Credit union uses ITM to handle COVID-19

Banks and credit unions alike have had to make adjustments to stay afloat during COVID-19. Credit unions in particular, had major issues adjusting since many unions thrive on that in-person, family environment, which is far more difficult to cultivate in a time of social distancing.

"Most credit unions had to react much like other person-to-person facilities and pivot to alternate ways of doing business. For credit unions this was especially hard because the credit union model and philosophy was a very personal one and relied heavily on face-to-face relationships and getting to know their members where they live," Adam Hobelmann, VP of sales at Bancsource, said in an email.

In order to deliver this experience, credit unions began utilizing self-service options to deliver personalized experiences. One such bank, Alliance Credit Union turned to interactive teller machines to get the job done.

The Texas based credit union faced a major issue during lockdowns, mainly that the drive-thrus were now flooded with customers.

"When the governor of Texas asked businesses to shut down except for essential businesses, banks and credit unions were still open because we are essential, but our lobbies were closed and this put increased strain on our drive-thrus," Josh Wade, CSE, COO of Alliance Credit Union, said in an email. "We had back-office staff working from home and reduced employees on site in order to social distance. Members were concerned about teller interactions and we were scrambling to offer alternatives to 'traditional transaction methods.'"

The union partnered with Bancsource, which delivered an ITM solution, which offered services such as withdrawals, check cash, deposits and opening an account. It also enabled live interactions with a teller to deliver a personalized experience.

Bancsource began developing its ITMs a few years back as a way for banks and credit unions to handle more complex tasks directly from an ATM.

"Much of this is driven from the credit union's core processor being directly integrated with the ITM. It's really only an added benefit that the technology allows a live person to interact and assist the member directly on the ITM screen, this allows the interaction to still feel like a personal one," Hobelmann said.

With the ITMs, Alliance was able to redirect tellers for other tasks and enable 24/7 banking for customers.

"Members were able to use the machines at their convenience and the perception of not being a 'face-to-face' transaction eased some of their concerns," Wade said. "We were able to staff all of our ITM's Active Teller functions with one person, therefore reducing staff in the office and offering better social distancing options. This was a huge benefit for our members, not to lose service and still allow Alliance to do what was best for our employees and community."

While many states are backing down from COVID-19 regulations and branches are opening up again, this trend of delivering 24/7 digital banking services will not slow down, Hobelmann said.

"ITMs and other digital channels will allow you to place a full service automated banking location almost anywhere and at a fraction of the cost of a traditional brick and mortar facility. It also allows you to use a more efficient hybrid strategy at the branches you are already in," Hobelmann said. "There are many possibilities but one thing for sure, the way credit unions operate will be somewhat different moving forward relying on technology and efficiency to meet their member's needs."