Over the last few years, the importance of flexible, efficient and modern technology has risen up the agenda for many credit unions. 2020 has made this even more pronounced, as the ability of organisation to serve members effectively while staff are remote from members (and each other) has been given a severe test. Sometimes credit unions come to the conclusion that their strategy cannot be delivered with the constraints of their current core processing and accounting system. But replacing this component of the business is daunting and can be compared to major surgery – expensive, painful and risky. Yet still critical to survival – so what to do?
In this podcast you hear from two credit unions specialists that know this well trodden IT road and their insight and advice is both timely and straight forward. Ralph Swoboda & Todd Proulx.
Ralph Swoboda, the Chair of CFCFE, is also the Managing Director of CUFA Ltd., the Dublin based provider of financial analytics software to credit unions and other mutual financial firms. An attorney by training, he has forty-five years of experience in the USA and international credit union sector, having served as President/CEO of Credit Union National Association (the primary U.S. credit union trade body), as Chairman of the Management Committee of the Association of British Credit Unions, Ltd. (ABCUL), and later as head of International Operations for CUNA Mutual Group. After leaving CUNA Mutual in 2005, Ralph co-founded CUFA Ltd. and has provided consulting and executive-level project management services to credit unions and credit union organisations internationally. Ralph has also served as a director of credit union and co-operative organisations, including CARE USA, US Central Credit Union, and the Filene Research Institute (of which he was one of the founders). Contact Ralph: ralphswoboda@cfcfe.eu
Todd Proulx, a consultant with vast experience of core system replacement projects, has written a paper for CFCFE on how to approach this vital issue. In ‘When it Hurts More to Stay Than to Leave: Time for a New Core System?‘, Todd offers wise advice on what might drive a credit union to switch providers, how to conduct a robust procurement process and some of the key functionality that a solution needs to be able to support. Todd concludes with the reminder that “a core system should never dictate or limit credit union business strategy.”
Talking Credit Unions with Chris Smith is a regular podcast dedicated to informing credit union practitioners, leaders and opinion formers on variety of industry topics. To contact Chris Smith, smithowls@gmail.com