Service 1st Federal Credit Union (“Service 1st”) is a $690 million credit union based in Danville, PA. Founded in 1975, it has now opened branches that serve residents throughout central Pennsylvania.

Over its nearly 50 years in business, Service 1st has always sought new ways to pursue excellence.

WHY SERVICE 1st NEEDED A NEW APPROACH

When Service 1st decided to evaluate Redboard, it hoped that the software might provide a solution to a long-standing problem: their credit union’s need for a streamlined and better-organized system for audit management.

Elisabeth Taylor, Service 1st’s vice president of audit and compliance, said that prior to Redboard, they were still tracking audits manually, via spreadsheets and email. This is common among credit unions.

She said the audit team too often relied on a flood of emails to follow up on audit requests. At times, she reported, someone who is part of the business staff might forget to respond—and then the audit team sometimes forgot that the person didn’t respond—which forced them to scramble when asked to report to their Supervisory Committee.

And further, even though they had established shared folders on a server for audit documentation, they found that colleagues would often save documents and information in other places. In Taylor’s words, they were missing a “centralized hub.”

All of this created dramatic inefficiencies, wasted time, and poor findings accountability in their audit operation. In Taylor’s words—despite Service 1st’s growth and success—they were “floundering” in their audit management and “burning time.”

THE REDBOARD DIFFERENCE

Taylor and auditor Mandi Stein estimate that within just a few weeks of  beginning to use Redboard, they began to see notable changes. Redboard’s structured process has created an environment in which, Stein said, “the back and forth is so much easier.” She noted that responses often get done “within minutes instead of days or weeks.”

The efficiency of receiving quick responses and no longer needing to rely on manual spreadsheets or cumbersome email exchanges and follow-up has resulted in extraordinary time savings. By Taylor and Stein’s estimation, from an audit team perspective, they now save at least 50% of their time. On some audits, they reported, their time savings may be closer to 75%.

Redboard was quickly adopted at Service 1st, Stein said, because “everything is so easy.” She said the staff now gets reminders if there are open findings that have not been addressed. And she emphasized how helpful it is to have “everything in one spot.”

She added that supervisors of their branch staff now have visibility into the process, that this transparency has helped supervisors lead more effectively, and that this has led to dramatically improved accountability. The supervisors, Stein said, “don’t have to come to us. They can just sign into Redboard and say, ‘Hey, you didn’t do that,’ or ‘This is the result of the audit.’”

THE RESULT

Simply put, Service 1st’s findings are being resolved far more quickly. Redboard has allowed the credit union to focus on the audits, as opposed to the administrative work that audits can demand.

Their increased efficiency, time savings, accountability—and confidence in Redboard’s simple and structured process—have helped transform their audit operation so that it can keep pace with their credit union’s growth. All of this has positioned Service 1st well for the future.