THINK Blog

Empower the Engineer

September 1st, 2010 / Social Media

If you aren’t giving engineers a leading role in your organization, Ken Auletta, The New Yorker magazine columnist and author of Googled: The End of the World as We Know It, thinks you’re putting your organization at peril. “I’m not saying that every executive should be an engineer,” he says, “but it’s insane to have a business in this digital age without an engineer at your elbow.”

In an interview with CO-OP Financial Services’ Bill Prichard, Auletta argues that technology will likely determine your organization’s future viability. Not every credit union leader is going to agree. Credit unions, one might argue, are not technology companies. They don’t run on gadgetry or novelty. Credit unions are founded on human principles, and they run on the power of human intellect and interaction.

At the same time, consider how technology is changing our lives. Ten years ago, you consulted a paper map to find an unknown location. A few years back you might have “Mapquested” the same information. Today, millions of iPhone users couldn’t find their own dry cleaners without GPS. Nostalgic for college? Find out what your old roommate is doing right now on Facebook or Twitter. Download books to your iPad or Kindle, learn how to unclog your sink on YouTube, get the dish on the new pizza joint down the street on Yelp. These technologies don’t merely exist: They’re in play – and they’ve changed the way we live our lives.

Why, then, would consumers settle for anything less than 24×7 customer service, remote deposit capture, mobile banking – and an avalanche of apps we’ve yet to conceive? Short answer: They won’t.

The same goes for tech tools that don’t work brilliantly. A WorkLight study found that over half of smartphone users are unhappy with their banking institution’s mobile application. Only 26 percent of respondents were completely satisfied with their apps, while a discouraging 40 percent were completely dissatisfied.

Which is why Auletta thinks you need an engineer on your team. “I would empower that person to help me figure out how to navigate this new digital world, to help decide what new things we should be doing that an engineer understands better than an ordinary civilian [would],” Auletta says. Neglecting this side of your business not only places you in danger of lagging behind, but also makes you vulnerable to extinction.

Years ago, during an interview with Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Auletta asked what kept Gates up at night. Gates wasn’t anxious about his considerable competition. “I worry about two guys in a garage inventing a new technology I’ve never thought of,” he said.

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CO-OP Sponsors CUNA Conference Scholarships

August 25th, 2010 / Credit Unions

A new scholarship fund sponsored by CO-OP Financial Services will provide tuition assistance to 12 credit union staff members attending the CUNA Community Credit Union & Growth Conference scheduled for Oct. 6–9 in Boston. In the spirit of promoting innovative thinking and progressive ideas embodied in our THINK initiatives, these scholarships will offer educational and networking opportunities for credit union professionals seeking to grow membership and revenue. Scholarship entry deadline is September 16, 2010. To learn more, please visit http://www.cuna.org/training/on_site/community_2010/scholarships.htm

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Are We Happy Yet?

August 18th, 2010 / Member Experience

Does your corporate culture prioritize happiness? Given the many challenging events of the past few years, the very idea that you should be focused on happiness may seem preposterous. How about focusing on efficiency or revenue? Wouldn’t that make more sense?

Yet, Tony Hsieh, founder of online shoe and apparel retailer Zappos.com, believes there’s nothing more central to your organization’s future success than a culture of happiness. Why? Customers aren’t inspired to do business with you – and employees aren’t inspired to do their jobs exceptionally – if the ultimate goal isn’t happiness. When is the last time, after all, that a friend called you to rave about an “adequate” experience he just had?

In this interview with CO-OP Financial Service’s Bill Prichard, Hsieh notes that a true culture of happiness requires commitment. “We came up with a list of 10 committable core values, which means we’re actually willing to hire and fire based on those independent of job performance,” he says. “We’re focusing on corporate culture as our number-one priority. We really think that if we get the culture right, then most of the other stuff, like delivering great service or connecting with customers and building a long-time brand, will just happen naturally on their own.”

The formula clearly works for Zappos, which went from $1.6 million in sales in 2000 to a mind-boggling $1+ billion in 2010. In 2009, online retailing giant Amazon.com acquired Zappos for a cool $1.2 billion, suggesting that they, too, believe in happiness as a business tool.

But does any of this apply to credit unions? Do credit union members want – or expect – the same emotional currency as shoe shoppers do?

Yes and no. While no one argues that making a checking account deposit should carry the same level of giddiness as buying a pair of Naughty Monkey platform pumps, transmitting confidence, personal interest and enthusiasm – in person, online and as an organization – is surely smarter than its opposite.

