Five Strategies for Predictable Core Deposit Growth

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This article originally appeared on CUInsight.com.

In today’s financial landscape, core deposits are the lifeblood of your credit union.

Interest rates seem to have stabilized, but the combination of the rise of interest rates and inflationary pressures in the last few years has returned us to a place where the best way to grow your credit union is by growing core deposits.

While you may have embraced that reality in theory, many credit union leadership teams struggle to find and implement practical strategies that will help you compete and win in your market.

Strategy 1: Focus on advisory services over transactional.

Focus on building relationships and providing thoughtful financial advice to members. Big bank conglomerates may beat you on digital tools, but there’s no reason they should beat you on delivering advisory services that increase your members’ financial wellness.

To do this well, you need to build trust, provide excellent customer service, and give members solutions to the practical financial problems they face.

In some ways, “advisory over transactional” could be the category that all of the strategies below fall underneath, but it’s important enough that it needs to be at the top of the list.

Strategy 2: Target Gen Z.

Gen Z was born into a world with digital advancement in hyper-speed, but also a world of financial turbulence. The result is a generation that may seem like something of a paradox—digital natives who are more financially conservative.

By providing financial education and enablement, you have the chance to bring this generation into their fold as loyal members and low-cost depositors.

Consider offering educational classes for the community about topics like living on a budget, getting your first mortgage, and understanding different saving and investing options. You’ll build trust and give members the tools they need to thrive financially.

Strategy 3: Reinvent branches.

Have you noticed how often restaurants update and remodel their locations? Usually about every 5-7 years. And it’s not a waste of an investment, either. Studies show that remodeled restaurant locations usually see sales increases between 15-40%.

If updating the space where people go for a chicken sandwich makes that much of a difference, how do you think people view a branch that hasn’t been updated in 10+ years?

Make the strategic investment to update your spaces—not just with a coat of fresh paint and new carpet (although you probably need those as well). Reimagine your space to facilitate a more advisory approach instead of putting your staff behind a huge teller wall.

You’ll be surprised at how a refreshed and reinvented space attracts new members.

Strategy 4: Highlight local connections.

Here’s another area where credit unions can run circles around the big bank conglomerates. Make strategic investments in your community and don’t be shy about spreading the word about the good work you’re doing.

Many people don’t understand that credit unions are fundamentally different from banks in that they don’t exist to benefit a group of unknown shareholders. As nonprofits, credit unions should invest time, energy, and resources to help people understand how they make communities better by keeping revenues in the community.

Strategy 5: Gather and share member testimonials.

Putting systems in place to consistently gather and share member testimonials is one of the most important things you can do from a marketing perspective.

People are bombarded everyday with literally thousands of marketing messages. Online reviews play a shocking role in the decisions people make every day about which products and services they choose.

In fact, partially due to the overwhelming amount of marketing messages consumers receive, they overwhelmingly trust what others say about you over what you say about you.

You can regularly request that satisfied members post a Google review of your credit union (there are automated services that will make this fairly easy that are surprisingly affordable).

And, you should consistently ask members for their feedback so you can both improve the services you offer and share their positive testimonials through all of your communication channels.

Far too many credit union executives drastically underestimate the power of member reviews and testimonials. Many of your members will be happy to give a review or testimonial—they just need to be asked.

More Intense Competition for Core Deposits is On the Horizon. Are You Ready?

It may go without saying, but we feel the need to say it anyway. Greater competition for core deposits is coming soon—in fact, it’s already here!

If you’re not feeling a sense of urgency to find and implement effective strategies to grow your core deposits in a predictable way in the future, you haven’t been paying attention the last few years.

Now is the time to take bold action. Even if you can’t do all of the strategies we’ve articulated here, choose one or two and get going now. Then, over time, implement as many as you can. That’s a plan for predictable long-term growth.

Contact Us for Credit Union Growth Strategy

Reach out to our expert credit union consulting and branch optimization team today for help with targeting and reaching new members – we’ve guided credit unions for more than 20 years with a reliable data-driven approach to identify member demographics and optimal ways to foster their engagement.

Targeting Gen Z for Credit Union Growth

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Gen Z person holding phone and debit card from a credit union

Generation Z has grown up in times of financial uncertainty and especially these days, they are still feeling the impact of Covid-19 on their income. How can you serve Gen Z well in order to help your credit union growth strategy?

Now more than ever, Gen Z prioritizes becoming financially savvy and your credit union should be equipped to provide them with the solutions they’re looking for, helping you create loyal members for a lifetime.

