Volume 57 - Bradford Scott Data Corporation

NEWSLETTER
Volume 57
3rd Quarter 2013
Bradford-Scott
data corporation
The latest technology
More products and service
Faster deployment of new products
what’s
Sangamo Chapter CU Selects Sharetec
Bradford-Scott is pleased to announce Sangamo Chapter Credit Union in
Springfield, IL, has selected the Sharetec System as their new core system.
Kim Clemens, President of Sangamo Chapter Credit Union remarks, “What
made Bradford-Scott stand out was their commitment to customer service. We
were a hard sell, but the Bradford-Scott team bent over backwards to make sure
we were comfortable with our decision to choose them as our data processor.
They have even gone a step further by incorporating customer service mentality
into the Sharetec system so that we can better serve our members.”
Fortress FCU Has Successful Conversion
Bradford-Scott is pleased to announce Fortress Federal Credit Union in Marion,
IN, converts to Sharetec with great success.
Just over a year ago, Fortress FCU made the decision to convert to Sharetec.
Lisa Blades, President of Fortress FCU had remarked, “We wanted to move to
a solution that would allow us to reduce expenses while also improving our
operations. We saw how Sharetec would automate share draft and ACH
processing, which no other processors we looked at could do. With
transmissions and everything Sharetec automates, we calculated Sharetec
would save us 90 minutes per day of manual work.”
Today, after going through their conversion, Lisa says, “All conversions are
difficult but everything went great. When we have a question, everyone has been
more than willing to step in and help. The Sharetec team is awesome and easy
to work with. We look forward to working with the Sharetec team for many years
to come.”
Winnebago Community CU saves $14,000
Annually with eServices Enrollment
Bradford-Scott is pleased to announce great success with their eServices
Enrollment product.
“We pride ourselves on our sales and service culture. The benefit to our
members is a secure and timely receipt of their statements. We have
benefited by saving money due to the lower cost of the electronic delivery,”
comments Tammy Weickert, Vice President of Winnebago Community Credit
Union in Oshkosh, WI.
inside...
2013 Users Conference 2-3
Take a look at some photos and read
about topics covered.
Social Media Promotions 4
Did you know Social Media
promotions are subject to state
and federal law?
Social Media Visa Card Winner 4
Congratulations to Members First
Community CU for participating in our
“Share Your Story” promotion.
Employee Appreciation Day 5
Bradford-Scott caters in lunch from
The Getaway Grill.
Implement Disaster Recovery 5
Having your data in multiple, safe, and
secure locations will prepare
you for a disaster.
Kites Over Lake Michigan 5
RiverWood-Maritime Credit Union
sponsors Kite Festival in Two Rivers, WI.
Tip of the Week 6
Tips on automatic transfers, best
practices, archived files, and more.
Office Source 7
A one-stop shop for all your credit
union’s paper and supply needs.
Employee Spotlight 7
Highlighted this quarter is
Conversion Analyst, Ryan Morris.
Webinar Schedule 8
Our goal is to provide exceptional
training to you and your staff within
the comforts of your own office.
contact us...
1001 Chestnut Hills Pkwy . Suite 1 . Fort Wayne, IN 46814
Phone (260) 625-5107 Fax (260) 625-6248
www.bradfordscott.com . support@bradfordscott.com
Another Successful Sharetec Users Conference
Take a look at a few photos from this year’s conference...
