If this year so far has taught us anything, it’s that things can change quickly, and with very little warning. It’s how we adapt to these changes that makes all the difference. Here at incuto, we’ve undergone lots of new changes ourselves in recent months, and I’m delighted to bring you up to speed to kick off our brand new team blog.
We know how important it is not to stand still in our industry, as the wants and needs of credit union members are constantly evolving. That’s why we were proud to bring news of our brand new partnership with ClearBank, enabling our credit union partners Hoot and Lanarkshire to send their first ever faster payments to members back in June. It’s hard to overstate just how much of a beneficial impact this can have for credit unions, as members can send and receive payments in real-time, a huge leap forward to bringing the sector in line with high street and challenger banks.
The landmark announcements don’t stop there either. Also in June, we brought the news that all of our credit union partners will now be able to offer the existing Post Office network of over 11,500 locations, to their members. It’s a major step forward for us, in our mission to provide affordable credit to the people who need it most, when they need it most. Catch up on the announcement and what it means for our partners here.
You may have noticed we’ve been more active in recent weeks on our social media and comms channels. This comes after teaming up with PR specialists Five PR, and credit union digital marketing agency Zync Digital. Both organisations are going to enrich how we communicate with you, our credit union partners, and to work towards helping us grow to be the number one software provider in the sector. We’re so happy to have them on board, as their skills and experience help us to develop our key relationships.
Recent months have really brought home the impact of our partners, who make a difference every day. With this in mind, we wanted to say a big thank you to all the credit unions out there - which was the thinking behind our Big Night In on the 19th August. The unwavering resilience and dynamism that credit unions have shown throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, to support members’ who feel the impact hardest, has been an inspiration for all of us.
Being able to share a drink and a takeaway with lots of familiar faces (and a few new ones too) was brilliant, especially after not having the chance to see so many of you in person for such a long time. A special thank you goes out to Julia Daniel of North London Credit Union and Liz Campbell at Castlemilk Credit Union for appearing on our panel of speakers, and for the whole team at incuto for making it happen. Stay tuned for more events coming soon too!
Speaking of the team, I’m so happy to welcome lots of new faces to what we’re doing here at incuto. I’ll start with Cameron Douglas, who you may even recognise from his year-long apprenticeship with our friends at Northumberland Community Bank. Cameron’s joining us as a Customer Success Associate, and will be responsible for supporting our credit union partners throughout the initial onboarding process and beyond.
Also joining us this month is Steven Radcliffe, bringing plenty of experience to his role as Business Development Lead. Steven’s career has covered lots of sectors so far, from retail banking and corporate finance to recycling of metal. On joining, Steven said, “The opportunity to work in collaboration with a socially responsible industry and with people who are keen to better support their members, who often may be financially excluded, was just good to pass up. The difference between scrap metal buying and credit unions is stark, but refreshing!”
We’re also proud to welcome Alex Russak and Andy Barber to our Technical and Support Team. Alex joins us as an App Developer and Andy will be our new Support Team Leader. Both will be helping resolve any issues or queries you might have, as quickly and efficiently as possible.
We know how tough recent months have been, and we’re no different. The future is so uncertain for so many of us. What I do know though, is there’s plenty to get excited about. With plenty of new developments to bring you over the coming months, to help you expand and improve your offering to the people who we’re doing all of this for - credit union members. Here’s to a bright future for us, and you, our partners. We couldn’t have done any of this without you.
Stay tuned for more exciting news to come, and most importantly, stay safe.
Andrew Rabbitt, CEO