Business View Caribbean | August 2019

6 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN AUGUST 2019 Wooding, who also serves as a technology advisor to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission, acknowledged that digital disruption can be an intimidating prospect for credit unions in the Caribbean and around the world. “It is a topic CEOs and senior leaders know they should be thinking about but aren’t always sure where to start. In fact, some credit union executive teams and boards are content with the status quo. Meanwhile, for others, the sheer pace of technology-driven change can induce paralysis, or even panic.” Wooding believes that because of the vital role community banks and credit unions play, particularly, in small and emerging markets, even if the initial cost of technological innovation may seem high, the price of drifting into irrelevance and obsolescence is even higher, not just for credit unions, but for their members and the local communities they service. Such disruption poses real challenges but creates unique opportunities for credit unions, he said. “The members-as- owners model positions credit unions to leverage technology to tailor personalized financial services to their customers. It can also create new opportunities to empower members and increase their positive impact on local communities.” Wooding believes there is time, and great incentive, for credit unions to get their digital act in order. “Many credit union executives are fully aware that the world of financial services delivery is changing dramatically. But often they still lack the tools, techniques, and criteria for identifying and assessing potential disruptions,” he said. He encouraged the executives to develop a digital transformation strategy, focusing on customer service differentiators, including self-service options, mobile payments, account management, and more forward-thinking support for small and micro-businesses: “Navigating today’s changing social and economic landscape demands that credit union leaders carefully examine their current state, chart a customer-service oriented path to the future, and appropriately invest in their staff and their member communities to execute. The credit unions that take these steps will have the best opportunity to leverage technology to innovate. More importantly, they will also have the best chance of survival and success in the age of digital disruption.” Credit union members’ expectations of what is a superior customer service experience are changing rapidly