5 Challenges Facing Today’s Community Banks and Credit Unions—and How to Solve Them 

Challenge 1: Delivering a Modern Member Experience 

For the good of your credit union or community bank, it’s important to ask yourself: What does a member’s end-to-end experience look like? Is the experience good or is there room for improvement? 

If the answer is “room for improvement,” modern technology could be the answer. Omnichannel experiences enabled by digital tools are a perfect solution, allowing your members to start a transaction on one platform and seamlessly finish it on another. This technology allows you to meet members wherever they are in their financial journey and provide the convenience they want and need. 

Challenge 2: Siloed Data and Inaccessible Analytics  

To succeed in today’s digital landscape, you need the best technology to deliver personalized experiences and exceed expectations. Gaining a 360-degree view of your portfolio and leveraging analytics and data allows you to personalize next best products and offers. 

If you’re unsure what data would be most useful, consider using artificial intelligence (AI), which can analyze large sets of data and quickly identify key insights about your members. Not only does this help your community bank or credit union save time, but the implementation of AI ultimately allows you to better tailor solutions for your members based on their needs. 

Challenge 3: Too Many Vendors   

In today’s market, credit unions and community banks often use multiple vendors to meet the needs of their members and customers. One way to combat this issue is to partner with a vendor that can solve problems across multiple business lines. This can help you save time and money, and make it easier to provide member-centered experiences.  

Remember: you don’t have to immediately implement every solution that a vendor offers—you can gradually add on the solutions you need, when you need them. Think of a single vendor as a board game. When you’re learning a new board game and playing for the first time, you set up the board, read the instructions, and play a few turns first. You don’t open the box and play a full game right off the bat. A good partner is similar—they will walk you through the process one solution or product a time, so by the time you play the full game, you’re in a winning position.  

Challenge 4: Operational Inefficiency  

While modernization may seem intimidating, legacy systems are holding you back and contributing to operational inefficiency. The continued use of legacy systems and manual processes slows down banking operations, increasing both the time and cost of service provision.  

Trading out your legacy system for a modern platform will refine operations, reduce human error, and lower processing times. Utilizing technology that automates these processes, like artificial intelligence or machine learning, can streamline repetitive tasks and help you focus on what really matters—your customers and members.  

Challenge 5: Delays in Technology Implementation 

In today’s competitive market, lengthy technology implementation times and delayed value realization can have a major influence on member expectations. Additionally, these delays can even shape how your members perceive you in comparison to your competitors. Adopting technology with faster implementation and quicker time to value enables you to rapidly enhance member experiences, improve efficiency, and stay ahead of the competition.  

Overcoming the challenges facing your community bank or credit union in today’s changing landscape is no small feat, but with the right strategies, it is more than possible. By tapping into modern technology and prioritizing member experiences, you can effectively transform these obstacles into opportunities. 

Is your credit union or community bank ready to get a head start on solving these challenges? Learn how nCino Essentials can help!