Each PlanIt is staffed by employees who are all trained and certified financial wellness coaches ready to help members "plan it," – their current and future financial needs and dreams. The credit union calls this initiative the Workers Way, which provides personalized, judgement-free coaching at no cost to members. The program guides members through a step-by-step process of changing how they think about and manage their money so that they can achieve financial wellness and goals.

Workers CU's PlanIt Center

The credit union's new branch concept may have come at just the right time because many Americans are dealing with difficult financial issues caused by the coronavirus health and economic crisis.

More than 40% of non-retired adults said the pandemic's economic impact will make it more challenging for them to achieve their long-term financial goals, according to a Pew Research Center survey released in April.

Among the 51% of survey respondents who reported their financial situation got worse during the pandemic, 44% think it will take them three years or more to recover financially from where they were in 2020, and one in 10 said they don't think their finances will fully recover.

Although their financial concerns are less pressing than in the early days of the pandemic, many Americans have remained worried about meeting some basic needs, according to Pew, which surveyed more than 10,000 adults.

Even before the pandemic, however, Workers Chief Banking Officer Peter Rice pointed out that surveys and research revealed the deepening problems of income and wealth inequalities among consumers.

"Most people don't have four hundred dollars to pay for an emergency expense, which we've all heard about, and that includes people with salaries of over $100,000," Rice said. "That's absolutely stunning."

Peter Rice

Rice said he believes the branch can be a critical channel to engage people and help them achieve financial wellness.

"If you go to the museum of science in Boston or the Benjamin Franklin museum of science [in Philadelphia], they are built around the concepts of engaging with their people, bringing people into the art of the science or the building and inspiring them, including on diversity and inclusion, and encouraging them, particularly women, to consider careers in engineering and science," Rice said.

The same type of concept, he added, can be applied to the credit union branch to engage and empower people to learn how to improve their financial well-being.

"How are you going to engage and empower people if you don't give them the opportunity to learn, to see what's achievable, to see what's possible?" Rice asked. "So, we worked with this concept on a center that we call PlanIt because we want people to feel that they are empowered and that they can plan for financial wellness. Everything in the PlanIt center is designed to make members feel empowered, to bring them in and engage with them because I absolutely believe that on the basic human level, people want advice, a mentorship or partnership, but they want to do it themselves."

Workers has opened three PlanIt centers in Hudson, Lowell and Worcester. Plans are in place to convert the credit union's remaining 14 branches into PlanIt locations by the end of the year.

Olivia, the interactive hologram, not only greets members, but does so in the language of their choosing. Currently, she speaks English, Spanish, Vietnamese and American sign language.

Because Workers has evolved its model around financial education and wellness, Olivia plays an important role in helping members check in, for both existing and walk-in financial coaching appointments, and in scheduling future appointments.

The credit union said her presence removes the "pain point" for members waiting in a lobby to be acknowledged or helped. Olivia sends an electronic notification once members check in for their appointment so that their financial coach can welcome them. The appointment also is tracked in the system to make it easier to set up the next session. The PlanIt centers have private spaces to hold personalized coaching sessions with members.

For members who might have an appointment for a loan or other transaction, Olivia also provides them with a brief introduction to the Workers Way.

About 80% of PlanIt visitors interact or check-in with Olivia, according to Workers.

Standing near Olivia is Pepper, an artificial intelligence-powered robot. She currently carries on novel conversations and humors members by telling jokes. Workers said Pepper will expand its focus on member inclusivity and engagement as her AI algorithms broaden her capabilities to interact with members in more ways.

In 2018, the $1.6 billion Clearview Federal Credit Union introduced Pepper at its Moon Township, Pa., branch, which was used answer member questions, promote products and services, and play games with kids.

The PlanIt centers also feature large, paneled touch screens that display the PlanIt interactive app, which ask members questions to best match them with financial products or services that can help them accomplish their goals.

The app, which was recently recognized as a 2021 Diamond Award winner in the category of financial education by CUNA, is part of the credit union's goal to provide judgement-free financial education by leveraging easy-to-use technology that removes friction from the banking process.