Kay
Avestar CU
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Betsy & Dawn
Streator CU
Kathy from Kone CU (left)
Brenda from Quad Cities CU (right)
Daryl
Gas & Electric CU
Kristen, Tim, & Barbara
Danville Bell CU
Kari, Joette, & Jeanna
Elite Community CU
Jeanna from Elite Community CU
Michael from Landmark CU
Winnebago Community CU,
Avestar CU, Members First CU (WI)
ADM CU
Tim, Randy, & Janice
Ball State FCU
Connie
Moline CU
Karen & Kazi from Members First (WI)
Candy from Marinette County CU
Teri & Suzi
Select FCU
Anna
Landmark CU
What was covered at the 2013 Annual Sharetec Users Conference
The Sharetec Users Conference was a hit this year and a good time was had by all. The
conference was packed with useful information and many attendees commented that they
learned many new things and networked with a lot of new people. The conference
materials can be found on Customer Center and below is a summary of each of the
sessions that the BSDC team covered:
Sharetec Scheduler by Rich Cook
Ever wonder what makes your system tick? The Sharetec Scheduler session showed
how to utilize Sharetec’s scheduling tool to automate daily tasks. Attendees learned how
to schedule reports for print or archiving purposes and were able to understand what daily
tasks can do for their credit union. This class took attendees through the process of saving report parameters and building
scheduled tasks to run reports. They also looked at researching issues related to failed tasks to be better able to correct what
caused them to fail.
Sharetec Hidden Gems by Rich Cook
Old tricks and new tips about Sharetec were rediscovered during this Hidden Gems session. We took a look at functionality
within Sharetec that make life a little easier for the user. We also looked at the set up of member transfers to clear up confusion
related to transfers, especially to loans. Other features covered included Help, Jump, User preferences and Dynamic Browse.
Home Banking Administration by Amanda Stroup
This training session taught attendees how to recreate e-Statements so that members do not receive multiple notifications.
They also learned how to include messages with e-Statement notifications. We also discussed how to upload your own PDF
documents to Homebanking so that members can access forms online, as well as sending them to the credit union. For
example, Debit Card applications, address change notification, etc.
Line of Credit Loans by Jason Pesetski
The Line of Credit Loans lab covered methods to expand product ranges by offering LOC type loans to members who need
cash for a variety of reasons. Home equity, overdraft, signature, and even interest only lines of credit can all be offered through
Sharetec. This lab walked users through originating an LOC loan and demonstrated the difference in the loan application.
Attendees were given the opportunity to disburse a LOC type loan and make draws against it in the Sharetec system. Hands on
illustrations showed how Sharetec calculates new payment amounts from the draws and demonstrated how the new payment is
applied.
Marketing Strategies by Jason Pesetski
Attendees experienced a new marketing potential through Sharetec using onboard reporting and data capture methods
available at their fingertips! They learned how to perform data extracts for mass emailing and merge letters, as well as how to
put Metrics to use for target marketing campaigns. The Metrics Analysis module was the main focus of discussion as
attendees built their own custom reports using personalized metrics. The Marketing lab allowed attendees the opportunity to
take a “hands on” approach to using the email merge tool in MS Word. Discussions included specific strategies for moving
data from Sharetec into Word, Excel, and even a standard text file.
Quick Query/Results by Kellan Scheiber
Quick Query/Results lab offered attendees the opportunity to learn about universal query strategies that help understand how
data is connected within Sharetec. Attendees learned about some popular queries that can be applied to both programs and
walked away with a few examples they can use immediately!
Sharetec Mobile Banking by Kellan Scheiber
Attendees got to see what is trending these days in the mobile banking arena? They were given the opportunity to join in on
the Mobile Banking session that showed hot new products and how they are managed through Sharetec.
Security Best Practices by Josh Bishir
Keeping security in mind with any new project or solution is very important. During the Security Best Practices session, attendees
learned why battery backups or generators to keep member data safe is a must. They were also shown a variety of solutions to
keep all equipment, including network protection equipment, updated and why backup methods should be implemented.
ACH Origination by Sean McMillen
In the ACH Origination lab, attendees learned how to originate their own ACH items through Sharetec with just a few easy
steps. This lab walked users through the easy to use and highly automated module that makes origination within credit unions
a snap. Attendees reviewed the process of setting up the origination items and all of the steps of this process, as well as the
necessary reports that are generated.
Cross-Selling and Member Rewards by Sean McMillen
Attendees learned how to generate targeted promotions using Sharetec’s new 8.2 version of metrics. This presentation covered
a variety of topics from creating a promotion, encouraging staff to engage membership, and tracking employee’s performance.
They were also taught how to reward membership with loan rate discounts, certificate rate bonuses, and waving fees.
Thank you to all who attended the 2013 Annual Sharetec Users Conference. We are looking forward to seeing
you again next year!
