News Now Headlines--05/09/2008

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MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--Recent violent robberies at credit unions brings home the need for credit union staff to be trained to handle any robbery situation--no matter how frightening.

Credit union staff can prepare themselves for robberies with the first release in a series of on-demand trainings by the Credit Union National Association.

The Robbery: Actions, Reactions, and Coping Skills Training on Demand advises staff on the steps to take before, during and after a robbery to cope with the experience and to avoid action that could endanger members or staff.

Training on demand includes a downloadable package with a 30-45 minute video training presentation, workbooks and five online exams. The presentations can be saved to a computer, DVD or USB drive.

MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) announced that it is expanding the topics for its training on-demand series.

CUNA's offerings are geared toward credit union staff and volunteers. Each offering includes a downloadable package with 30- to 45-minute video, printable workbooks and five online exams. The presentations can be downloaded to a computer, DVD or USB drive.

The titles will be added to this current list of volunteer offerings during 2008:

For more information on the new webinars or for a complete list of CUNA Training on Demand offerings, use the links.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (5/9/08)--TopNotch, a web-based overdue-account collection system that helps credit unions manage delinquent and charged-off accounts, will be more affordable for small- and medium-sized credit unions.

EPL Inc. and Guthrie Phillips Group Inc. of Vancouver, B.C., extended their contract for five years to make the system available.

Under terms of the agreement, TopNotch will be available as a hosted service through EPL for all U.S. credit unions.

EPL is a Birmingham, Ala.-based credit union-owned integrated technology solutions provider.

MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--Futurists predict that momentum is building toward a cashless society, and CUNA Mutual is offering a webinar for credit union staff to learn about contactless payments.

The webinar will be held May 14 at 11 a.m., and May 28 at 3 p.m. (EDT). Ann Davidson, CUNA Mutual credit union protection risk manager and payment systems industry expert, will discuss:

MADISON, Wis. (5/7/08)--Credit unions can perform in-house risk assessments, prepare for technology audits and find out how and why a security breach occurs, by using three products recently added to the CUNA Strategic Services/Trace Security alliance agreement.

The three solutions are: TraceSecurity Risk Manager, Information (IT) Technology Security Audit Manager (TS-ITSAM) and Computer Forensics Investigation.

Risk Manager examines safeguards, vulnerabilities, threats, asset information and loss expectancies, allowing credit unions to assess focus areas to determine overall risk. Credit unions can determine which controls to implement on specific assets based on members' use and risk.

Risk Manager also automates the assessment process and provides continuous updates with new threat and expanded safeguards.

TS-ITSAM compiles and evaluates data related to governance, policies and procedures. It analyzes business and regulatory standards against organizational standards and regulatory controls.

The solution aligns with Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council audits and simplifies the process by placing audit domains into manageable segments to speed up the audit process. The results are condensed into an executive summary or traditional reporting format.

Computer Forensics Investigation conducts a forensic analysis of a credit union's computers, firewall, electronic data and other components of its IT infrastructure to identify evidence of how a breach occurred. A detailed report of the findings can help support legal proceedings, determine computer misuse, assist internal investigations and provide other electronic discovery.

NORTH CANTON, Ohio (5/7/08)--ATM manufacturer Diebold has been named a top outsourcing service provider for the second year in a row by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP).

IAOP released its 2008 Global Outsourcing Top 100 award standings. Diebold was ranked 47th.

Companies earning the distinction are judged on company size and growth, customer satisfaction, depth of competence and management capabilities.

Diebold provides financial self-service delivery to financial institutions, including credit unions.

CUPERTINO, Calif. (5/6/08)--More than 74% of respondents to a recent TuVox survey said a great contact center can have a large impact on their business.

TuVox is a provider of OnDemand speech applications used by credit unions, such as American Airlines FCU, Dallas.

Though customer service is the biggest influence on loyalty, many institutions use technology only to deflect calls and contain costs, which frustrates consumers, TuVox said.

The company recently released more than 50 on-demand application modules for the Intelligent Customer Front Door (ICDF) solution, which allows companies to discern the identity and intent of a caller, gather relevant information, determine how to treat callers--based on business rules--and match the customer with the most relevant and available resource.

LANSING, Mich. (5/6/08)--Credit Union Student Choice, a collaborative credit union service organization (CUSO), is now offering a new student loan product to help defray the costs of college.

The product, Credit Union Student Choice, aims to fill the gap between federal student aid and rising tuition, fees and other student-related expenses.

