Digital Banking Podcast

George Estrada, Principal Strategic Advisor for Credit Unions at AWS, emphasizes that listening to the needs of your accountholders and community members is very important to retain them. In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, Estrada and host Josh DeTar considered the relationship between a credit union (CU) and its members. They discussed the importance of user experience, the positive...

It’s a constant balancing act for community financial institutions. If you use all your software ”out of the box,” you risk looking just like everybody else. If you customize your environment too heavily, you can end up with a support nightmare that none of your vendors can help with. In this episode of Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar welcomed Bill Kinnelly, the CEO of KGA Advisory, LLC....

Change is difficult for everyone – for some more than others. Communication – whether to employees or account holders – can make change much more palatable. In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, Melissa Kopp got into the need for communication in the corporate world and pointed out the importance of fintech for increasing an FI’s speed to market. She and host Josh DeTar discussed changes...

In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar welcomed Sabeh Samaha, President and CEO of Samaha & Associates. They chatted about what Samaha called “the speed of impulse,” the importance of functionality, beauty, and hospitality in banking, and the future of banking in the metaverse.

A successful product is unique, or at least arguably better than its competitors. However, that in itself is not enough to guarantee success.  And a seamless, frictionless, transparent user experience is table stakes today. To win big, you need to humanize the experience and introduce human elements into your product. In this episode of The Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar welcomed Sarah S...

Tom Shen boasts a long and fabled career in financial technology spanning some 40 years. Some of the companies he’s been associated with, like Software Dynamics and S1, are long forgotten. Others like Digital Insight and Maluzai Software are still fresh in our memories. Today Shen is on the board of two financial technology rising stars: Sensibill and Zsuite Technologies. In short, he can back up...

It’s no secret that tech giants like Amazon and Apple are driving consumer expectations for all digital interactions – including digital interactions with your financial institution. The problem is that many systems still in use at community FIs are still based on what one might call “legacy technology.” Simply stated, they were architected before Amazon was even a glimmer in Jeff Bezos’ eye. This...

Digital transformation isn’t a project – it’s a never-ending pursuit. What’s more, digital transformation is cultural as much as it is technological. There are no easy answers and there are no shortcuts.  In this episode of Digital Banking Podcast, Jeff Keltner, the Senior Vice President of Business Development at Upstart, joined host Josh DeTar to discuss the impact of digital transformation on t...

Digital transformation is more than deploying some new technology. Effective digital transformation requires financial institutions to think differently and act differently. This fundamental shift begins at the brand level. While some institutions may see their brand as chiseled in stone, a brand must constantly evolve. That’s truer now more than ever. In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcas...

By now it should be clear to all community financial institutions that digital transformation is both imperative and a never-ending endeavor. Technology keeps changing, which means that consumer expectations keep changing, which means that FIs must keep changing just to keep up. It’s not easy.   In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, Josh DeTar welcomed Jenn Markus, the Director of Techno...

It’s impossible to ignore the constant beating of the digital transformation drum. Where many financial institution executives struggle is trying to figure out exactly what digital transformation means and where to start. Our guest on this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast broker digital transformation down to four manageable components: people, technology, data, and processes. In this episod...

There’s general agreement that digital transformation is an imperative for forward-thinking financial institutions. Where there’s not always agreement is in what “digital transformation” actually means. Unfortunately, some FI executives conflate digital transformation with simply buying and deploying new tech products on top of their old tech products. To be clear, digital transformation is not ab...

Community financial institutions are unique in that they have high-touch relationships and services built into their culture. But if they want to keep pace with – or even outpace – the mega banks, they must be willing to use that uniqueness to their benefit and take some risks, too. That was the message from Bryce Deeney, the co-founder and CEO of equipifi. In this episode of the Digital Banking P...

Credit unions nationwide have joined forces to help raise money for kids in hospitals, and their results have been significant. Of course, this is a need that never goes away. In this special episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, Josh DeTar welcomed Nick Coleman, the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Children's Miracle Network Hospitals (CMN Hospitals). They discussed Credit Unions for...

Today’s credit unions are faced with a balancing act. On one side is the high-touch, member-focused, “people helping people” ethos. On the other side is the need to embrace digital, with all its benefits and all its shortcomings. In this episode of the Digital Banking podcast, host Josh DeTar, welcomed Brian Alfano, the COO of Oregon Community Credit Union. They discussed how core values can guide...

Digital tools are increasingly critical to any community financial; institution’s marketing program. However, with so many options literally at one’s fingertips, it can be difficult to create a cohesive, effective digital marketing strategy. That said, the starting point is always a careful consideration of the institution’s culture. In this episode of the Digital Banking podcast, host Josh DeTar...

While most new credit union members are middle-aged men and women, credit unions, like so many other organizations, want to pursue the millennial market. That apparent disconnect creates quite a challenge for growth-minded credit unions. In the latest episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar welcomes Michael Murdoch, the marketing manager at Wauna Credit Union. The two get into what...

Technology is constantly changing, so what constitutes good due diligence today may not be good enough tomorrow. Many FIs neglect the importance of doing proper due diligence based on current technbology in order to find a vendor that best meets their current and future needs.  In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, we heard from Shaun Murray, CEO of Enhanced Software Products, Inc. Shaun...

Customers expect perfection from financial institutions. And when money and personal information are at stake, there's nothing unusual about that expectation. But striving for perfection and being perfect are not the same thing. Companies that strive for perfection in banking actually strive for constant improvement.  In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, our host Josh DeTar welcome...

Credit unions use technology and a personalized approach to ensure the best member experience. Even with this winning combination, it’s still a challenge to stand out in a market where major banks dominate.  In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar welcomed Shannon Ellis-Brock, the COO at Puget Sound Cooperative Credit Union. Shannon and Josh discussed why innovation and dev...

For financial institutions to evolve and improve member experiences, it’s important to introduce new technologies. However, it’s important to consider new technologies from a strategic perspective as well.  Too often, FIs jump to implement the latest new feature. And organizations chase after new “shiny objects” hoping to meet the requirements of members. In the rush, FIs fail to negotiate contrac...

Geoff Knapp, Chief Growth Officer at Allied Payment Network, argues that community FIs are hanging onto a life ring, fighting for their lives in the golden age of opportunity. In this episode of the Digital Banking Podcast, host Josh DeTar sits down with Geoff to talk about how younger clients are disrupting the banking industry by opting for megabanks for traditional banking needs because of thei...

Our guest, Dion Lisle, bills himself as the Rosetta Stone between FinTechs and Legacy FIs. He says FinTechs and banks operate at different speeds, and like gears, they need a transmission or a translation to be able to work together effectively.  In this episode, he talks with host Josh DeTar about some of the current challenges community FIs face and what's at stake if they fail to listen to...

There was a time when most banking business was conducted at the branch. The interaction with the same people week after week made for a warm, personal experience.  Thanks to technology, we wait longer to use the ATM so that we don't have to talk to anyone. As a result, that warm, personal experience is at risk of going the way of the dodo bird. Joel Schwartz, Founder and co-CEO of DoubleChec...

Shondell Varcianna is a resourceful and creative woman who keeps pace with the latest developments in the world of content marketing. Shondell is the CEO and founder at Varci Media. Her job consists of helping financial institutions succeed with their blog posts and all forms of content marketing.  Shondell truly believes in the power of content. She suggests a holistic marketing approach to get i...