iTech Northwest

iTech Northwest offers election software

EUGENE, Ore. (3/10/08) -- iTech Northwest has developed a software solution called Cast My Vote that allows businesses to conduct elections securely over the Internet.

Conducting elections over the Internet could reduce printing, postage and design expense.

"Our objective was to build a software solution to increase voter participation, reduce environmental impact and cost to businesses," said Thea Albright, Itech Northwest business relationship manager. "We wanted it to be simple, secure and easy to use."

iTech Northwest is a Eugene, Ore.-based technology solutions company.

iTech Northwest Donates Boardroom Web™ To Junior League of Eugene, Oregon

EUGENE, Ore. – iTech Northwest, LLC, a technology-driven credit union service organization (CUSO), donated Boardroom Web™ to Junior League of Eugene, Oregon. This online collaboration tool allows Board of Directors more time discussing strategic issues. The consent portion of the agenda can be approved via polling. Discussion threads can be used to facilitate the sharing of information on key topics, which will help improve communications.

“The unique features of Boardroom Web benefit non-profits as well as private industry,” said Matt Purvis, iTech Northwest’s Vice President of Marketing. “Junior League using Boardroom Web™ to improve operational effectiveness is a thrill.”

“iTech’s donation of Boardroom Web has allowed the leadership of Junior League to function in a much more efficient fashion,” said Paula Jewett, President of the League. “We have enjoyed the capability of reviewing documents before meetings, increasing communication between board members, and keeping an accurate calendar through this system. Junior League greatly appreciates iTech Northwest’s donation.”

“iTech Northwest’s commitment to giving back to the communities in which it lives, parallels the Junior League of Eugene’s vision of providing a better and safer place to raise our children,” said Dennis Powell, President of iTech.

Boardroom Web™, Software as a Service (SAAS) application, is much more affordable, an annual subscription will take care of maintenance and program updates. Instead of purchasing the software and paying annual maintenance to keep the program updated.

About Junior League

The Junior League of Eugene, Oregon, is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. They are dedicated to serving our community’s youth, family and the underserved.

Working Together CUSO, CUTEK Join to Offer Credit Union-Specific Tech Tools

EUGENE, Ore. — May 16th, 2007 - Innovation with a credit union focus just keeps happening at Northwest Community Credit Union, driven by the experienced hands at its CUSO, iTechNorthwest.

The latest is the successful launch of an online voting system whose first user was Northwest Community CU itself. About 350 to 400 people voted in the board election that wrapped up last month, a good number considering there was no controversy or contest involved in the elections themselves, says Dennis Powell, president of iTech Northwest and executive vice president and CFO of the parent credit union.

Called CastMyVote.net, the solution can be hosted by the credit union or iTechNorthwest and is regulatory compliant and customizable. At Northwest Community, voters must enter their member IDs and the last four digits of their phone numbers as a password. A random confirmation code is used to thwart Internet bots.

"We had a huge need for a product like this since we have so many branches. In the past, it was a challenge to provide a consistent process throughout," says the $554 million CU's board chairman, Barbara Blackmore. "We've seen an increase in participation because it's so easy and takes only a few seconds."

The tech CUSO cut its teeth by marketing Boardroom Web, a collaborative solution now in place at about 30 credit unions. It was developed by Extreme Arts & Sciences and bought by the credit union when that organization sold its portal solution and client base to Passageways LLC, a tech CUSO of Purdue Employees Federal Credit Union in Indiana.

Powell says that development team led by Otto Radke now is at work for iTech Northwest, working on new solutions that include account opening and loan application and decisioning tools, a tracking tool for collection teams and a title-tracking program.

Already in place is a product called FlashCaster, a digital signage solution that puts marketing content on screens in lobbies and other locations, typically used to offer products to members, including repossessed vehicles. Another product was a suggestion tracking program built by request for Watermark Credit Union in Seattle. Powell and his team now are working on an account-opening solution with CUTEK, a credit union consultancy and developer based in California.

Powell and his small team have dual roles at the credit union, but have just hired a full-time business development manager to help market the CUSO's offerings. "We're credit union-centric. We can define and build products our clients want around whatever parameters they would like. We're also not specific to the core processor," Powell says. "Our credit union is an XP Systems shop planning to convert to an OSI platform later this year. That won't matter to iTech Northwest."

That flexibility and innovative spirit are what appealed to CUTEK President Ron Murray and his partners, who specialize in Symitar applications and have expanded to ancillary offerings and consulting engagements.

"The partnership has begun with the account opening piece, and we're really having fun together," Murray says. "I knew Otto and his colleagues from previous lives of ours and when we got a request from a credit union to put together an account opening system, we knew they were the right people to bring in the additional expertise we needed."

Murray says he already has shown off some of iTech Northwest's work, including the FlashCaster and the Boardroom Web solutions, at Symitar regional meetings and met encouraging reaction.

"We're a nice merger of credit union and development experience, able to see those holes and agile enough to plug them instead of trying to concentrate on one area or product," Murray says of the new partnership. "And we can help develop these services at a lower cost, because a lot of times credit unions already have pieces of what they need, like Chex Systems and credit bureau access when you're talking about account opening."

Powell agrees.

"With mergers and everything else going on, it can be hard for credit unions to keep up with the fast pace of technology," he says. "That's especially true for smaller credit unions, from the sheer standpoint of affordability. We like to offer them those services at a substantial discount over what they're going to find out there in the market."

Thea Albright hired as iTech NorthWest Business Relationship Manager

EUGENE, Ore. — (4/16/07) — iTech Northwest (iTechNW), a technology solutions provider that serves credit unions, the financial services industry, boards of directors, and other organizations, has hired a Business Relationship Manager to cultivate the company’s growth. Thea Albright, who started in mid-April, will develop and implement iTech Northwest’s marketing, business, and branding plans to help expand the company’s exposure. Albright’s primary goals will be to retain iTech Northwest’s current clients by expanding its services and increasing the client base by enhancing the brand.

“We want to be known as a technology solutions provider that spans across many business industries, including non-profits,” Albright says. “The products are simple, elegant and adaptable to most business endeavors. There’s lots of potential for growth at iTech Northwest and it will be exciting to be an integral part of that experience.”

Prior to joining iTech Northwest, Albright was Real Estate and Logistics Project Manager for Umpqua Bank in Eugene, Ore. Before that position, she was Territory Manager for Learning Services in Springfield, Ore. Albright also held positions for the State of Oregon in Business Employment Services and Marketing Manager at Authentic Models. Albright has a Sociology degree from the University of Oregon in Eugene.

“We’re very pleased to have Thea Albright join our team here at iTech Northwest,” states Dennis Powell, President of iTech Northwest. “She has quite a versatile background managing everything from tradeshows, sales, training programs, and project management, all in different industries. We really like that versatility. We saw that it would greatly benefit our company as we continue to grow not only in the credit union marketplace but other industries as well. She has a great understanding for business relationships and the value they bring to a growing organization like ours.”