The real opportunity of credit union big data and analytics

“Unity is strength… when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.” –Mattie Stepanek

by: Austin Wentzlaff

The credit union industry (or credit union movement as it’s often referred to) is probably one of the most collaborative industries in the United States, if not the entire world. Unlike other organizations, credit unions share ideas and even their “secrets.” They truly care about the welfare of the industry and its millions of members. It’s great! Collaboration benefits credit unions in several ways but one way, in my opinion, presents the biggest opportunity. Big Data and Analytics.

The Problem

According to Credit Union Financial Exchange (CUFX), Credit Unions spend millions of dollars independently integrating similar technologies. From what we’ve seen, this is especially true in what I will define as Credit Union Big Data and Analytics. Credit Union Big Data and Analytics is comprised of data integration (data warehousing), report writing, and the creation of analytics applications and reports. Today, credit unions spend significant amounts of time and money building their own isolated solutions to satisfy pressing reporting needs. While this may solve the short term problem, the unique design hinders the ability to share reports and pool data with other credit unions. Different credit unions often spend resources building similar reports and dashboards. This begs the question that was recently raised by John Best of CU Wallet and Best Innovation Group. Are credit unions technology companies that deliver financial services or are they financial service companies that use technology?

 

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