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That’s according to Linden, N.J.-based Integrated Media Management (IMM), which developed and installed the solution at AFCU, which has been using IMM’s TotaleReceipts product since 2000. That product automates the ouput of transaction receipts, and now includes the Check21 teller item capture. What the deployment of the latest technology has meant for the $1.4-billion Affinity Federal is the creation of a nearly paperless environment, according to Nish Shah, chief technology officer at IMM.
“What we want to do at the time of the transaction is capture all of the checks and then marry that as part of the receipt transaction and the archive,” he explained. Shah, along with EVP John Levy, spoke with the Credit Union Journal during BAI’s Retail Delivery Conference.
What the solution further delivers to the credit union, according to Shah, is the elimination of the need for tellers to re-key data, as all of the core system screens are prefilled with data from the scanned checks, which in the case of Affinity FCU are cleared through Members United Corporate CU. Moreover, the system also captures any discrepancies in the information the member may have provided, and eliminates the need for tellers to balance checks at the end of the day. The IMM solution is integrated with AFCU’s core system from XP Systems.
Saving 15 Minutes Per Teller Per Day
AFCU went live with the branch item capture in October at its 18 branches, which represent 132 work stations. Shah said it the system is saving 15 minutes per teller per day, which amounts to more than 6,500 hours of teller time. Additional cost savings come in the elimination of courier costs, which for AFCU were approximately $97,000 annually. Courier costs for credit unions clearing through the Fed only expected to grow, as the Fed moves to reduce to 23 its clearinghouses and then plans to further reduce the number to four. AFCU is also projecting further cost savings as it is currently maintaining paper checks for 60 days, with a goal of getting to 10 days before shredding.
AFCU is primarily using single-feed scanners from Magtek, although most branches also have one multi-feed scanner from the same company. The multi-feed scanners are particularly useful for merchants who bring multiple items into the branch every day. The next step for AFCU, added Shah, will be a move to remote capture terminals for those same merchants.
Benefits Include
For members, benefits include being able to see the image almost immediately via the home banking solution or even at another branch, should the member stop there. All of the captured data resides within the credit union, with the exception of those running IMM’s TotaleAtlastWeb remote signature capture and secure document delivery service.
Levy said IMM has five other credit union clients preparing to roll out the branch item solution to their members. He credited AFCU’s management team for taking time to work with IMM in designing the solution and fully understanding the very practical issue of teller workflow.
“The time for the teller is the same, if not less, and now they can use that extra time for other things, such as cross selling,” said Nish. “Tellers don’t have to check to see if the check was endorsed and signed. They become more efficient.”
Affinity Federal runs on a core system from XP Systems, but Nish said IMM can integrate with any provider. If the credit union is running its TotaleReceipts solution, he said implementation is almost immediate. For others, it should take between 30 to 60 days.
Credit unions considering a branch item capture solution should move soon, according to Nish. He said Affinity FCU should recognize total ROI on its system within a year, and acknowledged the decline in check volume should be considered. But he said he doesn’t expect to see significant decline for another four to six years, meaning a credit union has the opportunity to cut costs until that tipping point arrives. “The window of opportunity is probably the next two to three years,” he said.
Nish added that when examining costs credit unions must look beyond teller-related expense items to other costs in the backoffice.
And there’s another benefit, noted Levy and Shah: the paperless office is a big step forward for credit unions seeking to “go green.” Among the most recent to add IMM’s document preparation engine, TotaleAtlas, is OSU FCU in Corvallis, Ore. The credit union said it now prints only those documents a member requests.
