Third annual survey also shows that credit union CEOs are optimistic about 2012 but remain concerned about the weak economy, loan demand and regulatory burden.

AUSTIN, Texas – According to Abound Resources’ survey of more than 450 senior credit union executives, CEOs are feeling more positive than last year in spite of the regulatory cloud. Only 16% report that they are either somewhat or very pessimistic about 2012 and almost half of CEOs (43%) feel either somewhat optimistic or very optimistic about 2012.

Unlike 2011, when CEOs were uncertain about what regulations such as the Dodd-Frank Act and the Durbin Amendment would really mean for their institutions, CEOs in 2012 are a bit more optimistic because they are now able to plan for the impact of these and other regulations and drive their organizations toward the future.

But regulations, along with a weak economy and loan demand, continue to weigh on CEOs minds. “Credit unions CEOs are very concerned about the regulatory environment because they often lack internal resources to fully understand what will be required,” said Brad Smith, President and CEO of Abound Resources. “Most credit unions will require external assistance to fully prepare for the coming regulatory requirements.”

While operational efficiency and improving utilization and ROI on technology remain high priorities, CEOs place increased importance on improving sales and marketing with 57% of CEOS naming it as their number one growth priority. Almost half (46%) indicated that expanding online presence and adding electronic banking channels is a high priority. “Credit union CEOs are recognizing that they need to step up their efforts to gain market share and demonstrate state of the art delivery channel technology to compete in today’s increasingly electronic and mobile financial services environment,” noted Smith.

Consistent with 2010 and 2011 surveys results, improving efficiency and better use of technology are CEOs’ top cost savings priorities.

In addition to CEOs, Abound Resources polled chief operating officers, chief information officers and chief financial officers about their technology concerns and project plans.

COOs, CIOs and CFOs plan to extract more value from existing technology purchases and vendor relationships, with 68% naming optimization as their top concern for 2012. In addition, these executives are also concerned about delivering quality support to users, information security and compliance, and not having enough resources to complete projects. Three-quarters (72%) of respondents reported that their technology spending would remain flat or only slightly elevated, and only 15% noted that spending would increase significantly

However, comparing CEO growth priorities with COO, CIO and CFO technology project plans shows a clear disconnect. “The priorities for the C-suite center on technologies that increase customer convenience but don’t move the needle on the CEO’s focus on improving sales and marketing,” said Smith.

A complimentary whitepaper analyzing the complete survey results o will be available for download from January 24^th at www.aboundresources.com.

About Abound Resources

Abound Resources is a full service management consulting firm devoted to the community financial services industry.  They provide a full array of services designed to improve performance and profitability and help cope with an increasingly stringent regulatory environment, which includes:

• Technology
• Small Business & Commercial
• Operations and Payments
• Retail Strategy, Marketing and Sales
• Lending
• Risk Management and Compliance
• Strategic Planning

CONTACT:

Deirdre Grubbs, Marketing Director, 512-351-3703, dgrubbs@aboundresources.com

For more information on Abound Resources' please visit http://www.AboundResources.com

FREE RESOURCES:

A complimentary whitepaper analyzing the survey results will be available on January 24^th from the Abound Resources website

Brad Smith, President and CEO of Abound Resources, will present the highlights of the survey in a free webinar on January 24, 2012 at 2:00pm Central. To register: please go to the following link:  http://www.aboundresources.com/resource-library/live-webinars/credit-unions-insights-2012-industry-trends-and-recommended-strategie

Additional free resources can be found at http://www.aboundresources.com/resource-library

Abound Resources’ proprietary contract negotiations methodology has saved community financial institutions tens of millions of dollars and built in thousands of protective provisions to guarantee ongoing success and cost efficiency.

You will be “married” to your selected vendors and it is important that you negotiate both the best price and best terms to create a “win/win” relationship.

Whether you are negotiating new contracts or renegotiating existing contracts, our methodology applies.

Please join us for this complimentary one hour executive briefing where we will discuss:

• Secrets to getting better pricing including the easy way to get 10% price cuts as a starting point
• How to know if you’re paying list price and what to do to pay less
• How to get service level agreements (SLAs) built into contracts to encourage vendors to meet your expected service levels 
• Where vendors can and will cut and what their margins are
• The top 5 riskiest terms you need address
• How to build vendor management compliance into all contracts

Presenter: Brad Smith, President and CEO of Abound Resources. Brad has over 20 years experience helping community banks achieve their business goals. His specialty is integrating bank strategy with product, operations, technology and sales execution. He also serves as a strategy and technology advisor to several bank trade associations, is a guest lecturer at two banking schools and is a frequent speaker at industry shows

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was formed through the Dodd Frank Act and took over direct regulation of consumer compliance issues for banks as of July 21, 2011.