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Social Media Promotions
Subject to State and Federal Law
Many companies run promotions (sweepstakes) without understanding they are subject to state and federal law.
That is why you typically see the following statements on an entry form: “No purchase necessary.” “Void where
prohibited.” “Winner will be chosen in a random drawing.” To avoid
legal issues, every sweepstakes should be evaluated to determine
whether it complies with applicable law, and every sweepstakes
should have a comprehensive set of official rules which are made
available to participants. Also consider the context in which the
sweepstakes is being promoted; for example, if your organization
is using social media to publicize the sweepstakes, the rules of the
social media should be consulted.
Generally, it is necessary to eliminate one of the following three
elements from any sweepstakes: (a) the prize; (b) chance; and (c)
consideration given by the participant. Clearly, most sweepstakes
will involve chance and a prize. That means the promoter must
eliminate consideration, which is anything of value given by the
participant or any benefit to the promoter, whether it is an outright
payment, the profit from a purchase, or even a service charge paid to a third party. An entry with an element of
consideration is permissible (for example, a chance for opening a deposit account) so long as the participant has
the option of entering the sweepstakes using a means that does not include consideration, such as submitting
a piece of paper by mail (using a stamp is not considered consideration), and the odds of winning are the same
regardless of the method of entry.
Don’t let your dream giveaway turn into a nightmare!
Submitted by Anne E. Simerman, Esq., Barrett & McNagny LLP, 215 East Berry Street, Fort Wayne, IN, 46802. This article is
provided as a general informational service. It should not be construed as imparting legal advice on any specific matter.
Bradford-Scott Social Media
Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Wordpress
for news and product updates.
Your input is always important to us and we’d love to know
what you think of our social media pages, products, tips or
questions. So please check us out and leave a comment at
one or more of our social media sites.
Facebook: Bradford-Scott Data Corporation
Twitter: @bradfordscott_1
LinkedIn: Bradford-Scott Data Corporation, a Sharetec provider
Blog: creditunioncoresystem.wordpress.com
Social Media Promotion Winner
Congratulations to Melissa Clopper with Members First Community Credit Union in Quincy, IL! Melissa won a
$100 Visa Gift Card after participating in our Share Your Story Cross-Selling Promotion.
“Most recently we ran a credit card promotion and set up the Cross
Selling Module to target our non-cardholders. This allowed us to
cross-sell 145 credit card applications and in a five day period, 89 of those were opened. Great tool that should be utilized by all!”
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Thank you Melissa for your participation, we hope you spent your gift card on
something great!
Employee Appreciation Day The Getaway Grill
Bradford-Scott held an Employee Appreciation Day in September and brought in The Getaway
Grill for all employees to enjoy. The Getaway Grill is a mobile food vendor providing unique
menu choices with ingredients that are produced locally. Their food
was delicious and a great success. Thank you to Bradford-Scott
employees for your hard work and dedication.
Has Your CU Implemented a
Disaster Recovery Plan?
by: Matt Marra
Credit unions on BSDC’s service bureau model have taken the ultimate step in disaster
recovery planning. They have the assurance that their backups are happening behind
the scenes and without any interaction from credit union employees. As well, at the data
center there is an automated process that backs up all servers to a failover service bureau
so that they are covered in the event that a major site disaster occurs at the main data
center. Also, there is a nightly process that writes all critical data to a shared drive that is
then written to tape. These tapes are automatically swapped out each night and all month
end tapes are taken out of rotation for archiving indefinitely.
If you have an in-house system, you are likely already aware that you need to have a
disaster recovery strategy and have taken measures to be sure that it is working. Backups
are also critical for a credit union that is on an in-house system. Fortunately, there are simple steps to follow that will keep your data safe
in the event of a disaster. The most basic step is to simply remember to take the daily backup tape off-site each day. This off-site storage
plan should be followed for your monthly and yearly backup tapes as well. Doing this, while also following the tape rotation schedule, will
ensure that your tape is not affected if your building were to be damaged in a disaster.
