How a 100-year-old credit union keeps its service DNA while scaling fast
Freshservice helps STCU maintain legendary member care through acquisitions, achieving 100% employee satisfaction
When Spokane schoolteachers founded STCU in 1934, they built something special: a financial institution that truly put members first. Nearly a century later, that service-first DNA still drives every decision, but rapid growth through mergers and acquisitions put it at risk.
"Customer service lies at the heart of all STCU decisions," says Greg Gallaway, vice president and director of information technology.
The challenge? How do you preserve that legendary culture while quickly onboarding new staff and systems from acquired institutions without letting member service suffer?
STCU found its answer in Freshservice, turning growth pressures into competitive advantages:
The scaling challenge they faced:
The IT department struggled to maintain employee service quality amid rapid business growth through acquisitions
Fragmented solutions reduced efficiencies and consistency as they integrated new teams and systems
The on-premises service desk system lacked automation and centralized communications needed for increasing ticket volumes
Freshworks brought a solution:
Unified ITSM and ITOM platform with automated incident and asset management to handle complex integrations
Workspaces for both IT and business teams, enabling department-specific customization while maintaining consistency
AI capabilities, including Freddy AI Copilot, to improve employee self-service and help teams better communicate with members
Outcomes:
100% employee satisfaction rating—when employees are happy, members feel the difference
82.8% first contact resolution rate, keeping staff focused on what matters most: member service
24% faster average resolution time, proving that smart technology amplifies human care rather than replacing it
The schoolteachers who founded STCU would recognize their organization today: still obsessively focused on serving people, just now with the technology infrastructure to do it at scale while preserving the personal touch that makes all the difference.
Read the full story here.
