Brings phone, digital interactions, and automation together for seamless member service
About Harvard Federal Credit Union
Assets
$1.038B in assets under management
People
50,000 members worldwide
Locations
4 Branches
Challenges
Solutions
Needed to upgrade an aging phone system
Unifying Glia Call Center, Digital Customer Service, and conversational chatbot ‘Ivy’ enabled seamless interactions across all channels
Sought automated self-serve member options
A single member service platform streamlined training, administration, and reporting, delivering significant efficiencies
Wanted to align to digital-first lifestyle of members
Glia’s solution provided effective options for members who require remote service as well as the growing number of members who prefer digital-first service
Results
45%
increase in Digital Interactions
65%
decrease in Average Wait Time
43%
increase in Total Engagements
Redefining Member Services with a Seamless Approach
As an institution that prides itself on delivering excellent member service, Harvard Federal Credit Union began to explore digital-first options several years ago. The credit union wanted a better way to support members who move out of the area, such as Harvard Alumni, while also aligning to the digital lifestyle that students and many Harvard staff increasingly favor.
Harvard FCU assessed solutions to enable online chat and audio choices for members, with the ability to add video in the future. Adding automation was also a big part of the credit union’s digital service transformation plan. Harvard FCU wanted a virtual assistant that could quickly deliver answers for routine, commonly-asked questions and also provide after-hours support. As part of the team’s vision for a seamless member experience, it was crucial that the chatbot could easily transition members to a live representative, if they required additional support.
On top of evaluating digital-first solutions, Harvard FCU also faced a call center replacement project, as its old phone system was reaching the end of its lifecycle. The confluence of a digital member service project with automated conversational AI plus an overhaul of the call center inspired the credit union to seek a single platform for phone and digital interactions.
A Single Platform for Phone, Automation, and Digital Interactions
Harvard FCU was impressed with the Glia Interaction Platform for digital-first options and the solution’s ease-of-use in particular. Based on that, and realizing that a call center replacement was central to the overall service solution, the credit union explored Glia Call Center to manage traditional phone calls.
A fully integrated component of the Glia Interaction Platform, Glia Call Center brings traditional phone calls together with digital engagements, including support for chatbots through Glia’s AI Management solution. After a thorough assessment of all options, Harvard FCU chose Glia to consolidate all interactions from dial-in phone, digital, and mobile devices onto one connected platform for a seamless member experience. Glia was the only solution that was able to provide the ChannelLess experience Harvard FCU’s members expected.
Transitioning from its legacy phone system to Glia Call Center was the top priority in Harvard FCU’s digital service transformation. At the same time, it launched its new chatbot, called Ivy, to provide automated self-service support and kick off the digital member journey. With Glia Call Center and Ivy successfully deployed, Harvard FCU expanded member options with OnScreen Voice and live chat features.
“Glia’s single-platform solution gave us more flexibility for when we could introduce functionality to support member service. Considering that we faced a complete conversion of our phone system, we were able to deploy Glia Call Center first and then introduce new digital channels after our team was up-to-speed with phone support. This would have been challenging with multiple call center and digital platforms,” said Tom Montilli, EVP and Chief Experience Officer at Harvard FCU.
The Employee Experience Drives the Member Experience
The single-platform approach has been an advantage for the Harvard FCU member service team too. Glia’s digital platform enabled representatives to work remotely, which was essential during the pandemic and continues to provide flexibility for staffing today. Training has been simplified, with the service team mastering how to use a single platform as opposed to learning multiple systems on disparate platforms.
Harvard FCU has been able to streamline the management of member service through unified routing and administration to further optimize the support team. Reporting is also more efficient, pulling data on all interactions across one platform. Glia’s customer success team worked closely with Harvard FCU to understand reporting needs and develop capabilities that help improve administration, the employee experience, and overall member service.
Meeting Member Needs Today and Tomorrow
Online channels are proving popular as the number of digital interactions continues to climb, reducing overall call volume. Members are able to connect with representatives more quickly resulting in a lower average wait time. OnScreen Collaboration, including CoBrowsing, has been especially helpful for more complex issues, such as reviewing a loan application or helping a member find online resources.
Harvard FCU plans to enable Glia’s video feature later this year, providing another option for members. Having all service channels fully integrated on one interaction platform not only helped Harvard FCU with its rolled-out deployment, but also positions the credit union to easily introduce future capabilities.