Meanwhile, consider adding a happiness index to your organization’s metrics. Employees at online real estate search company Trulia.com take regular surveys that include questions about their overall happiness at work. By tracking this index, Trulia’s management stays ahead of employee concerns and monitors the overall health of the company.

DotNext founder Ben Behrouzi suggests adding in performance-based bonuses to motivate employees in an uncertain economy. “We immediately roll out substantial, structured and predictable performance-based compensation in the form of bonuses and spiffs,” Behrouzi notes. “Nearly anyone, including managers and directors, can earn additional compensation if they are able to perform above general standards on a challenge-by-challenge basis. As a result, regardless of economic slowdowns, team members are still able to maintain control over their financial destiny.” Moreover, what’s good for the individual is good for the organization – a win-win by any standard.

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Reverse the Aging Process: How to Win Gen Y

July 30th, 2010 / Credit Unions, Social Media

Enough excuses. Your credit union absolutely, positively must connect with Generation Y – the YouTube-watching, Twitter-posting, iPad-buying cohort born somewhere between 1980 and 1992. For a lot of credit unions, this is a major, game-changing proposition.

But as Rob Rubin, founder and CEO of FindABetterBank, points out in this article, credit unions can’t afford to overlook the demands of Gen Y. “The average age of a credit union member is 47 – nearly 10 years older than the median age of people in the U.S.,” he writes. “This older average age means many of their members are past their prime borrowing years.”

Problem: Many credit unions either overlook or underestimate what it will take to win the Gen Y market. For instance, most people would agree that an online strategy is important. Yet, Rubin observes, “A lot of Web sites out there are trying to party like it’s 1999. That isn’t going to cut it.”

What does Generation Y want?

  • Full-service (really) online banking. Think online account applications, remote deposit capture and personal financial management tools.
  • Mobile applications. Consider the multiple public-service campaigns now aimed at getting people to stop texting while driving. Mobile banking is not a futuristic luxury. Adds Rubin: “You also need to ask yourself, ‘What kind of app are we providing?’ This market knows the difference between a good app and a mediocre one.”
  • Value. “The [Gen Y consumers] I spoke with were very conscious about rates and fees,” says Rubin.
  • Serious social media. “A lot of what’s out there is broadcasting – the communication only goes one way,” says Rubin. Gen Y uses social media as a legitimate means of communication. If your social media isn’t social, it won’t work.
  • Professional financial advice. According to this retail financial services study by Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group, Gen Y’s top concerns include debt reduction, expense management and financial education, and more than one-third of them prefer using professional advisers as their source for financial advice – great news for service-oriented credit unions.

But Cisco’s results also underscore Rubin’s advice: Cutting-edge delivery makes the difference. Forty percent of Gen Y respondents use PFM tools to manage their finances – and most got them from their financial institutions. Nearly 40 percent are interested in interacting with advisers via video chat; far from impersonal and off-putting, video chat was viewed as both intimate and on-demand. They were also four times more likely than their older counterparts to have posted a question about financial matters to a blog or online forum.

If you aren’t ready for the revolution, get ready. It’s already happening.

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Get Unstuck Now!

July 16th, 2010 / Credit Unions

If you and your credit union are feeling inertia, there may be a good reason. “Organizations, quite simply have psychological momentum. When you’re moving, you tend to keep moving. When you’re stagnating, you tend to focus on the things that are preventing motion,” says Stephen Balzac, a psychologist and president of 7 Steps Ahead, an organizational development and management consulting firm in Stow, Mass. “After a while, being stagnant becomes a habit – one you need to break deliberately in order to move forward again.”

How to break the habit? Consider these steps for loosening up:

  • Change your setting. “If you’re in the habit of coming into the office and focusing on the negative, go off site,” Balzac suggests. “A change of scenery is one of the simplest ways to shake up your routine.”
  • Get a new perspective. Denise Gabel, chief innovation officer for Filene Research Institute in Madison, Wis., spends plenty of time listening to colleagues – and a deliberate share of her time listening to people outside her chosen field. “People who know nothing about what you do often ask the very best questions,” Gabel says. “Outside voices and outside stimulation are what make inspiration happen.”
  • Reframe what’s going on. Stop the doubts and negative chatter. Act and speak as though positive change is the expected outcome.
  • Shift gears. “Sometimes activities that feel like distractions relax your mind and open the door to inspiration,” Balzac says. Exercise, watch a funny movie, go to a concert.
  • Fire up your staff. Balzac suggests: “It always feels foolish to think about how great things are going to be tomorrow when things are difficult today, but you need to take a break from thinking about what can go wrong and start asking what can go right. Let’s engage in a little wishful thinking.” Instead of grilling employees and colleagues on the pitfalls of their suggestions, try a little encouragement.
  • Give yourself a win. Want to create momentum? Be successful. Start small if you have to. Load the dice if necessary. Pick a project or initiative that’s a shoo-in, then shoo it in. Later, you’ll have the forward energy to absorb mistakes, but for now taste the thrill of victory. You’ll remember why taking action matters in the first place.
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Know Your User: Google Shows You How

