Tackling the challenges of tech transformation

As the Irish credit union sector evolves from a traditional savings and loans model to a full-service retail banking alternative, it faces new challenges and opportunities, not least in terms of technology and document management. A question being asked across the sector is how can credit unions leverage the latest innovations and best practices to meet the changing needs and expectations of their customers and regulators?

Datascan Document Services has an answer and wants to join the digital transformation journey of credit unions.

Datascan already offers document management services and redaction to clients including the insurance and healthcare sectors, so it is experienced at working with sensitive information and in highly-regulated sectors.

Indeed, the firm is already working with a number of credit unions, said Orla Cafferty, Datascan’s chief executive. But Cafferty said she sees credit unions as a particularly vibrant part of not only the Irish financial landscape, but also the wider community.

And it is undeniably also a growing sector, not only winning the current account business of many former Ulster Bank and KBC customers but also with mortgages high on the agenda.

However, as the offering to members evolves, there is a need for the technology to evolve with it, adapting to the changing needs of their customers and exploring new opportunities for innovation.

“We’re working with quite a few of them. There’s a lot of merging of credit unions going on so that they can grow their base, as there are central bank requirements for them to be properly funded. For example, they’re coming up with one unified mortgage brand that will be used by all the credit unions, which is quite clever as it will allow them to compete,” she said.

Datascan will be attending the Credit Union Managers Association (CUMA) autumn conference on leadership and empowerment, which will take place on 13 and 14 September in the Hodson Bay Hotel in Athlone.

At the conference, Cafferty hopes to demonstrate how, as an information systems and document partner, Datascan can help credit unions to preserve their member focus while they expand their offerings. This is important, she said, because credit unions are unique in the financial landscape.

“Credit unions have come at the top of the heap, reputationally. We’re helping them to digitise legacy member documents in readiness for mergers and migrations to new software,” she said.

But as they move into territory once the sole preserve of large banks, credit unions, naturally, are also faced with a new regulatory burden. Datascan can help, Cafferty said.

“They also have to adhere to more central bank rules as they are providing mortgages and they need to minimise the paper they are holding on to as hard copy,” she said.

Data minimisation

Given credit unions enjoy the top spot in the reputation index, they will be keen to make certain that their customer experience stays at the very top level. Therefore, said Cafferty, implementing the most up to date information systems is a vital part of modernising the credit union.

“This means that they will be able to have fast decision making, better records with accurate, up to the minute customer data. We have been working with some of the larger credit unions on data minimisation projects, such as we have done for insurance organisations,” she said.

These projects consist of taking the entire set of legacy data files, interrogating each file for accuracy, completeness, and relevance and only digitising the most necessary data in readiness for import into the credit union member information system.

By working with Datascan for document management, credit unions can save time and money on scanning, indexing, storing and retrieving their paper documents, Cafferty said, and that their documents are always accessible and protected from loss or damage.

In addition to helping credit unions get on top of information and information systems, Datascan has a further offering that credit unions have taken an interest in: redaction of CCTV for court and insurance purposes.

Datascan’s redaction services can help credit unions to handle data access requests from their members or third parties in a timely and compliant manner.

They can also help avoid legal risks and reputational damage from exposing sensitive or personal information on CCTV footage or other documents.

“We provide CCTV redaction services for credit unions in support of data access requests, or in response to slips, trips, falls or other incidents that may occur on the credit union premises and are captured on CCTV,” said Cafferty.

By embracing digital transformation, credit unions are cementing their resilience and relevance in the financial sector. More importantly, though, they are also strengthening their relationship with their customers and communities. Ultimately, working with the right partner provides an opportunity to grow and thrive, Cafferty said.