so-called social media gurus willing to give you their two cents on how to boost on your Klout score. Nobody ever looks at that -- right? In this interview, we're going to cover none of that. We are talking with NCUA's National Field Supervisor/Office of National Examinations and Supervision Jerald Garner on what has most HR and C-suite execs shaking in their boots when it comes social media: policies -- rules and legalities, that is.

Many credit unions were as frozen as a petrified yak when came to implementing social media practices when it first burst onto the scene a few years ago (in this industry). Now that Facebook, Twitter, and the like are firmly entrenched in many marketers' annual plans a growing number of CU execs are are beginning to thaw a bit with their organization's social presence. But the thing that keeps the governor on from fully accelerating social media efforts at many credit unions is the legalities. Good or bad,FFIEC came out with a bunch of guidelines to follow earlier this year, as did NCUA -- and Jerald is here to talk about these rules and their influence on today's credit union marketers. Are they a help or a hinderance?

In addition, we discuss what credit unions can do, in turn, to teach members common sense practices when it comes to displaying their financial info on various social media channels (Uh, don't do it.), along with the many threats and concerns CUs should be aware of using these networks. Many thanks for Jerald coming on the show and sharing his expertise. Check it out!

Visit:
ncua.gov

The industry's newest core processor Corelation is making significant waves with its open architecture and person-centric system KeyStone. We corralled Corelation's CTO Jeff Dent at the company's conference to discuss their new technology and how credit unions are reacting to it -- along with the notable impact core technology has on today's industry. Many thanks for Jeff taking time out to chat with us. Enjoy!

Visit:
corelationinc.com
Corelation October 24th webinar: Unlocking the Next Generation of Core Processing

What do you get when you cross a high school teacher with a life insurance salesman, a sports broadcaster, and a state senator? Well, you get a well-rounded professional who has seen the real world at the ground level -- and that would be Rick Metsger, NCUA's newest Board Member. It's that diverse career path Rick has experienced that makes him such a well-rounded human being and ideal addition to today's NCUA Board. I could've spoken all day with Rick about his previous professions -- especially his sports broadcasting career, but we had to proceed with pressing credit union issues and his positions on each.

We also discussed his short- and long-term goals, how the NCUA can better serve credit unions, and how credit unions can continue to succeed with the constant challenges they face today: tax status, regulation relief, MBL, etc. We get plenty the candid responses from Rick and much more. A real pleasure having him on the show and look forward to his return. Enjoy!

Visit:
ncua.gov