Although CFPB will inititally focus on banks over $10 billion in assets, the direction of the Bureau will impact all banks as they set the tone for consumer compliance examination.The new examination manual is therefore of great interest to all financial institutions.

The Bureau is starting to examine the larger banks and issued examination manuals in October 2011. The Bureau can also participate in examinations of smaller financial institutions, along with the primary federal regulators (FDIC, FRB, OCC, NCUA). Additionally, the Bureau has taken over “ownership” of a lengthy list of consumer regulations from the Federal Reserve.

Please join us for a complimentary executive briefing during which we will discuss:

• What is the mission of the Bureau?
• What are areas of primary focus – the “Core Functions” of the CFPB?
• What is the Office of Servicemembers Affairs?
• What regulations are now “owned” by the CFPB? What regulations did not move to the new Bureau?
• UDAAP – The new manual defines abusive practices! What to look for.
• What is new in the manual in the sections built upon prior examination manuals (HMDA, TILA, RESPA, etc.)
• Efforts on the combined early TILA and GFE  (Know Before You Owe) – What is the status? Can we expect more combined disclosures?

And, we'll take your questions!

Regulators are increasingly advising financial institutions to develop and improve their enterprise risk management programs.  Boards of Directors and Management, however, struggle to determine exactly what these programs should include, how they should be documented and how they should be implemented. 

Please join us for this complimentary one hour executive briefing, where, participants will learn about:

• Understanding an institution’s “Risk Appetite”
• Developing a Risk Appetite statement
• Methods for developing and documenting risk assessments
• Preparing Risk Control Self Assessments
• Determining Key Performance and Key Risk Indicators
• Developing a Key Risk Indicator Dashboard and supporting “Risk Indices”
• Structuring the ERM Organization

And, we'll take your questions!

This webinar was held as part of our FREE Webinar Series. It is available to download free on demand.

The small business banking market can be a lucrative and stable source of customers.  The key is to approach this market with a complete banking relationship and an understanding of the unique needs of small businesses.

Please join us for a complimentary one hour executive web briefing during which we will share experiences and insights around approaching this market.

We will discuss: 

• How to grow fee income from small business accounts
• How to avoid the Profitability Killers  -- 3 key decisions to avoid that reduce small business customer income
• How to estimate your small business market opportunity
• How to segment your market and tailor products to customer needs
• A small business profitability model
• A review of emerging products that will appeal to small businesses
• Five sales and marketing best practices for growing small business accounts

Presenter: 

As a Texas Community Banker, our plates are often so full we sometimes find our long-term strategic goals have fallen through the cracks. Not because we don't understand what needs to be done or aren't capable of doing what it takes to meet the goal, but rather because we have successfully managed our head count and focused on the day to day operations of our banks. Simply put, we find ourseves in a position where our band width is too thin to reach all of our goals.

Luckily, we can lean on Abound Resources to help us expand our band width.

At Abound Resources "Goals Achieved. Guaranteed." is not just a tag line or slogan, it's how Abound measures success. Their assessments and recommendations are focused on prioritizing actionable steps consistent with obtaining the long-term strategic goals for your bank. If you don't achieve the set goals established at the begining of your project with Abound, they will refund their fees. No questions asked.

Many of you are aware of Abound Resources and may have even worked with them on projects in the past. Abound has provided technology, operational efficiency and cash management consulting services to community banks since 1997. And while technology clearly remains a core competency overall, high performance community bankers continue to hone their efficiences with strategic periodic reviews. 

When Abound is in your bank for technology projects, they are working with you from the perspective of a full consulting firm. Consultants are involved to improve performance and profitability. They are also prepared to help you cope with an increasing stringent regulatory environment. 

At ValueBank Texas, Abound has been a trusted advisor in a number of areas. They facilitated our strategic planning process and helped us articulate specific goals and related action items. They have evaluated our branch trading areas and have recommended programs designed to double our commercial deposits and fee income. They have helped us refine our account opening process. And they have identified nearly $300,000 in operational efficiences and cost savings. 

As a company founded to help community banks plan, select and optimize technology, Abound Resources  understands how banks work from the inside out.

