Competing in the digital space is getting more difficult and more and more essential to the credit union’s sustainability. Chances are, your current digital strategy is missing these five things.

1. Organizational Alignment – most credit unions have all their data in silos. IT is doing one thing, marketing another, branches another, call center another, remote delivery another… You get my drift. To deliver your digital capabilities and savvy expertly, the entire organization must be aligned and working toward the same digital vision, goals, delivery channels, data utilization, processes, and services.
2. Process Alignment – most credit unions have different processes channel to channels and process to process. To be successful, organizations must align these processes to improve the member experience regardless of how they choose to engage the organization.
3. Risk Tolerance Alignment – most credit unions have different tolerances for deposit risk and lending risk depending on the channel the member chooses to engage the organization. These tolerances need to be aligned and designed to minimize the amount of friction the member experiences as they engage the credit union.
4. Total Data Integration – Most credit unions are not aligned with their data. Their data use, aggregation, visibility, and definitions are in silos. With the addition of more digital channels, deposit, and loan origination tools, products, and services, the aggregation of all data sources into a single data warehouse is essential to become a data-driven organization.
5. Define “Fast Follower” – almost every credit union I talk with says they want to be a fast follower. But fast following is not a measurable goal; it has a continuum of definitions. For some, a fast follower may mean being an alpha or beta test for emerging technology. For others, it may mean it has been successfully deployed and fully monetized with the major players in the space. The credit union needs to have a clear and measurable definition of fast-follower, so they know when they jump in with emerging technologies.

Your organization’s digital success will be directly impacted by the strategic and execution success of the credit union in solving these five problems. Make certain they become key deliverables as you develop your digital strategy and implementation plan.