Floods, tornados, and other natural disasters are real threats for everyone – regardless of which area of the country you live in. These
events can happen when you least expect it and having an off-site back up keeps you prepared. Your data can be further protected by
electronically pushing your backups to another location. For customers that have their server at their credit union, Bradford-Scott offers
a service that safely pushes your data to our secure data center. Or, for those credit unions with a branch, the data can be pushed there.
Your branch could also be a good location for a second server to be used as a warm spare where multiple backups are running throughout
the day and then being sent to our secure location.
Regardless of which method you choose, having your data in multiple, safe, and secure locations will prepare you for a disaster. If you
need help implementing a disaster recovery plan, don’t hesitate to call Bradford-Scott to learn more about the recommended industry
best practices.
Kites Over Lake Michigan
One of our newest customers converting in February, RiverWood-Maritime Credit Union,
is a key sponsor at the Kites Over Lake Michigan Festival in Two Rivers, WI, hosted each
Labor Day. This festival is a big hit and is one of the largest kite festivals in the Midwest,
attracting kite fliers from all over, with more than 25,000 visitors enjoying a weekend at the
beach. President of RiverWood-Maritime CU, Bonnie Trimm, celebrates with her grandson
as you see in the picture. RiverWood-Maritime CU has been sponsoring the Kite Festival
since it began 8 years ago.
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tip of the week e-mails...
These TIPS are great for tellers, loan officers, or any Sharetec user! These helpful tips include hints,
procedures, best practices, and miscellaneous items. To sign-up to get this weekly e-mail, please
e-mail Bonnie Doolittle at bdoolittle@bradfordscott.com with your name and e-mail address or like
us on Facebook by searching for Bradford-Scott Data Corporation, a Sharetec provider.
Listed below is a sample of tips e-mailed or posted in the past that are still useful today!
. When troubleshooting an automatic transfer issue for a member, be sure to first check for Transfer
Posting Exceptions on the Transfer Posting Report. This report will list reasons why transfers failed to
process.
. “Jump” around in Sharetec using the "Jump To" drop
down menu option. This feature allows you to use your
keyword to search within a workspace, menu, or action
for any function that is available in Sharetec. To use it,
go to Tools, then Options at the top of any screen.
. It is a best practice to check both the Sub-Ledger
Balance report for a variance and the GL Open Voucher
report for open vouchers each day. These reports list
discrepancies between member accounts and the GL.
They need to be researched as soon as they are
discovered.
. To apply privacy settings to sensitive reports, go to
Admin Workspace -> Application Controls -> Report Masters. The option to add security can be
accessed by right clicking on any report master and choosing Properties – Report Viewing Security.
. To archive statements, start in the Back Office workspace and then go to Statement Processing and
select Statement Manager. Select the statement file to be archived (for March 2012, choose 1203)
located in the bottom browse area, then right click on each statement file in the upper browse
window and select "Archive".
. To access the archived files, go to the appropriate folder (YYMM) in the bottom browse to see the
statement files. Right click for options to print, view, or remove files from the archive.
. When archiving statement files, it is important to do so before the next statement run as statement
files are typically overwritten during statement processing. In addition, it is best to archive as soon as
statements are completed because files located in the directory where statements are initially stored
is cleaned out periodically. Once archived, they will only be removed from the system if done so by a
user.
Customer Center Download training videos, best practice guides, procedures, or other documents
from our Customer Center website. Hands-on users are jumping on this site on a daily basis to get the
information they need to drive their Sharetec System in the most efficient way.
Customer Center can be accessed at www.bradfordscott.com/login_cu.php. A non-disclosure agreement
must be completed in advance of receiving the login information for this “customer only” site. If you are
interested, please contact Bonnie Doolittle at bdoolittle@bradfordscott.com or call (260) 625-5107 for
the sign-up form.
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PowerUsers Around 50% of our Sharetec customers participate in daily discussions using our free
e-mail list serve, PowerUsers@bradfordscott.com. To be a part of PowerUsers@bradfordscott.com,
please e-mail Bonnie Doolittle at bdoolittle@bradfordscott.com to sign up today.
