Digital Transformation That Meets Members Where They Are

Today, in our digital world, technology comes standard, and meeting our members where they are means providing them with the same convenience and ease in their money managing experience as they experience anywhere else.

This is why SECU is embarking on a digital transformation that will create more efficiency, agility, and security—beginning with an initial rollout of e-signature pads distributed to SECU branches across the state. Our SECU colleagues will use these to help members expedite the signing of loan documents. Additionally, our financial advisory services specialists are piloting the use of iPads to deposit member checks when members open an investment account or want to invest additional funds. While the use of iPads is a pilot project, the hope is that we may be able to more broadly distribute iPads for our branch network, which will equip our teams with another tool to assist members with setting up the SECU mobile app on their phones, watching guided demos, and much more—all from the comfort of their local branch lobby with SECU employees they know and trust.

“This is just another way that our branch staff can further enhance their relationships with our members,” says SECU Chief Information Technology Officer Josh Bomba. “Whether it’s helping a member expedite signing of a document with an e-signature pad or assisting a member with an investment account opening via an iPad, it will be a more interactive experience for our member.”

Consideration for the member experience is hardwired into every innovation SECU plans to introduce. “There are plenty of folks across the entire North Carolina footprint that embrace technology, but we want to be very intentional about how we deploy it,” Bomba says.

Thomas Parrish, an SECU board member and Deputy CIO of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, agrees. Parrish recognizes the need for digital options yet notes the importance of still providing members the freedom to manage their finances how they see fit. “It’s about meeting our members where they are, and not having a prescribed way in which people perform transactions,” Parrish says. This flexibility means that members can continue to use SECU services as they have done in the past or take advantage of new technological features designed to give them more convenience and control.

Beyond e-signature pads and iPads, SECU is upgrading its existing systems and integrating new ones. SECU’s CashPoints® ATMs will have added features that allow members to do more at the machine, and our enhanced call center platform will allow us to more efficiently meet member needs. We’re improving account management, expanding our money movement options, and adding more self-service capabilities, including digital money management. By streamlining processes, promoting automation, and putting more tools in the hands of members, we can remove some of the frustrations that come with financial management.

All of these new technologies add up to a more integrated, seamless experience, which our SECU colleagues benefit from as well. “A better employee experience equates to a better member experience,” Bomba says. “Everything we are doing is to enhance our overarching relationship with our membership.”

Digital transformation doesn’t come at the cost of personalized service—the kind of service that separates SECU from other financial institutions. In fact, it’s proof of our longstanding commitment to evolve alongside our members and continue to put their needs first. In the ever-changing digital age, it’s more important than ever to be a source of stability and trust for our members, our colleagues, and our community.

To fulfill our commitment to our members requires that we stay relevant, that we provide high caliber service, that we deliver options that offer ease and assurance, and, through it all, that our members’ well-being is our guide.

That’s the world we’ll continue to invest in.