Member data and the merger effect

There are a lot of considerations for any organization going through a merger. It takes cooperation and patience to combine cultures, assets and staff during a merger, but for credit unions, the effect on members is a major factor to keep at the forefront. Members often come to credit unions to experience a better value through more customization, better service and a more personal banking experience. A merger might be unsettling for members, so it’s important to reassure them that their experience will not be negatively impacted by the changes a merger will bring. To actually follow through on that, maintaining a tight lock on member information and data will be essential. Here are some tips regarding member data security that credit unions should know when embarking on a merger.

Rank

Begin by ranking the importance of all the data and segment by data type. This might include checks, financial statements and reports, loan agreements, etc. Ranking this data will give it a score that reflects its sensitivity, access level, retention period and how critical the data is to your CU and members. This will allow your credit union to lock down the most sensitive and important data first and move deeper into data that is ranked at a lower priority.

 

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