New York — McGraw-Hill FCU's "Financial Wellness Center" doesn't look like a typical credit union branch.
With touch-screen kiosks in the middle of an open floor-plan, the center offers members a "comprehensive and personalized experience" focused on strengthening their financial well-being, according to McGraw-Hill.
The $348 million CU created the center "to serve members' financial needs, with skilled consultants utilizing the latest in financial technology to deliver financial wellness," said Shawn Gilfedder, president and CEO.
The center is located in the lower level of 55 Water St., the headquarters of McGraw-Hill Financial and Emblem Health in lower Manhattan. The CU serves more than 25,000 members and their families from over 170 companies in the New York metropolitan area and across the nation.
Gilfedder described the center as the "physical realization of our industry-changing approach. There is no location like this in New York or anywhere else in the nation; it is truly a new paradigm in providing members with financial wellness."
Services offered include financial-wellness and counseling services, encompassing a broad range of "goal-focused" savings, spending and financial planning services; financial services consultants for every member, who show members how to secure better rates, implement savings strategies and how to leverage different kinds of debt; a technology-focused, paperless environment where members gain convenient access to the credit union's online; and 24/7 remote/mobile banking technology along with other financial services.
The CU also provides resources to employers, allowing them to educate employees on how to take greater control of their finances, resulting in fewer financial worries, less stress, better health and increased job productivity.
In an interview with Credit Union Journal at the center, Gilfedder said that the facility offers members easy access to in-house financial consultants who can advise them about their financial needs.
Noting that there are seven consultants working full-time, Gilfedder added that in the first week of operation, there were steady stream of people arriving to make appointments with consultants. He estimated in the first few days after its opening, some 300 people have stopped by.
"This is much more than a place to conduct transactions," he said. "We are here to help our members plan their financial futures and make better decisions about how to spend and save."
Referring to the touch-screen kiosks, Gilfedder explained that whatever financial concerns that an individual has, the custom-designed interface creates a financial road-map setting them on the right path to financial security on the same day. The consultants, he added, are not salespeople who are pushing products and charging high fees.
Gilfedder, who splits his time between 55 Water St. and the CU's East Windsor, N.J., headquarters, said "the success of the center hinges on deepening relationships with the employee population at 55 Water St.. The new experience is designed to deliver high personal touch using the latest in financial innovation."
He also said he is surprised over the lack of attention to financial wellness at other financial institutions, especially at large banks, given the importance of demand for such services and information, only six years after the worst economic crisis in recent decades.
