COLUMBIA, S.C. – Whether it's VP of e-business or I-branchmanager, tech-savvy credit unions have all sorts of new high-techjob titles that didn't exist a decade ago. The development of theonline delivery channel has resulted in a slew of brand-new jobtitles, which seem to morph and develop as quickly as thetechnology driving the services they provide. That morphing alsoincludes dealing with the blending of areas that once seemed tohave little do with each other: member services and dataprocessing. The experience of John Shields at Patelco Credit Unionserves as an example. “When I started in a technology role atPatelco, moving from branch and lending operations, it was asmanager of automation,” he says. “Then I became director ofinformation technology, then vice president of information oftechnology and now senior vice president of e-business.” His titlesreflect the growing importance and convergence of technology-basedfunctions at the now $3.2 billion San Francisco-based CU. “Itstarted with automating things around the branch itself, such asletters and cashier-check withdrawals but moved to be moremember-focused, first with dial-up home banking in 1995, thenInternet home banking in 1997 and then Web sites, firewalls,intrusion detection, bill payment, wireless home banking, onlinestatements, online check images, member e-mail support and membertechnical support,” Shields says. As a result, Patelco now has anI-branch manager for e-mail and Internet loan requests, and anonline specialist for member technical inquiries and bill paysupport, Shields says, keeping most of that within the ITdepartment. He sees the title of e-commerce manager becomingstandard at credit unions. That's the case on the other side of thecountry at NASA FCU in suburban Washington, where Karl Groves holdsthe title of e-commerce manager, a job that evolved and changedtitles from its original designation as Web coordinator in themarketing department. While Groves reports to Doug Payne, the $650million CU's vice president of marketing, his job involves bothtechnology delivery and member services, including working withvarious departments to decide on what services to offer and whatthird-party vendors to hire to offer them. The need to worktogether becomes quickly evident. “For example, say we're lookingat a new online mortgage application,” Groves says. “Tech Servicesmay have concerns for security of member information or systemcompatibility. Lending may have concerns over the level and qualityof information it receives, and Marketing may have concerns overthe look and feel of the interface. “As e-commerce manager my jobis to help ensure that the Web site and its tools fulfill the goalsof all stakeholders, including the members themselves.” NathanSchmidt's experience at $1 billion Schools Financial Credit Unionin Sacramento, Calif., reflects that, as well. “Our CEO recognizedthe importance of having one person in charge of the electronicservice delivery channels of the credit union. My title iselectronic services branch manager, and my job has evolved in aninteresting fashion. At first, it was more of a project managerposition. I was in charge of electronic services projects thatinvolved coordination from the vice president of informationservices,” he says. “However, the credit union has evolved duringthe four years I have been in this position. With our new hostprocessor from Symitar Systems, Schools and my position are nowmore than ever toward achieving our e-services strategic goalsestablished in 2000.” A similar evolution also has taken place atORNL FCU in Oak Ridge, Tenn., where Melissa McMahan serves aseBranch manager. “When this department was still on the drawingboard we elected to go with eBranch as the name due to the manyareas we encompassed that were similar to a branch,” McMahan says,including the $715 million CU's contact center, card services, ACHand home banking. The evolution occurred by steps as additionalfunctions were added, and McMahan observes: “It can createconfusion in the traditional thinking of how a credit unionfunctions. We are a department, with servicing duties to bothemployees and members. However, we also have member contact. Notjust the traditional face-to-face; we have to strive to give goodservice using all the delivery channels that our members prefer,telephone, Internet chat, e-mail, etc.” In addition to theevolution of e-titles and functionality in her own credit union,McMahan sees it in the industry itself: “There seems to be numerouse-titles, branches, departments popping up and we all seemed toemerge at the same time.” Internet services manager is the titleLinda Keyser holds at $1.2 billion Citizens Equity Federal CreditUnion in Peoria, Ill. She says it was a title, and a job, thatemerged to help the convergence of traditional and new servicesoccur smoothly. “Our senior management identified the need tobetter integrate corporate Internet strategy with both ourstrategic and technology plans,” Keyser says. “In addition, theInternet services manager helps business managers implemente-business solutions. “The evolution of the department resultedfrom CEFCU's desire to increase e-business opportunities. Thedepartment has continued to evolve as new opportunities havepresented themselves.” CEFCU itself has people with the titles ofchief technology officer, vice president-EFT and automated servicesmanager, each with distinct roles, Keyser says. She also has thisobservation about e-titles in the credit union industry overall.“E-titles appear to be as diverse as the responsibilitiesassociated with these positions. Titles range from director ofe-strategy, director of Internet services, vice president ofelectronic commerce or e-business senior manager to e-businessconsultant or even e-biz manager. “These titles are certainly usedin various industries, but no industry-wide title appears to beemerging.” Scott Patterson, e-commerce manager at Callahan &Associates, a keeper of vast stores of credit union data, is in aunique position to help sift through the large collection of titlesthat credit unions have given those people whose jobs are to helpdevelop and manage the fast-growing electronic channels. “Theyreally are a sign of the times, although the number of suchpositions, what the titles are and what the people do, arecertainly a function of the credit union's size and the extent ofits electronic offerings,” he says. Regardless of the function,making sure the channels flow smoothly between member and creditunion is what counts. Just ask Barbara Whitney, the veteranInternet manager at $2.5 billion ESL Federal Credit Union inRochester, N.Y. “I see a lot of e-branch managers and e-servicesmanagers in the industry,” Whitney says. “My title of Internetmanager might be somewhat unique, although there are others withthe same title. But I do think we were among the first wave ofcredit unions that actually assigned a specific person to beresponsible for the Internet channel. “And, I think no matter whatyou call the position, it generally has the same responsibility.“Whether you call the Internet channel a branch, a service or aproduct, the responsibility is to promote the Internet channel,making it easier for members to use and making sure that theInternet becomes just another way that the credit union touches itsmembers.” Along with convergence of technology understanding andmember-service awareness, of course, comes the need to find peoplewho can do both, especially at credit unions, which often can'tafford to hire a phalanx of specialists. E-titles have evolved muchmore quickly than c-titles and placement for them often means goingoutside the credit union for new talent, says Karen Houston,regional vice president of Credit Union Employment Services Inc., aservice of the Texas Credit Union League. “Although members stillwant a `brick-and-mortar' option available, technology is themuscle behind member service,” she says. “All this has fueled theexplosion of new positions and titles. “Credit unions have investeda great deal of their financial resources in technology and havecome to understand that they need special expertise to manage thattechnology.” Meanwhile, Houston says, she is seeing the emergenceof what these new titles mean and what the people holding them needto do. “As they have evolved over time, there appears to be anincreased standard expectation as to the related duties andresponsibilities of these positions,” she says. That doesn't meansuch jobs, especially those at smaller credit unions that involve alot of line-crossing, will be easy to fill. As Groves, the NASA FCUe-commerce manager, puts it: “The way I view it, such a person willhave a rare combination of technical knowledge and businessknowledge. “At the core, though, it will be an understanding of howmembers interact with a Web site. A Web site's features – itsproduct and service offerings and the technology driving it – willmean nothing without an understanding of both e-commerce strategyand usability.” -

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