Last week, we gave you three ways to strengthen credit union’s vendor management program. Today, we will give you the other three.

Board of Director Involvement

All successful outsourced relationships starts with having involvement from the Board of Directors and senior management. It typically starts with Information Security Officer (ISO) or CIO or CTO, who is responsible for communicating with the Board and helping manage the process.

NCUA’s Supervisory Letter 07-01 is designed to help credit unions better understand and manage the risks associated with outsourcing. This should not be a one-way line of communication.

Implement an Automated Vendor Management Solution

Implementing an automated vendor management solutions saves a tremendous amount of time and money, reduces risks and also eliminates compliance headaches. An automated solution also helps hold vendor managers accountable to a process that often gets “put on the backburner.”

Monitor and Control the Vendor Relationship

Proper Vendor Management is cyclical. Staying abreast of important key dates, contract changes and upcoming vendor reviews and contract renewals is a key step in a vendor management program. Not doing so can end up costing you significantly, not to mention the added burden of inefficiencies if the process is not handled well.

Leveraging the skills and experience of third-party service providers can assist credit unions better meet their members’ needs while accomplishing their strategic goals. Those that implement a solid vendor management program, actively manage those relationships, will have the greatest level of success.