Press

Five credit unions win CUNA Technology Council ‘Excellence in Technology’ award

MADISON, WI (September 30, 2013) — CommunityAmerica CU, Element FCU, Gesa CU, Motorola ECU, and Virginia CU were honored as winners of the 2013 CUNA Technology Council Excellence in Technology Awards at the Council’s 18th Annual Conference, which took place September 22-25 in Hollywood, Calif.

The CUNA Technology Council award recognizes outstanding approaches to technology challenges with potential for universal application across the credit union movement. The winners for 2013 are:

  • CommunityAmerica CU in Lenexa, Kansas – won for their mobile app “Socky Saves,” part of a multi-pronged mission strategy for youth financial literacy. Directed to help teach children to save and encourage developing financial skills with their sock puppet character Socky Saves-a-Lot, along with engaging young kids and their parents in conversations about money.
  • Element FCU in Charleston, West Virginia – their winning entry was a creation of an electronic branch called “GO Kiosk.” Providing a remote branch experience with a focus more on the member relationship and less on the entry of a transaction. Not only enhancing member interactions, but increasing staff efficiencies as well.
  • Gesa CU in Richland, Washington – won for their creation of a digital branch using personal teller machines, touchscreen kiosks, enhanced ATMs, and other technology to greatly reduce the size of the branch while still offering all the same services as a full size branch. Results are considerable cost savings and much faster time-to-market for new branches.
  • Motorola ECU in Schaumburg, Illinois – won for their creation of a highly reliable, flexible, secure, and responsive business continuity solution incorporating multiple elements of communication connectivity and network infrastructure.
  • Virginia CU in Richmond, Virginia – created a winning custom account opening system, called “OMO-Online Membership Opening,” which not only provided a method to open a new account but integrated offers to members that resulted in both growth in membership and loan growth as well.

A panel comprised of CUNA Technology Council members selected the winners, based on strategy, process, application, and results, without regard to credit union asset size.

Additional information about the awards and winning entries are available online at www.cunatechnologycouncil.org, select the “Excellence Awards” link contained in the “Events” pull down menu.

CUNA Technology Council
Established in 1995, the CUNA Technology Council is a member-led organization made up of more than 600 credit union technology experts across the United States. The Council’s goal is to shape the advancement of credit union technology by leveraging collective peer strength through the sharing of information and fostering of professional development. The CUNA Technology Council is one of the six organizations that make up the CUNA Councils, a network of more than 5,800 credit union professionals. For more information, visit www.cunatechnologycouncil.org or www.cunacouncils.org.

More News