MSU FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
INNOVATION ‘ WITHOUT FEAR AND PRESSURE TO PRESENT FULLY POLISHED PRODUCTS ’ Maxim stresses that their innovation lab isn ’ t about failing fast , it ’ s about learning fast and capturing “ what went right or wrong and learning from it .”
He continues : “ One of the main catalysts for creating The Lab at MSUFCU was our need for a brand that was separate from , but complementary to , our official brand . We specifically use the terminology ‘ Lab ’ when we roll-out innovation , to show that it is coming from somewhere experimental and scientific .”
He adds : “ We have recruited a panel of 500 members that provide inspiration and are also readily available to pilot any projects we are running .”
FORMING AN INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM : RESEDA GROUP , SPAVE , EVER GREEN 3C , AND FORESIGHT GROUP MSUFCU is transforming its innovation lab into a full-fledge innovation ecosystem , starting with the formation of Reseda Group , MSUFCU ’ s wholly-owned Credit Union
Service Organisation or CUSO . Reseda Group has been pivotal in the development of this innovation ecosystem with its goal of helping fintechs scale , focusing on the credit union industry as a growth plan .
Reseda Group accomplishes this through its minority investments in fintechs that started as partners in The Lab such as ChanEd , Pocketnest , and Larky ; as well as its majority stakes in its subsidiaries Spave , Ever Green 3C and Foresight Group .
Resada Group also invests in technologies and services that will benefit MSUFCU like Akuvo . The company offers cloud-based , API-enabled Portfolio Risk and Delinquency Management Solution and Benefis CU that provides executive benefits to the credit union and its business members to offer to their executive teams .
The first fintech to move from The Lab to Reseda Group was Spave , an autonomous giving and savings platform with the goal to promote financial wholeness through the use of microtransactions . MSUFCU started working with Spave as a traditional pilot .
“ We were going to put them in front of our members , supporting Spave like our other fintech partners ,” says Maxim . “ Along the
“ When we were a small and nimble team , we used to do a lot of organic innovation , but with our growth , it has become harder to continue to innovate organically ”
BENJAMIN MAXIM VICE PRESIDENT OF DIGITAL STRATEGY AND INNOVATION , MSUFCU
98 May 2022