"Many families have been forced to seek higher cost loans to pay for education," said Teresa Mayer, NuUnion vice president of lending. She noted that the product has no origination fees, flexible repayment terms, lower interest rates and deferment of principle and interest while students are enrolled.

Students enrolled at least half-time in a degree-granting program are eligible. Approved students can borrow from $1,000 up to the total cost of attendance, less other financial aid. The maximum borrowing amount is $75,000.

Business partners for the CUSO include PSCU Financial Services, Digital Dialogue, Credit Union Direct Lending and CU*Answers.

BROOKFIELD, Wis. (5/5/08)--Fiserv and U.S. Central FCU have announced a new core processing agreement between Fiserv and Core Network Processing (CNP), a credit union service organization.

U.S. Central provides processing for member credit unions through the Corporate Credit Union Network System, a three-tiered Fiserv solution for corporate credit unions. A previous contract ran through May 2009. When U.S. Central announced its decision to exit core processing, the contract was transferred to CNP and was extended for two-and-a-half years.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. (5/5/08)--CO-OP Financial Services has seated officers and elected a new director to its board.

J. David Osborn, president/CEO, Anheuser-Busch Employees CU, St. Louis, Mo., was elected chairman of the board. He replaces David Maus, president/CEO of Public Service CU, Denver. Maus' term expired, but he will remain on the board.

Osborn has worked in the credit union industry for 32 years. He has been president/CEO of Anheuser-Busch Employees CU since 1992.

Gary Oakland, president/CEO, BECU, Seattle, was elected to the board. He succeeds Tom Sargent, president/CEO, First Tech CU, Beaverton, Ore. Sargent's term expired.

Other officers include vice chairman Doug Allman, president/CEO, NASA FCU, Upper Marlboro, Md. And treasurer Terry Laudki, president/CEO, New Mexico Educators' FCU, Albuquerque, N.M.

Diane Addington, president/CEO, T and C FCU, Pontiac, Mich., will continue as board secretary and Bucky Sebastian, president/CEO, GTE FCU, Tampa Bay, Fla., will serve a three-year term.

CO-OP Financial Services is a credit union service organization that provides ATM network access, ATM processing, debit/credit card services and shared branching. It also has more than 25,000 surcharge-free ATMs for credit union members.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (5/5/08)--CU*Answers, a credit union service organization, announced that it will help start-up credit unions by providing them free data processing for two years.

The credit union is responsible only for any third party pass-through fees, the company said Thursday.

CU*Answers also will meet with the credit union's management team to adjust processing fees accordingly. "It may work out to being a 'step ladder' approach to gradually increasing fees during the next three-year period to assist a credit union's early growth efforts," the company said.

Credit unions are required to sign an initial five-year processing agreement with CU*Answers to launch the program. No early termination fees apply.



