Empowering Credit Union Boardroom Portals

by. Alex Sodi

Credit union boardrooms have not only done a creditable job adopting mobile technology to meet their members’ banking needs, but have also been at the forefront in leveraging the power of the Internet to improve non-customer-facing tasks.

As early as 2008, many credit union boards began using online board portals – Web-based platforms that simplify how board materials are produced, delivered and reviewed. However, the past two years have led to an explosion in credit unions’ adoption of board portals, fueled by the proliferation of tablets and business apps.

For credit unions considering moving from hard copy board books to a board portal, the checklist of requirements for a secure, easy-to-use solution is straightforward, yet critical to ensuring acceptance by all directors. The solution must be secure, customizable in both implementation and training, and ultimately, must ease the crucial pain points faced by credit unions. A board portal will only be viewed as a smart investment if the solution helps directors read, annotate and engage with board materials more conveniently and securely than the bulky paper hand-outs or PDFs the portal replaces.

Setting a new standard for secure access to board materials and governance

Board portals enable a safe, secure means of communicating highly sensitive board materials to directors. Today, directors are performing their responsibilities at a time of intense regulatory change and scrutiny. Concerns about governance and compliance are top of mind. Board portals provide directors with secure access to the critical documents needed to fulfill their duties. Any credit union considering and reviewing best practices in governance should be looking to implement a board portal.

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