Here are our expert tips on targeting engagement with Gen Z for credit union growth.

Centering Accessibility

Thanks to exponential tech advancements, Gen Z grew up in an “on-demand” environment and they’re used to being able to access anyone through phone, email, text, and chat.

Your credit union must not only have the technology in place to address these needs, but must also clearly convey the “on the go” convenience of this accessibility to your Gen Z customers via your marketing strategy to help differentiate yourself from competitors.

Providing Gen Z the flexibility to access your products and services when they want and how they want to across various platforms goes a long way in building loyalty among this generation.

Delivering Cutting-Edge Technology

On top of accessibility via tech, Gen Z also expects the latest-and-greatest retail banking technology hardware itself.

Having grown up with some of the best technology on the market such as smartphones, laptops, and iPads, Gen Z often expects the world around them, including their banking institution, to provide modern technology for speed and seamlessness in their interactions.

For financial institutions, a retail branch experience complete with modern displays, tablets, or self-service kiosks positions you as an up-to-date institution that’s ready to meet the fast-paced needs of modern members.

It may go without saying, but we’re going to say it anyway. Connect with Gen Z by creating a smartphone app. Creating an app for your credit union will make your services available even when you’re closed. When many credit unions were closed during the pandemic, members relied on their app for information and access to banking services.

A modern, user-friendly app guarantees a good experience for members outside of the branch.

Gen Z woman holding debit card using a computer for banking with her credit union

Promoting Your Debit Card

Many consumers seek sound financial advice from a trusted source, their banking institution. Most people that are a part of Generation Z are now directly affected by these unfamiliar times—which makes them want to become more financially educated to achieve their goals. They will look to their credit union to educate them.

Promoting your debit card with Gen Z members will help them understand how to budget their money for their future. As a credit union, it’s not only important to encourage debit card use among this generation, but also budgeting to ensure that they’re on the right track to being financially responsible.

By providing relevant financial advice, you form a connection that will continue to grow over time. And that’s a great way to leverage engagement with Gen Z for your credit union growth strategy.

Contact Us for Credit Union Growth Strategy

How to Grow Core Deposits for Your Credit Union

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Past financial trends shape how credit unions grow in the present and future and the tumultuous ups and downs of the economy, world events, and interest rates over the past 20+ years has created an environment today where it’s crucial for many institutions to reexamine their strategy to ensure long-term stability through growing core deposits.

It’s too early to say exactly what the “new normal” will look like for local credit unions, but we can project some trends with confidence.

Rising rates will put a spotlight on core deposits and other low-cost funding sources.
Higher rates may dampen loan demand in the short to intermediate term.
There will always be demand for loans for essential purchases like cars and homes.
Local financial institutions may need to refocus their strategies in light of diminished loan demand.

So where do you start? We’ve helped credit unions meet their loan-to-deposit ratio goals for over 20 years, so we’ll begin with some tried-and-true methodS.

Three Critical Core Deposit Growth Strategies

Utilize these strategies in day-to-day interactions and for your long-term institutional strategy to bolster core deposit growth for your credit union.

1 – Outstanding Customer Service

As a credit union, outstanding customer service helps you stand out from competition. Great customer service is about treating members with respect, foreseeing member questions and concerns, providing knowledgeable solutions, and clear communication.

Whether it’s a representative from the call center or in-branch visit, members rely on credit union staff to guide them through financial challenges and connect them efficiently with services that properly meet their needs so make it paramount to train your staff on delivering the best member experience possible.

view inside a credit union designed for great customer experience

2 – Focus Locally

Unlike big national banks, credit unions are often more community-based and integrated and that can be quite an advantage! Having a real connection to the community that you serve helps establish a more personal working ecosystem, custom-tailored to the markets you serve. Strategically focus on meeting your local member’s needs and showcase your commitment to those around you. This will work wonders in helping generate your deposits.

3 – Personalize In-Branch Experiences

As effective as modern credit union technology is, nothing compares to a personal human-to-human connection, which is one reason why the branch will never go away. Members will always appreciate personalized financial guidance from staff in a warm, welcoming, professional environment.

Do you staff greet members upon their entrance?
Do you have comfortable furniture in the lobby space for folks to wait on?
Is your branch design well-lit and spacious?

Being able to provide friendly, in-person retail banking experiences improves member participation, trust and long-term loyalty to your institution, so make sure your branches reflect the personal attention your institution prides itself on providing.