Bradford-Scott Office
Source is a one-stop shop for all your credit union’s paper and supply needs!
Office Source would like to offer existing customers a 10% discount off
your next order of year end supplies. And, for any first-time Office Source
customers, enjoy a 10% discount off your first order!
Call Michelle Beaman today for a free quote! Phone (317) 713-2065
Email thesource@bradfordscott.com.
Don’t wait until the last minute to order your year end supplies!
• Backup Tapes/Disks • Toner and Print Cartridges • Year End Labels • Statement Forms • 1099 Forms and Envelopes
Call Today!
10% off
First Time
Customers
Only!
Year End
Supplies
10% off your
Expires: 11/1/2013
Expires: 11/1/2013
first order!
• Laser Check Stock
• Continuous Check Stock
• Coupon Paper
• Blank Envelopes
• Custom Envelopes
• Full Color Online Services Brochure • Receipt Rolls
• Continuous Vouchers
• Printer Toner
• Backup Media
• Statement Paper
• Full Color ART Brochure
• Wallet Sized ART Cards
• And Much More…
employee spotlight is on Ryan Morris...
Ryan is a Conversion Analyst at Bradford-Scott and is currently the Lead Analyst on bringing an 88M
credit union live on the Sharetec system. Ryan’s favorite part of his job is meeting new customers and
helping users learn the system. Traveling, hockey, golf, and running
are just a few of Ryan’s hobbies and of course; he enjoys spending
time with his wife Amber and their two children. Ryan’s favorite football
team is Indianapolis Colts but most of all, his favorite hockey team is
the Chicago Blackhawks. Go Hawks!
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After Hours Pager Support
If pager support is needed during the pager hours listed
below and one of the following situations applies, there will be no charge for the pager call:
1. Issue would prevent your credit union from opening for business and can be resolved remotely.
2. Issue occurs during normal credit union business hours and can be resolved remotely.
Normal Pager Support
Monday through Friday:
7:00 a.m. EST to 8:00 a.m. EST
5:00 p.m. EST to 9:00 p.m. EST (6-9 for Software)
Saturday:
9:00 a.m. EST to 1:00 p.m. EST
$180/hr for normal pager hours, if billable.
Month-end Support
Weekday:
No pager. Office hours extended until 9:00 p.m. EST
Extended Saturday pager hours:
1:00 p.m. EST - 5:00 p.m. EST
$240/hr for extended Saturday pager hours, if billable.
Calls placed outside pager hours will be returned at 7:00 a.m. EST on Monday through Friday or 9:00 a.m.
EST on Saturday. If the page cannot be handled remotely, charges for travel and labor will apply. If page is
deemed billable, it will be subject to a minimum 1-hour charge.
New Transfer Features
10/08/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
10/10/2013 @ 2:00 pm EST
Business Accounts Module
10/22/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
10/24/2013 @ 2:00 pm EST
Fraud Alert Module
11/05/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
11/07/2013 @ 2:00 pm EST
Member Rewards
11/19/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
11/21/2013 @ 2:00 pm EST
Business Accounts Module
12/10/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
12/12/2013 @ 2:00 pm EST
12/17/2013 @ 10:00 am EST
Quarterly Webinar Schedule
Our goal is to provide exceptional training to you and your staff
within the comforts of your own office. The process is quick and
easy! Simply e-mail Jason Pesetski in the Training department
at jpesetski@bradfordscott.com with each user name and e-mail
address. He will send out a confirmation with complete instructions
for joining each webinar, as well as a list of training materials that
need to be downloaded prior to the webinar. Webinar classes are
small and are on a first come/first serve basis. They will start at the
time listed each day in Eastern Standard Time and will last
approximately one hour. Classes fill up very quickly, so please
e-mail Jason at jpesetski@bradfordscott.com to sign up! If you
have questions, feel free to call Jason at 260-625-5107.
Please note If you sign up for a class and CANNOT attend, we
ask that you notify us at least 24 hours in advance of the webinar
start time so that we may give away that spot to someone else.
There is a $25.00 cancellation fee if you do not provide notification
in advance and miss the webinar.