To learn more, contact Ryan Esquell - a member of IBAT's Board of Director's and Chairman of IBAT's Associate Member Council - at 512-351-3702 or resquell@aboundresources.com 

Written by: Scott Heitkamp. Scott is the Chairman of the IBAT Services Board and President and Chief Executive Officer of ValueBank Texas in Corpus Christi.

Webinar Date:  Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - 2:00pm

There are new regulations that will impact virtually every ATM machine in the country.  This complimentary one hour exclusive briefing will highlight questions related to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and financial institutions, including requirements for automated teller machines (ATMs).

We will discuss:

• What types of businesses are covered by the ADA
• What are the requirements of the ADA for ATMs
• What is the deadline for ATM compliance under the Act
• What other requirements of the ADA affect financial institutions
• Are financial institutions required to bring other forms of communications into compliance such as websites, telephones, and in person communications
• How can financial institutions determine the requirements, and determine if compliance would constitute an “undue burden” under the Act

Presenter: Kathleen Blanchard, Senior Consultant, Abound Resources, Inc. Kathleen has 25 years banking experience, including risk management and internal controls, compliance, lending and credit policy at large multi-bank and smaller community bank financial institutions. She has served as BSA/AML/OFAC Officer, Privacy Officer, Compliance Manager and Risk Manager. She has had articles published in Compliance Weekly and the ABA Banking Journal.

In response to our clients' questions about how to deal with the difficult economic and regulatory environment, Abound Resources has developed a set of solutions to assist Credit Unions.

These solutions are designed to:

• Lower risk management and compliance costs
• Wring the last bit of efficiencies out of technology and operations
• Increase the fee income from commercial and small business customers

During this session we will discuss:

• The top 3 strategies for dealing with Dodd-Frank, Durbin, Reg Q and the difficult economy
• Abound's risk and compliance program designed to improve vendor performance and manage vendor risks. It is guaranteed to meet all regulatory guidelines for vendor management and cut the time you spend on your vendor management program by at least 75%
• Abound's Risk Management program - a comprehensive program to provide enterprise risk management and compliance review at a fraction of the cost of doing it yourself

Reg Q... What Are Your Plans?

More than 75% of Community Financial Institutions do not have definitive plans for addressing the impending changes in Regulation Q.

Abound Resources has polled several hundred bankers during attendance at recent industry events and during presentation of our latest on-line webinars. What we found is that most institutions do not have plans to deal with Reg Q. Further, they do not fully understand the potential ramifications of the new Regs.

Reg Q Mitigation Strategy

We have also developed a methodology for helping our clients increase and retain commercial customer market share and increase fee income. We would like to share our thoughts around how we can be of assistance to you as this legislation takes effect.

If you would like to discuss any of this information or talk further about strategies for addressing Reg Q email Brad Smith, Abound Resources CEO at MBSmith@AboundResources.com or give us a call at 512-231-1750.

Abound Resources shares results from its annual survey of community banks and credit unions.

If you're only using 50% of your technology, why are you paying for 100%?

Many efficiency projects never achieve the expected benefits because they never get implemented. Those that do often only serve as a one-time fix before the bank falls back into inefficient habits. Worse, many of those initiatives end up creating irreversible employee fears or irreparable damage to customers.
Today’s challenges call for a better way to address efficiency. What is needed is a long-lasting, strategic approach that will not hurt customers or create a fearful work environment for your employees.
In our experience, success comes from a strategic, three legged stool approach that includes revenue management, expense management and a relentless focus on improving business processes.

Learn the Five Ways IT and Ops Can Ease the Sting of Regulatory Reform ....

Some encouraging signs:

• Unprofitable institutions are down significantly...some as the result of consolidation but many as a result of having hit the bottom of problem loans and are on the way back up
• Net Interest margin is up
• Charge offs are down a bit
• Unfortunately non-interest income to earning assets continues its downward trend but it was mostly flat last year
• ROA, while not great, is at least – on average – positive

How to save money and time while complying with vendor management regulations ...

A technology plan is the single most important ingredient to effectively using technology in your organization.  It gets everyone on the same page.  It helps you kill bad projects and accelerate good ones.

IT spending is the second largest non-interest expense and is growing 8-10% a year yet efficiency ratios are flat. So we hear many Boards and executives asking if technology is delivering on its promise. We also hear from CIOs and IT Executives who say they can’t get their users engaged. They buy great products, but people don’t invest the time to learn them.