CLARK, N.J.-Aspire FCU is spending more on technology and self-service delivery channels-while closing underperforming branches-to drive the bottom line.
"In today's economy we can't afford to continue pouring money into the dinosaur known as the branch network," said CEO Thomas O'Shea, who noted that Aspire is in the process of closing five branches, which will leave the CU with two locations. "We've gone almost completely virtual. This is a definite stake in the ground as far as defining who our future member is. We have made the decision to focus on a membership that is more technologically savvy and comfortable using technology to conduct their banking."
This target market is younger than the CU's "typical" member, said O'Shea. "While the final savings have yet to be determined, we are investing in expanding our call center and remote services. We anticipate saving $200,000 to $300,000 annually, at minimum."
Aspire has also formed a CUSO with two other credit unions to share non-member touch points.
"The objective is to achieve economies of scale for long-term profit improvement, leverage a collaborative environment to improve talent and service, afford more technology, and share best practices. We will achieve this through bulk purchasing discounts, vendor management and due-diligence, standardization of products and services and standardization of technology. In time we will be sharing and developing a combined back-office function for several areas."
