Online Voting, available through MemberDirect® Integrated Services, is now a reality thanks to a close partnership between Vancouver City Savings Credit Union and Central 1.
Vancity first approached Central 1 in 2010 with their commitment to offer online voting for its members. "Voting is an activity at the heart of our member-based organization and helps us to serve our community", says Joanne Shadbolt, Manager, Governance at Vancity. "For many members, online banking has become an important function for managing their finances, so it made sense to integrate voting into a platform they were already familiar with. Of course, as a credit union also committed to engaging its younger members, you have to be where they are – online", says Shadbolt.
The increased level of member participation in Vancity's Board of Directors election demonstrates the positive impact of leveraging existing online customer portals to engage members. "We know online voting was well received, as 27% of our ballots were cast online. We also experienced a year over year increase of 20% in ballots cast from last year," says Shadbolt.
Members can review all their details and voting preferences before submitting.
During the seven–month collaboration, Vancity guided Central 1 through its governance requirements and voting process, allowing Central 1 to develop the feature for Vancity. As a result of that partnership, the online voting feature is now available to any client currently using MemberDirect® Integrated.
"It was a tremendous undertaking by both parties to develop the feature and it required a high degree of collaboration. The end result is a great user experience for our members that is simple and secure. We're delighted with the increased voting numbers", says Shadbolt.
Beyond increased participation, online voting also provides other benefits to financial institutions. "Bringing the process online reduces administration, mailing costs and the waste associated with paper-based mailouts", says Jens Hertha, Product Manager at Central 1. "Security was another top priority of the feature. Because the feature is incorporated into MemberDirect® Integrated Services, it enables secure messages to be sent to your customers, inviting them to vote and provides a secure online voting form for each member. The online channel also improves the distribution of election information as it can be sent straight to members' inbox", says Hertha.
Central 1 Technology and Payment Services