Growth Strategy & Consulting for Credit Unions

The financial landscape is constantly changing and it’s essential that growth-minded credit unions continue to evolve whilst also relying on time-tested strategies.

Putting members first by maintaining accessibility, providing a personal connection, and enhancing member services will help you grow core-deposits and long-lasting members.

Here at LEVEL5 we can assist you in creating a credit union growth strategy that sets your institution up for reliable growth for years to come.

For over two decades, we have created solutions for credit unions that cater to each organization’s unique needs, that’s why our clients grow 38% faster than their peers on average!

A Modern Playbook: Leveraging Big Data for Decision Making in Financial Institution Growth and Branch Design and Construction

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growth strategy using external data — While most financial institutions have access to internal data sets, the real power lies in a growth strategy that utilizes external data—which LEVEL5 does, with a remarkable track record of 96% accuracy in our strategic recommendations.

With LEVEL5’s 20 years of experience, we have developed a modern growth playbook that relies on big data rather than old-school intuition, providing quantifiable insights that have consistently achieved business success.

In this article, we will explore the significance of data in expanding financial institutions long-term, the limitations of intuition, and how LEVEL5’s data-driven approach can help your institution make strategic decisions with unparalleled precision.

The Power of Data

Data vs. Information

Data is the foundation, but it is the interpretation of that data that turns it into actionable information. Think of an alarm clock displaying the time—it’s data. The actionable information is that it’s time to wake up. Similarly, financial institutions need actionable information—what to do and when to do it—derived from data in order to make informed decisions.

Using Data for Strategic Branch Network Decisions

LEVEL5’s Strategic Consulting Group has a finely honed analytical process, utilizing both private and public data points. We have developed custom algorithms that provide fool-proof, data-driven facts to guide strategic decision-making. This approach ensures that expansion market decisions are not based solely on intuition, but rooted in concrete data.

Market Analysis for Credit Union & Bank Growth

When assessing new expansion markets, relying on intuition is no longer sufficient.

For example, when considering a new branch location, perhaps a specific idyllic area in the community first comes to your mind.

You might “feel” this is a prime spot for growth, but how far does this “feeling” really get you?

Sure, it may be a well-trafficked area, perhaps near a hub of retailers, but what if there are even more optimal locations in your town unbeknownst to you, spaces with even more traffic, even more of your member demographics, and with even more potential for future growth?

It pays to know!

That’s why each market decision must be backed up with careful, in-depth analysis that helps you minimize unknowns and maximize potential.

LEVEL5 has been assisting clients with market analysis for two decades. Our comprehensive approach examines state, county, metro, and trade areas to determine growth trajectories that make sense both in the present and for the next 5-10 years. The resulting reports provide clients with a 10-year branch pro forma, offering accurate visibility into how a branch will perform on a specific street corner.

By analyzing data at various levels, including state, county, metro, and trade areas, we provide actionable insights that enable informed decision-making.

De-risking Growth Decisions with Unbiased Data

The Role of Data in De-risking Decisions

Data provides clarity and reduces uncertainty when making growth decisions. It allows financial institutions to understand their “elbow room” in a given market and forecast performance accurately.

By running multiple pro formas that consider branch types, personnel, and technology fit, LEVEL5 ensures decisions are based on reliable data rather than subjective intuition.

Data Points the Way

The Power of Data-Driven Decision Making: Insight Beats Intuition

Data-driven decision making is not new. Industries such as e-commerce and sports have long embraced the power of data to enhance their strategies. Financial institutions can also harness this power to inform their branch playbook and make well-informed decisions.

By basing your decision-making on quantifiable insights rather than intuition, you set your financial institution—whether a community-owned bank or credit union—on a path toward sustainable, long-term growth.

LEVEL5’s Holistic Approach

LEVEL5’s approach to strategy and market analysis goes beyond traditional consulting engagements. We combine market analysis with site selection, ensuring that the quantifiable insights provided are actionable. Our comprehensive process involves two main components: critical inputs and outputs.

Critical Inputs:

The critical inputs for LEVEL5’s market analysis are derived from a range of data sources. These include proprietary data points exclusive to LEVEL5, as well as data points specific to the financial institution itself.

Staffing interviews provide qualitative and quantitative insights, while market segmentation analysis and trade area analysis contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the market.

Outputs:

The outputs of LEVEL5’s market analysis process provide clients with actionable information.

A 10-year pro forma offers visibility into a branch’s performance, including key factors such as loans, deposits, and return on investment.