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	Print Today's News Contact News Now Get Headlines via Email Enter your email address: text HTML Products & Services Headlines Handling robberies is first topic of on-demand training series CUNA offers new on-demand training topics EPL renegotiates collections system contract for smaller CUs ACH, contactless payments topics of CUNA Mutual webinar Products and Services briefs Three IT security solutions added to CUNA/Trace alliance Diebold ranked among world's top outsource providers Great contact experience impacts business, says study CU program launches student loan product U.S. Central, Fiserv announce DP contract with new CUSO CO-OP Financial Services seats officers, new director CUSO providing free data processing to start-up CUs Handling robberies is first topic of on-demand training series MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--Recent violent robberies at credit unions brings home the need for credit union staff to be trained to handle any robbery situation--no matter how frightening. Credit union staff can prepare themselves for robberies with the first release in a series of on-demand trainings by the Credit Union National Association. The Robbery: Actions, Reactions, and Coping Skills Training on Demand advises staff on the steps to take before, during and after a robbery to cope with the experience and to avoid action that could endanger members or staff. Training on demand includes a downloadable package with a 30-45 minute video training presentation, workbooks and five online exams. The presentations can be saved to a computer, DVD or USB drive. For more this and other on-demand training topics, use the link. Resource Links The Robbery: Actions, Reactions, and Coping Skills CUNA offers new on-demand training topics CUNA offers new on-demand training topics MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) announced that it is expanding the topics for its training on-demand series. CUNA's offerings are geared toward credit union staff and volunteers. Each offering includes a downloadable package with 30- to 45-minute video, printable workbooks and five online exams. The presentations can be downloaded to a computer, DVD or USB drive. Topics for 2008 include: Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) for Front-Line Staff--Familiarizes staff with BSA requirements by providing an overview of BSA, including specific actions and documentations that front-line staff must complete to comply with regulations; CU Sales: Inquiring and Listening--Encourages using communication to build a relationship with members to better understand their situation and their financial needs and goals. Participants are taught strong listening skills and how to ask the right kinds of questions to better serve members by recommending the right products and services to meet their needs; Regulation CC--Helps credit unions achieve annual staff training requirements for Regulation CC and provides information and advice to determine the timing of fund availability, as stipulated in the regulation. Participants will recognize the difference between local and non-local checks and what is considered a business day under Regulation CC; Subject-Matter Expert to Trainer: Training Basics--Outlines the basics of training staff efficiently and effectively to prepare subject-matter experts to teach credit union professionals and encourage development in themselves and others; Sexual Harassment--Shows staff what constitutes harassment, how it negatively affects morale and the credit union's image, and what can be done to prevent and correct it; Money and Negotiable Instruments--Details methods for detecting counterfeit money and recognizing bad checks to help prevent fraud. It also improves efficiency and accuracy through understanding the methods for handling cash, share drafts, and traveler's checks, as well as accepting deposits; and Office of Foreign Assets Control--Presents up-to-date information regarding the Office of Foreign Assets Control to ensure requirements have been met prior to an examination. The titles will be added to this current list of volunteer offerings during 2008: Assessing the CEO--Walks volunteers through their responsibilities in the CEO performance-management process and provides tips to develop or enhance the process at their credit unions; The Directors' Role When Complaints are Filed Against Senior Management--Provides a step-by-step process when a complaint is filed against management and how to prepare for this possibility before there are problems; Credit Union Growth Strategies--Details different growth strategies that credit unions have implemented for growing assets, loans, and members and offers tips to ensure everyone is working toward the same goal; So, You Have a Community Charter ... Now What?--Explores the fundamental steps to staying focused on new charter objectives, including communicating to various audiences, marketing, sponsorships, and other necessary resources; The Basics of Internal Controls--Uncovers the complexities of the supervisory committee's roles and responsibilities for an effective internal control environment that covers all areas of operations; Local Involvement: Marketing Strategy and Community Benefit--Helps develop credit union growth strategies that combine historically successful local involvement techniques with modern marketing strategies; Understanding the Audit Report--Helps the supervisory committee to better understand and evaluate the audit report, financial statements, and the auditor's findings and recommendations to increase the report's overall value; Overseeing the Outside Audit--Helps the supervisory committee to select an auditor and get the most benefit from the audit and auditor; and The Robbery: Actions, Reactions and Coping Skills--Advises staff on the steps to take before, during and after a robbery. For more information on the new webinars or for a complete list of CUNA Training on Demand offerings, use the links. Resource Links CUNA Training on Demand Office of Foreign Assets Control Money and Negotiable Instruments Sexual Harassment Subject-Matter Expert to Trainer: Training Basics Regulation CC CU Sales: Inquiring and Listening Bank Secrecy Act for Front-Line Staff EPL renegotiates collections system contract for smaller CUs BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (5/9/08)--TopNotch, a web-based overdue-account collection system that helps credit unions manage delinquent and charged-off accounts, will be more affordable for small- and medium-sized credit unions. EPL Inc. and Guthrie Phillips Group Inc. of Vancouver, B.C., extended their contract for five years to make the system available. Under terms of the agreement, TopNotch will be available as a hosted service through EPL for all U.S. credit unions. EPL is a Birmingham, Ala.