Not long ago you would have needed a pen and paper to apply for a loan or membership at Kaiperm Credit Union. But Kramer Chan, senior vice president and chief financial officer, brought the Walnut Creek, Calif., credit union into the 21st century via technology.

Chan has led digital transformation efforts to better serve Kaiperm’s members. He launched a mobile banking app and installed the credit union’s first ATM.

He also added a digital loan origination system and introduced a data analytics tool to gain a better sense of members’ needs.

Chan’s embrace of technological innovation has been the engine driving the credit union’s increase in assets from $72 million to $89 million in the past 12 months.

Because of Chan’s efforts, Kaiperm could provide a full array of services virtually to members throughout the pandemic.

“I strongly believe in being a human-centric organization and putting our members first,” Chan says. “And technology is often part of the solution in solving our members’ friction.”

He has been essential in developing Kaiperm’s Thrive Rewards Checking program and participating in the National Save to Win certificate account with monthly prize drawings. He is working to add child and youth accounts to the credit union’s menu of products and services.

Chan also has a creative flair. He created Kaiperm’s new logo, redesigned its website, and assisted in the development of its new branch and administrative offices. He supported digitalization of the credit union’s marketing efforts by introducing automated marketing emails to grow loans and deposits. 

Chan also updated Kaiperm’s listing on Google to make sure it always appeared first in search results.

Chan is literally the future of Kaiperm. After 10 years at the credit union, he is in line to become the next CEO, following the planned retirement of current CEO Karen Introcaso.

Chan “thrives with innovation and ease of delivery for members and staff,” Introcaso says. “He has truly made a difference for Kaiperm Credit Union.”