Branch type models allow for flexibility in considering different branch types, while the staffing model helps evaluate the impact of personnel on performance.

Additionally, technology-needs assessment ensures that capital costs related to technology are considered in growth decisions.

Grow Your Financial Institution with Confidence Through a Data-Driven Strategy

In the dynamic world of financial institutions, and especially in a tough business environment like the one we’re facing today, relying solely on old-school intuition is no longer enough to stay competitive. By embracing big data and adopting a data-driven approach, financial institutions can make informed decisions and build with confidence.

LEVEL5’s expertise in utilizing data and providing actionable insights has made us a trusted partner for financial institutions looking to design and build successful branches.

By leveraging the power of data, LEVEL5 helps financial institutions navigate the evolving landscape with assurance, backed by accurate insights and strategic decision-making.

Contact LEVEL5 today to learn more about our proprietary data-driven approach and unlock the growth potential of your financial institution.

3 Reasons to LAUNCH: Discover

We Have Liftoff

LEVEL5 is excited to help your FI with your growth initiatives in 2023 and beyond with our LAUNCH Program.

We’ve built this phased approach to assessing and launching your growth strategy around the methodical steps aimed at uncovering the challenges getting in the way of your Credit Union or Bank achieving its objectives and goals.

Phase I: Discover

LAUNCH program discover — Training materials

The first phase in. our LAUNCH Program is called “Discover” – when our relationship will begin with a casual conversation, no more than 30-minutes, where we simply have a chat.

In this discussion, we’ll go over our services and background – but this phase is frankly about you. We’ll want to know about your FI’s history, your place and positioning in the communities you serve, and most importantly, current state versus desired state.

Your “Current State” is where you are today – number of branches, trade areas, assets, branch type mix, and of course, your member/customer base.

Your “Desired State” is where you want to be – expansion plans, asset goals over the next 3-5 years, thoughts on branch types, hub & spoke models, as well as any M&A’s that may be in play.

From here we’ll start to discuss next steps. Most importantly, we’ll need to uncover what is getting in the way of you executing and achieving your goals. That bridge from here to there is typically full of roadblocks, but that’s where LEVEL5 comes in.

Why LAUNCH At All?

The LEVEL5 LAUNCH Program follows a methodical, yet casual approach to uncovering the critical needs of your Financial Institution. Through a series of easy discussions, our team will be able to capture your goals, but also understand what is getting in the way of you achieving them.

From there, we’ll be able to move into the other phases of the LAUNCH Program and make actionable recommendations on how to execute to these goals.

To learn more about our LAUNCH Program, and to schedule your first “Discover” call, contact us today to get going.

national vs local general contractors

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When you’re a community based credit union or bank, and you’re looking ahead to your next branch construction project, the question of whether to hire a national or local general contractor is a worthwhile topic.

In one regard, you want to keep dollars local – after all, you pride yourself on being a “local” financial institution.

On the other hand, you want to keep costs down, and want a GC who can save you money, while also managing budgets and schedules.

Can you have it both ways?

In short – yes.

In this article, we’ll take a full look into the advantages of partnering with an experienced national Design-Build firm while also utilizing expert local Subcontractor talent within your institution’s local markets.

A National Design-Build Contractor Brings National strength and scale

More Experience

A national General Contractor has most likely completed a higher volume of projects, on a larger scale, compared to a local General Contractor. This means a national General Contractor has seen more and done more overall, bringing a broader range of expertise and can offer inputs from a larger team to advise on your success.

But just because a national GC may have their HQ in a different state, doesn’t mean there is not local representation. LEVEL5 always places a full-time, seasoned superintendent on each project, dedicated to working with Subcontractors and seeing it through to completion.

More Buying Power & STRONGER Relationships

A local General Contractor certainly won’t have the national buying power and broader relationships that allow a national General Contractor to pass on substantial cost savings to their client.

Because LEVEL5 has multiple projects at one time across the nation, we are able to consolidate purchases for materials, whether it be lumber, steel, even furniture.

And to be clear, LEVEL5 always works with as many local Subcontractors as possible. We have a robust national database of contractors across all trades in nearly every market. We’re also glad to work with your preferred local Subcontractors.

Due to our licensing and work history in all 48 contiguous states, we’re able to pull from a preferred list of competitive and trustworthy local Subcontractors within your area.

However, when there’s an opportunity to benefit our client with more savings and optimized delivery, our national frame allows us to tap into partners from other parts of the country accordingly.

For example, we always ensure that Subcontractors will actually have the availability to work on your project.

