Five Questions With: Kyle Horan

Kyle Horan is a desktop support analyst in the information technology department of People’s Credit Union. He is responsible for installing, upgrading, patching, maintaining and overseeing all credit union-owned computers, laptops, peripheral devices, printers, copiers, fax machines, scanners, imaging devices and related hardware and software. He serves as primary support for the IT help desk.
Horan joined People’s Credit Union in 2001 as a teller and has also held positions as a member service representative and a branch support service representative. He received the People’s Credit Union 2013 Employee of the Year Award in February.
Horan is a volunteer with Rhode Island 4-H.

PBN: In recognizing you as People’s Credit Union Employee of the Year for 2013, you were commended for your persistence and dedication to the company and for exemplifying service. From your perspective, how does the credit union encourage and develop those qualities in you, and in the employees overall?
HORAN:
I feel that I came to People’s Credit Union with the persistence and dedication to my job that I have been recognized for. That being said, I would like to acknowledge People’s Credit Union for encouraging these qualities in myself and all employees. PCU has a quarterly program called President’s Council. Your peers or management can nominate you to be on Presidents Council and we all strive for that honor. PCU also has a monthly publication that highlights employees and recognizes them for their hard work. These programs encourage all employees to do their best.
I think that PCU has done a great job instilling appreciation for our fellow employees. We all work as a team within our departments and branches, as well as between departments and branches, and that doesn’t just happen without a culture that supports it.

PBN: You started at People’s Credit Union as a teller and have been promoted to member service representative, branch support representative and to your current position as IT support technician. How did you choose, or were you encouraged, to move into an IT role?
HORAN:
I started working as a teller and soon moved to a member service representative role. Those two positions were within my first year at PCU. I then held a position in branch support for four years, during which time I also filled in during a core conversion in our call center. My move to the IT department was self-driven, but very much encouraged by my manager at the time. I remember her telling me that I had the right analytical mind for IT. I had been taking classes at Roger Williams University for COMPTIA A+ and COMPTIA Net + Certifications at night. My interest in IT had been with me for years and I was taking these classes in hopes that if someday an opening in the IT department were available, I would have the education and skill to allow me to apply. At that time, I was also working with IT directly on projects surrounding our core conversion. I feel those projects highlighted my skillset and I believe that this was recognized by PCU and led to my hiring into the IT department.

PBN: In the 13 years you’ve been with People’s Credit Union, dramatic changes have taken place in banking, most notably the rapid changes in technology. How have you navigated these changes? How have you seen the credit union manage these changes on a larger scale, with a large numbers of employees, especially considering your position in IT support?
HORAN:
Since coming into the IT Department I have seen the technology within the Credit Union evolve dramatically. IT went from being a “cost center” that may have been viewed as almost a necessary evil to being a “strategic center”, which is what drives the credit union forward in today’s technology driven market. We are able to offer products and services faster and more reliably with today’s technology. PCU also made a major change some years ago with the development of an IT steering committee. This allows business and technical parties to plan and work together to choose the right technologies to support our employees and our members.

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PBN: What do you think is the most important thing a financial institution can do to build dedication in its staff? What’s the most important thing you think a bank can do to communicate with customers to maintain their trust and their relationship with the bank?
HORAN:
I believe the most important thing a financial institution can do to build dedication within its staff is to listen to its employees and be open to any feedback that they have. Within PCU, we’ve implemented ideas that haven’t come from “the top.” You’re voice, your ideas are heard here and your opinion is valued. That, to me, is most important. Our employees know that the service the member receives at every one of our branches needs to be consistent. Communication between our employees and the members is always professional and friendly – in person is where we really shine. We take advantage of technology and communicate with our members, and they communicate with us, though many channels.

PBN: What are your goals now, as far as your banking career?
HORAN:
I am enjoying my current role and still see plenty of opportunity for growth. I do have long- term goals of furthering my education and earning certifications in areas which will afford me the opportunity to focus more on technology infrastructure and solution implementation as a network administrator. There are many areas of IT that interest me and I enjoy every aspect. The difficult part for me is focusing on just one and taking it to the next level.

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