DALLAS - Count Tim Lerew with the growing number of financial services industry consultants who believe the current economic crisis offers CUs an opportunity for success.
"Most credit unions have 7% to 14% net capital," said the Elizabeth, Colo.-based head of Tim Lerew & Associates and frequent CU conference speaker. "They are in a strong position to help because they are local. They know their local market and manage things well.
"Credit unions are the solution to predatory lending or the mortgage crisis," he added.
To fulfill this promise, CUs must continue to invest in new technologies, Lerew told attendees of Southwest Corporate's recent Economic Forum here. He identified eight key tech trends credit union CEOs should be watching: speed, social networks, advanced web banking, mobility, automated personal finance tools, always-on networks, biometrics and voice recognition.
Speed is first, he told the audience, because "Speed thrills your members. It helps convenience."
The common trait in all eight trends is "now," Lerew continued. He cited research that found the average teenager sends a text message seven times more often than making a phone call-a very big reason why hundreds of billions of texts are sent each year in the U.S. alone.
"Service at the speed of now will be the expectation for this generation," he warned. "Credit unions must ask what they are delivering that meets this service expectation."
For example, Lerew said in the very near future younger members will expect to be able to text "BAL" to their financial institution and get a prompt reply with their available account balance. A quick survey of the room found no CUs currently have this capability.
"Citi and Wells are working on this, and it isn't that difficult," he said.
Two of the technologies to watch relate to loan applications: voice response and the Web. Lerew said America First CU in Salt Lake City takes more than 1,000 loan applications per month via speech recognition. Members speak through most of the application, then are transferred to a live associate to finish.
"How long does it take your credit union to approve a loan versus the competition?" he asked.