Sometimes the provider right in your own city may not have capacity and are unable to allocate resources a few miles down the road. With our network, we can resolve this issue ahead of time, sometimes securing an available sub who may not be local, but who is definitely experienced and available.

This sometimes translates into cost savings for you, too! In some cases, we may know a sub elsewhere who can work on your project for a substantially lower price than similar local Subcontractors are offering.

Specialized In Your Vertical

Many local General Contractors serve a wide array of industries…this isn’t inherently bad, but pertinent to note that they likely don’t have a comprehensive understanding of success for your particular vertical’s needs. They may be good at construction, but they are not EXPERTS in building a branch.

In LEVEL5‘s case, we have specifically provided our services to financial institutions nationwide for nearly 20 years.

With a committed team who has managed over $1 Billion in successful construction of branches, operations centers, and call centers, holistic, practical know-how in building for credit unions and community banks comes with the territory.

Keeping Your Subcontractor Dollars Local Has Huge Benefits

Reduce Your Costs

First off, you’re likely going to keep your costs lower by utilizing local Subcontractors.

Subcontractors near your construction site area are closer to the end of the supply chain for needed materials, equipment, and parts.

That generally means (but not always) lower prices for sourcing to your project if you were to compare against sourcing from Subcontractors who are further away from you.

Think of the costs needed for mobilizing a large backhoe, it’s going to be far cheaper moving it 10 miles down the road when compared to moving it from Florida to Texas.

LEVEL5 realizes this cost value that local Subcontractors bring, which is why as mentioned earlier, we try to hire them locally as much as possible, unless we see an opportunity where a non-local Subcontractor can benefit you more!

Be a True, Known Community Player

Beyond reducing your spending, keeping a majority of labor dollars local is a great Public Relations spotlight. You’re investing right back into your community, with the same folks who may even me your clientele.

Local workers on the job will spread the news of your soon-to-be branch. Families, friends, neighbors, word travels fast and when the general community realizes you’re hiring local Subcontractor businesses, it will only help solidify your standing as an organization truly dedicated to its people. Community members will take this to heart and it may even push them to consider opening an account with you.

Closer By, Quicker Response

If needed, local subcontractors can return quickly to your project site to resolve any issues or to coordinate and communicate with other Subcontractors since they’re right in the area nearby.

This would present obvious logistical problems if you were working with a sub from out of state or across the country.

For all our projects, we utilize only local Electrical, HVAC, and Plumbing Subcontractors specifically for this reason.

Imagine your branch’s heating system failing during mid-winter in Wisconsin…you’re going to want the familiar team within arm’s reach so that repairs can be made ASAP and operations can return to normal.

National + Local = A Win For Your Project

With the expansive reach, experience, and oversight delivered by a national General Contractor working in tandem with the local network of skilled, responsive Subcontractors, your project is set up to be completed with total success.

Entering a new market

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When assessing growth plans, and following the methodologies outlined in our recent Branch Playbook, you should have a clear understanding of how important data is when making market expansion decisions.

A proper Branch Playbook dives deeper into the geographic components that make up Market Analysis.

Data de-risks growth decisions, and is a critical element of expanding into a new market.

Enacting growth strategies by opening branches in a new market is not as simple as pointing to a map and building a branch. The days of building a new branch in a “busy” area of town just doesn’t cut it.

The right data not only informs these decisions, but gets you beyond generalities and into the specifics you and your Board need to greenlight projects and get you on the right growth path.

When it comes to data, LEVEL5 calculates and delivers an in-depth proforma that reviews variable data points across a 10-year horizon.

Below is a rundown of the critical data components that inform the proforma and aid your geographic expansion plans:

Loans and Deposits Forecasting – Likely the most important component when assessing the Data Outputs, when assessing expansion geographies and specific Trade Areas, you need to understand the “elbow room” in that market, i.e. are there still Loans and Deposits to be had, or is a given Trade Area saturated, and thus not viable
Competitive Analysis – Speaking of “elbow room” – is there an opportunity for you as a new retail banking entrant into a given market or not? Going beyond the elbow room, do the competitors in that given market dominate and/or outspend you, or will your entry be well received?
Consumer Overlays – A critical factor in geographic expansion is answering the question of how many of your existing consumers live in this expansion geography. Having a pre-built consumer base is often an important component
Demographic Tapestry Profiles – You may know exactly who your consumers are, but do those consumers live in the next town over. Consumer demographics can shift greatly within only several miles, so understand the overlays of your existing base in expansion geographies
Market Potential Indices – The MPI measures the likelihood of adults in a given geographic area to exhibit purchase behaviors based on certain banking products and services that align to your offerings (or those you plan to introduce)
4 Square Quadrant – The final component of the LEVEL5 Market Analysis engine is the delivery of a 4 Square Quadrant reading of a host of proposed branches in a given Trade Area by scatter-plotting them based on the branch performing well or poorly, and cross sectioned with the market potential being good or poor

To learn more about LEVEL5’s Strategy division and our unparalleled Market Analysis, contact us today so we can begin the assessments needed to help you grow the right way.