July 14th, 2010 / Credit Unions

You’ve used Google to navigate the Internet, but have you considered deploying it to learn more about your website and the people who use it? In addition to its ubiquitous browser, Google offers a free analytical tool that helps track where visitors originate – and where they stall – when they visit your site.

Consider this: It’s Monday morning and a member is browsing your credit union’s Web site to find a checking account that fits her needs. She does some comparison shopping and then decides to apply for one online.

She completes part of the application, but then she closes her browser window and decides to run a few errands. What happened? Doesn’t she want the checking account?

Google Analytics – a free, easy-to-use tool – helps site owners track information about the way visitors interact with a Web site:

Find out where your users come from. Google Analytics reveals where users originate and which keywords they use to find your site. Planning an online marketing campaign? This information is invaluable. In fact, discovering your members’ common interests and online habits can help guide every kind of marketing effort your credit union does.

Find out where users go. By showing where users exit the site, Google Analytics can highlight problem areas. For instance, if several users abandon their checking account applications around question 12, there may be a problem with that question. Is it vague? Does it seem intrusive? Is there a technical glitch?

While Google Analytics provides detailed information about your site, it doesn’t actually reside on your site – and that means it doesn’t interfere with security. Typically, a webmaster or IT director installs Google Analytics by placing a few lines of code in the “html” of each page to be tracked. Even when it’s used on secure pages, like those within an application, the code still sits outside the secure areas of the page and won’t violate the privacy of the applicant.

Should you be using Google Analytics on your site? If popularity is any indicator, the answer may be yes. “We’ve noticed that metrics in Google Analytics are becoming a new success benchmark in the discussions between startups and venture capital firms,” says Jeremy Stoppelman, Co-founder/CEO of Yelp, Inc., a San Francisco, Calif.-based Web 2.0 company. And with a price tag of $0, it’s hard to afford not to investigate further.

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Does Your Name Mean Service in Social Media?

July 12th, 2010 / Credit Unions, Social Media

You want the last word when it comes to your reputation for service. But in the new world of social media, how do you accomplish this?

Tom Woerner, president and founder of Vergrandis Marketing (and former publisher of Brandweek), believes social media can help you promote your credit union’s brand as member-centric. But it can also drag an otherwise highly service-oriented credit union down. THINK caught up with Tom to ask how social media should be done:

THINK: Sometimes social media seems like a Pandora’s Box; it’s easier to leave it closed. What’s the downside to staying away from social media?

TOM WOERNER: Credit unions need to care about social media. There are conversations going on in the marketplace about your brand already. There are questions being asked and answered between members. Credit unions should at least monitor the conversations taking place among their members, even if it’s not specifically about their credit union. I guarantee you members are having conversations in the social media environment that are relevant.

THINK: Does that mean having a social media presence is no longer optional – it’s a necessity?

TOM WOERNER: You need to have a minimum presence or awareness of what the platforms are so if there is a problem occurring – a negative conversation taking place – you’re prepared to enter that conversation and give your response. If the member doesn’t feel like he’s being listened to, that creates more animosity. You may not have a solution to the problem, but just recognizing that you’re listening and aware, that is most important to the member.

THINK: Communicating your commitment to service excellence via social media is different from using old modes of communication, isn’t it?

TOM WOERNER: Social media is very different from the type of communication that (previously took) place between the producer of a service and its customer. The very nature of the social media platform allows for personal communication to take place between individuals – and between individuals and groups – (outside of your control).

(Communication) used to be very one-directional. We’re no longer in a one-way world. It’s a true communication process. It’s the convergence of mass communication and personal communication coming together. You have to manage those mass communication relationships as you would personal communication relationships.

Editor’s Note: Social media requires a new variety of communication skills for service providers: It also offers new opportunities to connect with large groups of interested readers on a personal level. In your experience, who’s doing social media the right way? What does a good experience look like?

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