Ink on the Interview
Q: What brings you to Emerge this year?
A: We were excited to hear from other credit unions about what they’re doing with the Eltropy platform and even share a little bit as to what we were doing with the Eltropy platform and then also today is Innovation Day, so we are looking forward to what that does for our credit union and our members, right?
Q: Can you share what your part of the discussion was all about?
A: Absolutely, how you’re using AI. So we’ve really focused on member service and the contact center experience. Chatto went live for us with Altropy about two years ago and that has really given a member self-service option when they’re looking to be a digital member right and outside of business that works. We saw immense results from that 20 percent decrease in calls, reductions in cost, absolute the Chatbot’s taking all.
All the kinds of low-hanging fruit. I guess you’re questions, yes, yes, automating those. And we also have agent chats. So when they can’t get an answer from Ruth is our Champa, then they can still talk to an agent, and it’s still a digital experience. And then in February of this year, we launched the AI Voice product, and so that’s in our IVR as well. So we gave Ruth a voice, and members have been using her and interacting with her, and we’ve seen very good results there as well.
Q: Can you share a before-and-after picture?
A: Yes. So we have seen from a containment rate with the AI Voice product between about 55 and 60 percent. Members still like to talk to an agent; sometimes, they still just need that human touch. So we do see that after certain questions, they might transfer because they got some information that needs to continue that conversation. And since as a part of our IVR we have some members gravitate towards that, and some still kind of use more of that traditional thought process of a phone IVR system getting to one of us. So I think that’s probably the biggest thing of again, taking those simple questions and being able to automate them. Really freeing up our agents timeline. To have those good complex. Detailed conversations with our members.
Q: Those simple questions you can get out of the way super easily. But this gives you an opportunity to have more detailed, more in-depth conversations about the challenges members might be having, or can provide them with solutions that really strengthen the bond between the crediting and the members, right? So this allows you to do that type of stuff, it does freeze that time up, it does. This is awesome.
A: Yes, enhancement, right? AI is there to support and enhance that experience. Not take away from the right, and as a partnership between the two.
Q: How is the staff enjoying this?
A: Yeah, we have a group of specialists who use the application the most. The chat perspective and then all of our contact center agents are exposed. When a member comes in, maybe from that channel of speaking with the AI voice and being able to then even educate our members and so we really started off this process of implementing AI and involving our staff. Making sure they’re aware of how true Stone wants to use AI, how they can share that with a member because there can be here around AI and so making sure our members also know that we are doing it in a safe and secure way. We put proper controls in place to protect their information. And so when we give that information and that knowledge to our staff, they feel really empowered did use that and then support that conversation with well give them the confidence to do their job and do it well. So happy staff, happy members, yes, unions, yes, everything soars when the no doubt, no doubt.
Q: What’s on the horizon for you?
A: So, AI has iterations and phases like anything right? It evolved. So now what we’re going to be looking to do is take that next step and really be focusing not just on AI but generative AI, right, understanding how we can automate better, more efficiently and so that generative AI is really going to give the conversational feel, building trust. In that style of a product and that’s going to be exciting. We’re excited to break it down from the member experience and then the employee experience that.
Q: How does this technology position your credit union in the community? What’s the underlying message, or the philosophy behind all this? I want to get your take on the behind the process.
A: That’s a fantastic question. I think what it really gives us is a credit union is the ability to be agile and address and meet our members. Every member’s different, so we want to meet them where they are at, and that’s where that relevancy comes in, right, because we have members who want to come in and just speak to an agent, and we have that we’re there for those members. We’re also there for those members that don’t want to talk to anybody, and they just want to use our self-serve options and so that’s investing in these technologies is what’s going to get us there and help us remain relevant.
