Avon-based COCC, a financial services technology firm, is reporting double-digit growth and expects to end its current fiscal year as one of its most profitable in the company’s 42-year history.
Richard Leone, chief executive officer of COCC, which sells banking software, credits its “superior” customer relations — resulting with 23 straight quarters of excellent client ratings — for its 10 percent average growth rate over the past six years.
COCC serves 140 banks with its core system, and the company makes a concerted effort to provide all of them with personal and constant attention, Leone said.
Leone, who joined the company in 1991 as its chief financial officer and became its CEO in 2001, said the decision to develop a new, cutting-edge technology — called Oracle — with Open Solutions Inc. became “a big watershed event here in the company.”
Open Solutions is based in Glastonbury and like COCC, focuses on the financial services marketplace. It provides enterprise data management, system design and technology products and services.
The Oracle system helps banks more efficiently manage customer accounts compared with previous systems, Leone said. As a result, it helps banks triple their assets while employing the same number of employees, he added.
“We help you keep your people counts low and grow your franchise electronically,” Leone said.
Richard Bastiansen, senior vice president of operations at Harbor One Credit Union, agrees. “With so many regulatory issues, product enhancements and documentation needs, we really rely on COCC to help us with their expertise and support,” Bastiansen said in a case study conducted by Credit Union News.
Customer service is the key, said William Lidestri, senior vice president of Windsor Federal Savings Bank. “I believe that what sets COCC apart from others is a commitment to superior customer service. Their staff is committed to our success and they are accessible and knowledgeable,” Lidestri said.
“COCC’s core processing system is certainly at the forefront of the industry, but COCC is so much more than core processing. It’s the committed and caring employees, and the true partnership that exists between COCC and its client banks,” said Lidestri.
The majority of COCC customers have a vested interest in the firm. About 70 to 80 percent of its clients own share of COCC, said Robert Bessel, the firm’s public relations director.
Under the direction of Leone, the company’s revenue has grown from $32 million to$65 million, and has added 150 jobs during that time.
“That’s something I’m really proud of,” Leone said. “When you look at all the downsizing and all the headlines, we’re a company that has grown by about 30 jobs a year for past six years.”