-based credit union-owned integrated technology solutions provider. Guthrie Phillips Group is a software developer and supplier. Resource Links EPL/CUNA Strategic Service ACH, contactless payments topics of CUNA Mutual webinar MADISON, Wis. (5/9/08)--Futurists predict that momentum is building toward a cashless society, and CUNA Mutual is offering a webinar for credit union staff to learn about contactless payments. The webinar will be held May 14 at 11 a.m., and May 28 at 3 p.m. (EDT). Ann Davidson, CUNA Mutual credit union protection risk manager and payment systems industry expert, will discuss: The need for credit unions to focus on the security of payment options to protect members' money and information; Packaging payment options based on the level of risk, due diligence and vendor management; and Best practices to improve security, reduce fraud and manage payment risk. Resource Links CUNA Mutual Webinars Products and Services briefs ALBANY, N.Y. (5/8/08)--Universal Sharing Network (UsNet) announced an incentive plan to help defray the upfront costs related to becoming a network participant. Under the plan, any new participating credit union can receive combined incentives equal to the up-front costs of purchasing their data processor's shared branching interface. The total incentive package may be worth up to $25,000. The offer is available to credit unions entering a contract with UsNet through Dec. 31. "We recognize that the initial investment necessary to acquire the shared branching interface from data processors can be significant," said Jim Doig, UsNet board chairman and president/CEO of Sidney FCU. "UsNet is excited to be in a position to help credit unions with this incentive plan." ... BOCA RATON, Fla. (5/8/08)--Multi-Media Products announced that Card Services for Credit Unions (CSCU) was featured on 21st Century Business Sunday. CSCU was founded in 1989 when 455 credit unions united to establish a card processing association dedicated to helping credit unions. Today, CSCU has more than 3,200 member credit unions with more than 12 million Visa and MasterCard accounts ... ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (5/8/08)--PSCU Financial Services announced that it supports VMAlliance, a risk management resource vendor sponsored by the Credit Union Information Security Professionals Association (CUISPA). The consortium, www.vmalliance.org, will go live during the second quarter of 2008. VMA provides resources and online tools to help credit unions manage requirements for vendor due diligence, risk assessment, monitoring and regulatory compliance ... GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (5/8/08)--CUAnswers, a credit union service organization (CUSO) in Michigan, has been chosen by the National Association of Credit Union Services Organizations (NACUSO) to receive the CUSO Collaboration and Innovation Award. The award is given to CUSOs that exhibit excellence in innovation in using the collaborative model to bring new solutions to the credit union industry. CUAnswers was judged on though leadership and critical thinking, collaboration, innovation in organization design, implementation and execution, and results ... Three IT security solutions added to CUNA/Trace alliance MADISON, Wis. (5/7/08)--Credit unions can perform in-house risk assessments, prepare for technology audits and find out how and why a security breach occurs, by using three products recently added to the CUNA Strategic Services/Trace Security alliance agreement. The three solutions are: TraceSecurity Risk Manager, Information (IT) Technology Security Audit Manager (TS-ITSAM) and Computer Forensics Investigation. Risk Manager examines safeguards, vulnerabilities, threats, asset information and loss expectancies, allowing credit unions to assess focus areas to determine overall risk. Credit unions can determine which controls to implement on specific assets based on members' use and risk. Risk Manager also automates the assessment process and provides continuous updates with new threat and expanded safeguards. TS-ITSAM compiles and evaluates data related to governance, policies and procedures. It analyzes business and regulatory standards against organizational standards and regulatory controls. The solution aligns with Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council audits and simplifies the process by placing audit domains into manageable segments to speed up the audit process. The results are condensed into an executive summary or traditional reporting format. Computer Forensics Investigation conducts a forensic analysis of a credit union's computers, firewall, electronic data and other components of its IT infrastructure to identify evidence of how a breach occurred. A detailed report of the findings can help support legal proceedings, determine computer misuse, assist internal investigations and provide other electronic discovery. For more information, use the link. Resource Links Trace Security/CUNA Strategic Service Diebold ranked among world's top outsource providers NORTH CANTON, Ohio (5/7/08)--ATM manufacturer Diebold has been named a top outsourcing service provider for the second year in a row by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP). IAOP released its 2008 