2021 has been a challenging year for everyone. Banks, credit unions, and microfinance institutions are no exception.
Coronavirus highlighted the need for banks and credit unions to rethink how they provide financial services.
With fewer branches open, teams needed to find new ways to analyse their data, compile reports, and serve customers. Taking cues from neobanks and fintech, we’ve seen many firms embrace the digital transformation initiative in the past 8 months.
Let’s look at some of the institutions that have successfully transformed financial performance by embracing automation and data-driven analytics with BankBI.
Celebrating Customer Success
Synergy
Like many financial institutions, Canadian credit union Synergy used Excel to consolidate and interrogate their data. This approach was time-consuming and prone to errors, making it difficult for independent auditors to validate their results. After attending one of our regular webinars in October 2020, Synergy decided it was time to automate the process.
Fortunately, they weren't starting from scratch. The team had already invested in a data warehouse solution, which allowed us to take a top-down approach. By integrating their existing capabilities with Fiserv DNA and FAS, Synergy has access to accurate, daily insights into financial performance. Reporting is more transparent, uniting data from their general ledger and core banking systems to provide faster, more accurate reports.
We began the project in February and went live in June. And, since automating reporting and data collection, Synergy has achieved a quarterly saving of 3-4 days on validating their reports.
“Really, I think I can speak for most credit unions – we know how nightmarish it is reporting to CUDGE. We have multiple spreadsheets, multiple data resources that we have to pull together and compile and it can take hours[…]It’s just an endless amount of manual keying.”
Alyssa Siegel, Synergy Credit Union
Manager of Finance & Accounting
VisionFund
VisionFund International serves over 300,00 customers in 6 countries throughout Asia. Many live in areas affected by conflict and disruption and don’t have access to formal banking services or financial support. For them, VisionFund provides a vital lifeline.
As their client base grew, VisionFund realised their paper-based approach to data management was no longer fit for purpose. They approached us looking for a partner with the knowledge, experience, and technology to help them regain operational control of their multinational finance data.
We worked with our digitalisation partners Musoni to consolidate data across VisionFund’s multinational network, which included 19 core banking systems and 18 general ledgers.
This has given the management team unparalleled visibility, allowing them to make strategic decisions about global lending limits and monitor at-risk portfolios. More importantly, they’re able to continue providing transformative financial services in communities that need it most.
“It was about being able to address the bigger issue of reorganisation – finding a vendor to help us change the way we work. We knew that we had the data, that it was untapped and that if we could harness it then we would stand a better chance of delivering on our strategy.”
Tom Allen, VFI Global
Director of Change & Programmes
Crossroads Credit Union
Credit unions rely on visibility to manage and monitor financial performance. But with spreadsheets and static processes still the norm in many organisations, it can be difficult to consolidate finance data – let alone draw meaningful insights from it.
Crossroads Credit Union were one of many in this position. Although their finance and banking platforms were full of valuable data, they struggled to unlock its true potential. So, they decided to partner with us.
Our solution was to establish a single source of truth for all of Crossroads’ business intelligence and performance management data.
We helped them automate their processes, giving them access to accurate daily insights. And, by taking a top-down approach to implementation, we delivered rapid time-to-value – with no upfront technology or infrastructure investments required.
Since partnering with BankBI, Crossroads have transformed the way they use their data. This has enabled them to uncover new opportunities and drive innovation across the organisation.
“I can go in daily and have that information at my fingertips and in one platform… The journey and the project has been very good.”
Rhonda Fullawka, Crossroads Credit Union
Manager of Finance
Ideal Credit Union
With $700 million in assets and 50,000 members, US credit union Ideal was becoming increasingly frustrated with Excel as their financial analytics and reporting platform.
They decided it was high time to adopt a less resource-intensive, automated approach that would improve the speed and accuracy of their data. OnApproach M360, Ideal’s data warehouse provider and a BankBI technology partner, put them in touch with us.
We quickly set them up with a trial version of our reporting automation software to reassure them that we could deliver the simplicity, time savings, and insight they desired. Impressed with the results, Ideal agreed to enter full production.
Ideal now has access to a fully customisable daily dashboard. This allows users to quickly access the information that’s most relevant to them – whether that’s top-level trends or more granular insights, such as subsets of individual loan portfolios.
Our financial performance automation software has added real value to Ideal’s operations. So much so that, following the successful implementation of our cloud-based software, Ideal decided to revamp its board pack using BankBI.
“The can-do attitude of BankBI stood out here. We were open to ideas and they really worked with us to make sure that the end product was the best it can be. We are very happy with the result.”
Dennis R. Bauer, Ideal Credit Union
EVP and Chief Financial Officer
Don’t Hesitate to Automate
Financial institutions across the globe continue to rely on outdated manual processes to manage financial performance and reporting. But as your organisation expands, these approaches become increasingly inefficient.
Automation is the future of the financial sector. With the right tools and the right partner to implement them, you can save time, reduce errors, and cut costs across your institution.
