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What does EMV stand for? What’s tokenization all about? And what’s a beacon got to do with checkout lanes? As mobile payments roll out, front-line staff will likely be fielding these types of questions from members, so Partners Federal Credit Union has developed a “payments primer” as a go-to resource for its branch and call center staff.
Payments Manager Jose Castro has been sharing the 24-page booklet as part of a “road show” to train employees on guiding members with questions about Apple Pay. $1.4 billion Partners FCU, based in Burbank, Calif., and serving 110,000 members, was among the first U.S. credit unions to facilitate this mobile payment format for its members.
“For our organization to thrive when disruptive technologies like mobile deposit and payments emerge, business leaders need to remember to ramp up our people capabilities,” says Partners President/CEO John Janclaes, a CUES member. “Our people need to know the what, the why, the when, and the how to support these new endeavors.”
The payment primer supplies answers to all those questions, from the history of noncash payments to an overview of the various forms of mobile payments and providers members may encounter.
The payments road show builds on the credit union’s commitment to keep its front-line staff trained and ready to respond to members’ questions about new technology. In 2012, Janclaes came up with the idea for a “Tech Dude” or, more formally, a member engagement manager, to support staff and members as they got used to new services like remote deposit capture.
The original Tech Dude, a former Apple Store trainer, visited branches to lead hands-on demonstrations at “tech stations,” created short videos and other how-to content, and trained a cadre of “junior Tech Dudes.”
The payments manager position was created to research the credit union’s payments options, guide implementation, and help build a knowledge base and enthusiasm for these new services.
“We look for people who are passionate about this stuff and willing and able to encourage staff to use new technology, to lean into the learning and embrace it. We need to meet our staff and members wherever they are in their current knowledge and understanding,” Janclaes says.
“Credit unions are becoming technology companies, but where’s the people component?” he asks. “It’s typically not the technology that fails when members run into problems using a new service; it’s the people.”
Karen Bankston is a long-time contributor to Credit Union Management and writes about credit unions, membership growth, marketing, operations and technology. She is the proprietor of Precision Prose, Stoughton, Wis.