Design-Build vs Design-Bid-Build

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Branch Transformation
Services

In Branch Transformation, You Need to Understand the Difference “Bid” Can Make

That little word “Bid” can surely make a big difference when looking ahead to any given Branch Transformation project. You may be wondering what the difference is between these two concepts, or you may be wondering, “Have I even ever heard of this concept?” Don’t worry, we’ll explain below.

Design-Build

The best way to understand “Design-Build” compared to “Design-Bid-Build” is that the former is a more unified approach to the two seemingly separate concepts of “Design” and “Build.”

When a project is approached with a “Design-Build” strategy, these two separate concepts become joined at the hip and the overall branch, main office, or facility building will be better for it.

These two phases act as equal halves of a greater whole.

The reason you want these two to work so closely, if not tied to one another, is primarily due to your budget. A “Design-Build” project has a more predictable and controllable budget.

After all, when a Branch Transformation project commences with this in mind, the design of a building is done with construction in mind, from materials, labor and timing being critical elements that impact the overall spend.

Design-Bid-Build

When a project is initiated in a phased approach, with forward thinking strategies and budgetary considerations taking a backseat, your budget will suffer.

Think of this sequentially instead of jointly. When a design is commissioned and approved, the “Build” phase then goes out to Bid. You send out an RFP to hopefully qualified builders, who then need to interpret the Design you are showing them, who will then in turn try to interpret costs to the best of their ability.

This is where costs begin to balloon and lend to inevitable Change Orders.

If the construction company wasn’t privy to the strategy and Design from the onset, how involved are they really? And, to fix this disjointed scenario, someone’s gonna have to pay (who could that be?).

Of course, there’s much more to it than this. To learn more about these processes and get a better understanding of the pros and cons, Contact a LEVEL5 Design-Build expert today.

When Design Met Build

A Branch Transformation love story for the ages.

Design and Build first met when they were moving to New York City.

They were young, perhaps a bit naive of the world, and as recent college graduates, thought they knew more than they did. They shared a ride from Chicago and bickered the whole way.

You see, the foundation of their argument was that Design and Build couldn’t be friends. They saw themselves as two separate entities that couldn’t be, nor should be, joined at the hip.

Design liked the softer things. Saw beauty around her through an artist’s eye and wanted to make the world a better place.

Build was a bit more gruff. Saw the world as black and white. Preferred things in a very predictable way and shunned the shades of gray seen by Design.

They were oil and water. They said their goodbyes once in New York and thought they’d never see each other again.

Over the years, they would run into each other every now and then. With each encounter, they were both at different stages of life and ultimately, more mature than before – and possibly even better for each other.

One day, when they met again, they had no idea that they would never be apart again. Even though they were fundamentally different, they also realized they were better together.

Like Peanut Butter & Jelly. Batman & Robin. Laurel & Hardy.

And now: Design & Build.

They each can operate independently, but when they work together, projects are simply better.

Branch Transformation projects can be executed with the comfort that the Build phase knows exactly what Design is up to, what they want, and most importantly, how to do it. Projects will go smoother with less change orders and branches (or Main Offices) will be concluded in a timely manner.

And most importantly, projects will be on budget.

It took Design and Build a long time to get here. While they were drawn to each other, they still had their ups and downs. Design talked about liking things on the side, like, all the time, to Build really liking a wagon wheel as part of a given style.

Ultimately, that fateful New Year’s Eve night, Design and Build finally admitted to each other that they couldn’t live apart, despite thinking they were very two different people.

Design loves that Build gets her. Gets her sense of style and how the little somethings get executed to perfection every time.

Build loves that Design makes it easier on him. Nothing gets lost in translation. Build is able to stay on budget and deliver projects on time.

And it’s been like this ever since. A fairytale ending for all.

If you’d like to hear more stories about Design and Build, and see some of the great work they’ve produced, contact LEVEL5 today to view our portfolio and learn about our Design-Build process.