Digital transformation isn't just an important part of the success of any credit union--it has become critically so in the wake of COVID-19. According to one recent study, the pandemic sped up the average adoption of digital technologies by an estimated three to seven years, all in the span of just a few months.

At the core of any effort to increase efficiency for your credit union is an inherently straightforward idea: you need to empower both your employees and your members to do more with less.

Technology is and always will be one of the prime aspects to focus on in order to enable growth for your credit union. It helps simplify operations, reduce costs, increase efficiency, and so much more. All it takes is one look at the benefits gained from empowering technology to understand why a well-executed plan for digital transformation is a step to take with your own organization.

Growth is always a top priority of any credit union leader--as it should be. But as you work to develop new growth strategies for your organization, you need to look for new opportunities to incorporate digital transformation as a part of it.

All businesses go through various stages in their existence--credit unions included. After you open your doors and have some time to get things running, you naturally start to expand. Over time, however, you hit your peak--and things noticeably begin to plateau.

The past two years have seen strong credit union industry growth, which has been attributed to pent-up demand, in what has been called a rebounding economy. NCUA reported loan growth of 14.7 percent, membership growth of 8.1 percent, and net worth increasing at 13.9 percent in Q1 2021. This was met by digital transformation initiatives across many credit unions in an effort to meet member expectations in a transitioning consumer economy. Changes in card technologies, enhancements to digital wallet capabilities, and an evolving payments landscape have driven focus and investment over this time and heading into 2023.

Adopting a new core processing platform for your credit union is nothing if not an investment--and it's one that deserves to be protected. In many ways, it's the foundation upon which the future success of your organization will be built--both for your members and your employees. But you can't get to that point if you don't take a few important steps in the short term in order to guarantee success over the long haul.

A credit union core processor refers to all the back-end IT systems that help to not only allow a credit union to function but also continuously process all the financial activity within that environment as well. To put it another way, it is the heart of the entire credit union and is an asset of fundamental importance.

If you had to make a list of all the qualities that are essential to the success of a modern credit union, its technology stack would undoubtedly be right at the top.

By taking a close look at the top core providers for credit unions, it becomes clear what many of them have in common. It also helps underline important trends about the industry in general that can be used as inspiration for your credit union's own success in the future.