Software for managing the loan portfolio can range fromspreading and credit analysis through impairment analysis or saleof the loan. In most cases, the adoption of such software requiresa change in process as well as an investment from the credit union.In addition to total cost of ownership, what other considerationsshould credit unions have for evaluating potential software and itsvendor?

Software Functionality

Functionality requirements will vary widely depending on theneeds of the credit union. However, these questions can be astarting point for functionality review.

  • Does the vendor provide a live software demonstration or allowthe credit union to use the solution hands-on prior topurchasing?
  • Does the vendor have a solution to manage each stage of thelife of the loan, including:

  • Tracking interactions with existing and prospectivemembers;
  • Credit decisions, end to end;
  • Loan portfolio management;
  • Portfolio risk management; and
  • Allowance for loan and lease losses?
  • Does the solution interact with external data sources to addmore value to users, including Credit bureaus, FRED economic data,peer group data or private company benchmarking for member businessloans?
  • Does the solution provide a single point of data entry thatflows throughout the solution to save the credit union time? Can itimport data to remove data entry completely?
  • Is the solution installed (server-based), web-based oraccessible via VPN? How will that impact the hardware the creditunion has to maintain?
  • Will all credit union employees have access to the solution asneeded? Will that access be tracked and/or managed as neededthrough the use of separate logins?
  • Are there limitations to the number of reports that can begenerated or number of users who can login?
  • Is the solution:
    • Easy to use?
    • Flexible in its analysis and reporting to meet theinstitution's current procedural needs?
    • Customizable in terms of institutional defaults andsettings?

    Integration, Implementation and Support

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