Now Is the Time to Reflect: People & Institutions Are Ready for Remote Work

Brick-and-mortar branches have been at the center of consumer banking for decades. New research shows that even with the rise of the internet and mobile phones, 81% of banking consumers visit a bank or credit union branch at least once a year. And 70% visit a branch at least once a month.

Or at least they did.

The shelter-in-place and social distancing directives that have gripped the world this year have put immense pressure on all aspects of life. Banking has not been immune, and it seems likely that there will be lasting effects on how we work and conduct business.

As we get past these frenetic, critical months, credit union leaders would do well to reflect and ask how they can serve their members adequately in the future – both in general and unusual circumstances.

It turns out that many members welcome digital interaction. According to a Raddon study released this month, 34% of accountholders nationwide prefer to bank face-to-face, 29% prefer digital interactions and 37% prefer a blend of the two. Serving all members well will require understanding and education, with a particular focus on those who may not have previously used remote channels.

The “face-to-face preferred” group is generally older, with 66% being at least 56. Their primary reason to use a branch is to deposit checks with a teller, and only 34% use mobile banking.

In considering this demographic, as well as your broader member population, here are some areas to explore or expand.

The Phone Isn’t Just for Calls

The most straightforward solution is to expand the contact center. In a remote environment, telephone conversations become significantly more important – if not for deposits or withdrawals, then for virtually all other questions, concerns or issues. But institutions should not think of their contact center as telephone only. Email, text and online chat all play a role in remaining connected with members, including older members more inclined to face-to-face interactions. According to a 2019 Pew study, 53% of U.S. consumers aged 65 and older own a smartphone and 73% are internet users.

Perhaps the best way to replicate the face-to-face experience is to employ the same technologies people are using to stay in touch during social distancing. FaceTime, Skype, Zoom and other videoconferencing tools allow the face-to-face interactions that these members prefer. By using video chats, credit union staff can provide a deeper explanation of actions, such as making a mobile deposit or using an ATM.

Easy-to-follow informational and how-to guides and instructional demos that can be emailed or posted online can help relieve pressure on staff during times when contact centers are receiving higher call volume. This is also the time to cross-train your frontline staff so they can step in and support your regular call center staff.

Enable a Seamless WFH Experience – and Let Them Practice

The most crucial learning from all of this is that institutions need to allow their contact center and frontline staff to build both cross-functional competence and work from home confidence. We are not where we were 10 years ago. WFH capabilities are accessible, relatively affordable and essential. Credit unions can ensure their staff are connected and secure, and that member data is not compromised.

Unfortunately, I have witnessed several institutions that insisted on their call center staff coming into the (often poorly ventilated) office over the past few months – a requirement that seems unwise and old hat. My take: They are wary of change and hesitant to implement it. And I can understand that.

All of that melts away, however, if we commit to letting people practice. Working remotely requires a different skill set and flavor of trust between managers and employees (hint: micromanagement backfires here). Consider having staff members work remotely one to several times per month so the transition is seamless if needed. Map out interaction types and phone trees to optimize call flow to your full team if you need to go remote for any reason.

Consider Next-Gen Deposit and ATM Options

While scientists seem to agree that COVID-19 is spread primarily through respiratory droplets, members can certainly be concerned about pressing buttons on an ATM. Institutions can approach this in a few ways. Simple, short-term solutions are effective, such as providing disinfectant wipes at ATMs for members to use, much as grocery stores do with shopping carts.

More compelling in the long run is connecting the ATM experience with the mobile banking experience. Fifty-one percent of consumers in the Raddon survey said using a smartphone instead of a debit/ATM card to access their account would be at least somewhat important to them if available. Of the millennials surveyed, 85% felt this way. It’s a feature familiar to consumers who are using smartphones to control devices at home, and is certainly relevant here.

Along the same lines, remote deposit capture technology has moved beyond simple check deposit and can be integrated into any number of workflows to keep things moving during a quarantine – or during normal times when members are on the go.

Already-in-market advanced interactive branch kiosk devices (next-level ATMs), which sometimes feature touch-mitigating features like non-fingerprint-based biometric authentication, are yet another way tasks that rely on physical interaction can be proofed against quarantines and made more hygienic in general.

After the time of social distancing and widespread WFH ends – and it will – it may be tempting for credit union leaders to get back to business as usual. For the betterment of our industry, my plea is that we don’t do that. Let’s look at what we learned, revisit and restructure as appropriate, and get ready for the next unexpected event that requires us to physically – but not professionally – distance ourselves from members and employees.

Andrew Vahrenkamp is Senior Research Analyst for Raddon in Lombard, Ill.