Global Outsourcing Top 100 award standings. Diebold was ranked 47th. Companies earning the distinction are judged on company size and growth, customer satisfaction, depth of competence and management capabilities. Diebold also was named one of the: Best 10 companies with the most country presence; Best 20 companies by industry focus; and Best 20 companies by services offered. Diebold provides financial self-service delivery to financial institutions, including credit unions. Resource Links Diebold/CUNA Strategic Service Great contact experience impacts business, says study CUPERTINO, Calif. (5/6/08)--More than 74% of respondents to a recent TuVox survey said a great contact center can have a large impact on their business. TuVox is a provider of OnDemand speech applications used by credit unions, such as American Airlines FCU, Dallas. Though customer service is the biggest influence on loyalty, many institutions use technology only to deflect calls and contain costs, which frustrates consumers, TuVox said. The company recently released more than 50 on-demand application modules for the Intelligent Customer Front Door (ICDF) solution, which allows companies to discern the identity and intent of a caller, gather relevant information, determine how to treat callers--based on business rules--and match the customer with the most relevant and available resource. CU program launches student loan product LANSING, Mich. (5/6/08)--Credit Union Student Choice, a collaborative credit union service organization (CUSO), is now offering a new student loan product to help defray the costs of college. The product, Credit Union Student Choice, aims to fill the gap between federal student aid and rising tuition, fees and other student-related expenses. Credit unions founding the project are: Affinity Plus FCU, St. Paul, Minn.; Digital FCU, Marlborough, Mass.; NASA FCU, Bowie, Md.; NuUnion CU, Lansing, Mich.; San Antonio (Texas) FCU; Star One CU, Sunnyvale, Calif.; and Wright-Patt CU, Fairborn, Ohio. Affinity Plus, NuUnion and Wright-Patt have gone live with the solution. "Many families have been forced to seek higher cost loans to pay for education," said Teresa Mayer, NuUnion vice president of lending. She noted that the product has no origination fees, flexible repayment terms, lower interest rates and deferment of principle and interest while students are enrolled. Students enrolled at least half-time in a degree-granting program are eligible. Approved students can borrow from $1,000 up to the total cost of attendance, less other financial aid. The maximum borrowing amount is $75,000. About 1,700 colleges and universities participate in the program. Business partners for the CUSO include PSCU Financial Services, Digital Dialogue, Credit Union Direct Lending and CUAnswers. U.S. Central, Fiserv announce DP contract with new CUSO BROOKFIELD, Wis. (5/5/08)--Fiserv and U.S. Central FCU have announced a new core processing agreement between Fiserv and Core Network Processing (CNP), a credit union service organization. The agreement runs through December 2011. Fiserv will provide core processing for: Corporate America CU, Irondale, Ala.; FirstCorp CU, Phoenix; Kentucky Corporate FCU, Louisville, Ky.; Louisiana Corporate CU, Metairie, La.; Missouri Corporate CU, St. Louis, Mo.; Tricorp FCU, Portland, Maine; U.S. Central FCU, Lenexa, Kan.; and West Virginia Corporate CU, Parkersburg, W.Va. U.S. Central provides processing for member credit unions through the Corporate Credit Union Network System, a three-tiered Fiserv solution for corporate credit unions. A previous contract ran through May 2009. When U.S. Central announced its decision to exit core processing, the contract was transferred to CNP and was extended for two-and-a-half years. Fiserv is a core processor for credit unions headquartered in Brookfield, Wis. CO-OP Financial Services seats officers, new director RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. (5/5/08)--CO-OP Financial Services has seated officers and elected a new director to its board. J. David Osborn, president/CEO, Anheuser-Busch Employees CU, St. Louis, Mo., was elected chairman of the board. He replaces David Maus, president/CEO of Public Service CU, Denver. Maus' term expired, but he will remain on the board. Osborn has worked in the credit union industry for 32 years. He has been president/CEO of Anheuser-Busch Employees CU since 1992. Gary Oakland, president/CEO, BECU, Seattle, was elected to the board. He succeeds Tom Sargent, president/CEO, First Tech CU, Beaverton, Ore. Sargent's term expired. Oakland has been president/CEO of BECU since 1986. Other officers include vice chairman Doug Allman, president/CEO, NASA FCU, Upper Marlboro, Md. And treasurer Terry Laudki, president/CEO, New Mexico Educators' FCU, Albuquerque, N.M. Diane Addington, president/CEO, T and C FCU, Pontiac, Mich., will continue as board secretary and Bucky Sebastian, president/CEO, GTE FCU, Tampa Bay, Fla., will serve a three-year term. CO-OP Financial Services is a credit union service organization that provides ATM network access, ATM processing, debit/credit card services and shared branching. It also has more than 25,000 surcharge-free ATMs for credit union members. CUSO providing free data processing to start-up CUs GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (5/5/08)--CUAnswers, a credit union service organization, announced that it will help start-up credit unions by providing them free data processing for two years. The credit union is responsible only for any third party pass-through fees, the company said Thursday. CUAnswers also will meet with the credit union's management team to adjust processing fees accordingly. "It may work out to being a 'step ladder' approach to gradually increasing fees during the next three-year period to assist a credit union's early growth efforts," the company said. Credit unions are required to sign an initial five-year processing agreement with CUAnswers to launch the program. No early termination fees apply.
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