At the $3.5 billion Mountain America Credit Union, it's a snapfor members to tap into technology, thanks to 78 specially trainedemployees that answer questions, give demonstrations and providehands-on assistance.

To promote new products and services such as P2P andmobile deposits, the 419,000-member Utah credit union has staffed each of its 76 branches, along with its service center andeducation department, with a designated “technology champion.”

“There's nothing like hands-on help with technology, so we'veturned every branch into a mini tech haven for our members,” saidRob Cummings, senior vice president of online and mobile bankingfor the West Jordan-based credit union.

“In addition to helping members, our technology champions arealso a valuable conduit for member feedback, allowing us to improveour online and mobile offerings faster and more effectively,”Cummings said.

Putting tech champs in every branch is already paying off, theMACU executive said.

“We found that once members were given a brief demonstration,they became frequent, repeat users of our technology solutions,”Cummings said.

In the first third of 2013, he said, MACU experienced more than35,000 new mobile app downloads and currently has 85,000 active appusers. In addition, he said, the credit union is averaging morethan 8,000 new users monthly of its “My Money Manager” onlinepersonal financial management tool.

“As expert users, our branch tech champions can field a widevariety of product questions, but they are not expected to take theplace of our dedicated technology product support team in ourservice center,” he said. “Their primary role is to generateexcitement about our technology products, and engage members andemployees.”

As one part of the technology champ initiative, the credit unionhas implemented a branch-wide “Tech Tuesday” program. During theweekly event, staff members wear “Tech Tuesday” shirts and talk tomembers about their credit union's electronic tools.

The tech champs also teach other employees about new technologyby hosting training sessions and other events to equip staff withthe skills and information needed to effectively promote productsand services.

The technology champion program was spurred by two reasons,Cummings said.

“First, we needed a way to educate our branch personnel aboutour technology products so they can effectively field the steadyincrease in member questions,” he explained. “Second, we needed achannel to explain the value of technology to our membership.“

Another factor was the downward trend in branch activity that isoccurring as an increasing number of members turn to digitalchannels to conduct banking transactions, according toCummings.

“Considering that more transactions are performed every day viaMountain America's online and mobile services than in all of ourbranches combined, we can see our members are rapidly embracingtechnology solutions,” he said.

Next Page: Training and ROI

Training employees is a long-standing priorityat MACU and the credit union's board recognizes the value ofdeveloping talent from within, according to Suzanne Oliver, seniorvice president of educational services and governmental affairs forMACU, which was recently ranked for the third time by TrainingMagazine as one of the top 125 providers of employer-sponsoredworkforce training and development.

To determine ROI, Cummings said, the credit union measuresmonthly branch level usage growth of each of our technologyproducts, particularly those that accomplish one of threethings:

1. Increased engagement with thecredit union
2. Reduced operational costs
3. Additional product usage

Selecting the tech champs and training them required acommitment from MACU's leadership, according to Cummings, but theinvestment is paying off. He said the credit union selectedtechnology champions from many different branch roles, includingmember service representatives, operations supervisors andassistant managers.

“The champion for each branch is selected by the branch managerfrom among their employees using a list of qualifications whichinclude being a highly engaged, motivated employee who ispassionate about and uses our technology products, having atechnical aptitude and an ability to excite their co-workers,” hesaid.

“Once a branch manager has selected the champion, the championcomes to the corporate office for a full-day training session onour products and the operations of the program, then participatesin weekly operational calls and monthly product calls to keep themup to speed going forward. The champion is then givenresponsibility to teach and excite the rest of the branch about ourtechnology products,” Cummings said.

He said other credit unions should implement similar programsand offers this advice:

“I would recommend careful selection of your champions to makesure they are passionate and already personally engaged with yourtechnology.

“The second biggest success factor is a supportive manager whoempowers the champion and defends the time needed for that personto share with the branch. So I would recommend covering the valueof this program and your support of it clearly in a manager'smeeting.”