INDIAN WELLS, Calif. -
That was the message from Brian Warfel, senior vice president of sales and service at Power Financial Credit Union in Pembroke Pines, Fla. Warfel, who also serves as chairman of the CUNA Tech Council, told attendees of the recent CUNA OpSS Council conference here credit unions must be aware society has shifted from the "Computing Era" (which he said ran from 1970-2000) to the "Connectivity Era."
"Open architecture allows systems to be specialized," he explained. "There is a movement away from monolithic closed systems and components. Bill payment technology is evolving to allow payment of vendors account-to-account, or A2A. Cell phones now have credit cards virtually embedded inside."
New innovations also can have a down side, Warfel said, if consumers do not have awareness of their existence. In the world of online search technology, he said, the top dog is a website known as "Dogpile." It features the aggregated power of Google, Yahoo, MSN Live Search and Ask.com.
"Dogpile wins awards as the best thing going, but most people don't know about it," he said. "Is the credit union industry a 'Dogpile.'"
Model-T to iPod
What has evolved in the mass consumer market, according to Warfel, is a "Perfect Storm," in which there are new markets with unmet needs, technologies capable of meeting those needs, and a new enterprise that links people and technologies in a new pattern.
"The Perfect Storm Part One was mass production technology, such as the Model-T Ford," he said. "The Perfect Storm Part Two is individually adaptive technology, such as the iPod. In the future the 18-to-24 generation, which grew up on technology, will look at tech as an expectation, not a luxury. Instant messaging is a future call center application credit unions must be ready for."
Two Models for Success
Business decisions are based on three principles, said Warfel: the ability to generate revenue, the ability to reduce expenses, and the necessity to comply with government regulations. He said CUs should look at ING and travel-booking site Orbitz for examples of adapting business to today's technology environment.
The phenomenal growth of ING tells the financial services industry growth is possible, Warfel said. He pointed out ING established itself not by attempting to be anyone's primary account, but by relentlessly targeting the savings market by offering a premium interest rate. ING has made clearer it is not interested in relationships. "ING is mass production. The company does one thing and does it well."
Moving ahead, he said the ever-growing connectivity offered by mobile devices not only allows travelers an unprecedented amount of information, but gives CUs an example to follow.
"Orbitz offers its best customers phone calls and text messages with flight and gate information and updates, all for $4.99. Credit unions could be offering the same things to their best members," Warfel said.
What's Next
Some other predictions, observations related to trends made by Brian Warfel.
* Blog and social networking sites will be the next "hot" advertising targets.
* Social networks will pull in a $1 billion windfall.
* Downloadable games will become hotter.
* Online video advertising will generate lots of hype and "some" money.
* Business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce in the U.S. will crack $200 billion.
* Online ad spending will hit $20 billion.
