Lobby Management

How Veridian Credit Union Reduced Wait Times and Improved Member Service

Formerly known as the John Deere Community Credit Union, the $1.8 billion Veridian Credit Union has grown from its humble beginnings to be the largest credit union in Iowa, serving members across 26 locations.  On a mission to remain a leader in the industry, Veridian took an honest look at their institution and recognized a gap in measuring the performance for the platform side of their branch.  Upon implementing FMSI’s Lobby Tracking System™ (LTS), Veridian has seen improved employee performances, a decrease in member wait-times, and an improved lobby service experience.

Systematic Member Tracking

Prior to operating with FMSI’s electronic queue management system in their lobby, greeters at Veridian tracked member traffic.  This manual process involved filling out cards and then physically taking the cards to each loan officer or member service specialist.  This labor intensive process was not efficient. 

“It was time for us to get away from such a manual process,” says Shelly McGill, a Regional Manager at Veridian.  “Too much is at risk when it comes to our commitment to service excellence.”

An electronic queue management system moves all the information flow online.  All credit union employees, including senior level staff, can see real-time views of members waiting in their lobby.  The result is a systematic member tracking system that establishes accountability on the platform side of the branch. 

“Our average member wait time has gone down since we rolled-out FMSI’s Lobby Tracking System™,” explains McGill.  “Best of all, no member leaves without prompt assistance—due to the LTS system alerts that are sent out when somebody has been waiting too long.”

Avoiding Bottlenecks

Veridian’s transition to LTS has allowed them to more effectively match a member need to specific staff with the right skill sets.  For example, a member visiting a branch to open or service an IRA will meet with a member service representative who has received that specialized training.

“Members benefit because they are served more quickly, which has led to us being a more efficient credit union overall,” says McGill.  “This process has completely eliminated long wait times in our lobbies.”

LTS Best Practices from a Regional Manager at Veridian

• The LTS sales and service reports make the coaching process easy by pinpointing specific employee training needs, such as measuring the average time for processing certain loans for each member service representative or loan officer.
• Our employees utilize the LTS Notes Section to track our members’ needs when they come into the credit union.  This allows our staff to provide more personalized and professional service by having timely and relevant information at their fingertips.
• LTS requires your team’s buy-in.  Make sure all your branch employees have a clear understanding of the intentions and benefits of the program.

With a more systematic tracking system in place, Veridian is experiencing improved traffic flow and member service.  FMSI’s LTS aids Veridian in providing careful attention and personalized care to each member.