Customer Stories

Springfield State Bank

A community-focused bank brings board work into the 21st century with simplicity, ease of use, and security.

Industry: Finance

Headquarters: Springfield, Ky.

Board Management Goals

Reduce timely manual processes

Provide members with advanced access to materials to facilitate more productive meetings

Protect organization against costly cybersecurity risks

Results

Significant reduction of manual work

Eliminated cost of printing

Wide adoption across the entire board

Greater board engagement

Making the Switch to Digital Board Management

Springfield State Bank has deep roots in its community. Founded more than 100 years ago, it’s the only bank in Washington County, Kentucky that’s locally owned and operated.

Over the last century, Springfield State Bank has built a strong reputation which has earned them the loyalty of the community. “We’ve got around 85% of the deposit market share in the community,” said Christy Carpenter, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer.

The bank’s reputation is built on its outstanding service with a personal touch. “We know our customers’ names,” explained Carpenter. “At other banks, they may be just a number. But when they come into our door, they’re number one.”

Despite its size and rural location, Springfield State Bank is no stranger to innovation. In fact, the bank is well known for offering the most advanced technology and products to its clientele.

But when it came to board management, the bank continued to employ time consuming, manual processes – including printed board books. “We printed out all the records and put them in a notebook. Then, we’d shred everything right after the meeting.”

The bank knew there was a big opportunity to improve efficiency. “We talked to other banks that had made the switch to digital board management and were seeing big benefits,” said Carpenter. “So we said ‘let’s give it a shot.’”

Initially, the organization attempted to use its intranet platform to digitize board management. But they found this solution wasn’t sustainable. “It was so clunky. It took me three days to put together board books. It wasn’t any better than printing them out,” said Carpenter.

Soon after, Springfield State Bank realized the need for a dedicated board portal. The solution they initially chose was an upgrade from manual board management. But it quickly became clear the portal didn’t do everything they needed it to. “It wasn’t the perfect fit,” said Carpenter. “It got to the point where when I needed it, it would go down – the day before a board meeting.”

At that point, Carpenter started researching other solutions and learned about OnBoard. “OnBoard was so far ahead of our prior solution,” she said. “It’s seamless. It’s so easy. It’s just so user-friendly.”

Ultimately, Springfield State Bank decided to make the switch to OnBoard. “It took me a little bit to get everything over from our previous provider,” said Carpenter. “But once I did, it was like night and day.”

Streamlining Meeting Preparation

For Springfield State Bank, one of the immediate benefits of switching to OnBoard was the time savings. Compiling board books – once a time-consuming ordeal – is now faster and easier. What’s more, the organization no longer has to pay the steep costs of printing.

“I create my agenda, attach things to it and I’m done,” Carpenter explained. “There’s nothing to shred. I can just set things to expire after a certain amount of time.”

“"Our seasoned folks bring so much wisdom and experience... OnBoard allows our senior members contribute and be better board members.”

— Christy Carpenter
Executive Vice President and CTO
Springfield State Bank

Facilitating Smoother, More Productive Meetings

Prior to using OnBoard, board members didn’t have access to meeting materials until the meeting itself. Since switching to OnBoard, Carpenter is able to easily compile and share meeting materials in advance.

Today board members review materials ahead of time and show up to meetings prepared to dive right into productive discussions. “It’s incredible…the difference in our discussions since we started using OnBoard,” said Carpenter.

Mitigating Risk

In today’s world, security breaches and cyberattacks are more common than one would like to think. Each incident comes with a high cost – especially for financial institutions. Springfield State Bank leverages OnBoard’s robust security features as a key way to protect themselves and their customers.

One particular feature the bank appreciates is the inability to print from the OnBoard app. “We don’t want our confidential documents lying around on somebody’s desk,” Carpenter explained.

The bank also uses OnBoard’s granular permissions to ensure users can access everything they need – nothing more and nothing less. “In the past, I’d give our CFO the printed board packet to review to make sure my numbers were right. But with OnBoard, I can just make him a login and restrict his access to just the board packet.”

Increasing Engagement from All Board Members

Springfield State Bank – like many other financial institutions – has a mature board. In fact, the bank’s board has multiple octogenarians who have served on the board for 40 years or more. “They’ve lived the life of the bank,” said Carpenter.

Carpenter and her team make it a top priority to ensure all board members – including the most seasoned ones – can fully contribute without the hurdle of learning new, complicated technology.

“Our seasoned folks bring so much wisdom and experience,” said Carpenter. “OnBoard is seamless and easy. It allows our senior members to contribute and helps them to be better board members.”

Accessing Timely Support When Needed

Frequently, implementing a new software solution is the easy part. The hard part is getting support after the solution has been implemented. This often requires submitting a ticket – and then hoping for the best. As Carpenter put it, “technical support isn’t like it used to be where you call and talk to somebody and it’s resolved and you move on. Often, companies don’t have a good grasp on getting back to you in a timely manner.”

That’s not the case with OnBoard. Anytime Carpenter has had a question or needs assistance, she reaches out to her Customer Success Manager and is able to get a fast answer or resolution.

“I appreciate the fact that OnBoard makes service a priority,” concluded Carpenter. “It doesn’t matter how good your product is if you can’t support it.”

Elevate Your Board's Decision-Making with OnBoard

OnBoard combines the highest level of security with innovative features designed to optimize your board’s effectiveness. Start your journey and unlock unparalleled security, insights, and efficiency.