Salesforce used its most recent earnings call to spotlight PenFed Credit Union’s Agentforce deployment in its contact center. James Schenck, President and CEO at PenFed Credit Union, said the program will save $1.6 million annually and reduce call handle time by 10%.
Schenck also reported a 50% reduction in after-call work and a 40% reduction in held calls. Those metrics hit the operational core of voice service, and they show what happens when agentic AI targets the work around the conversation.
PenFed framed the deployment as part of a wider rebuild of its technology foundation. Schenck said the credit union consolidated from about 400 platforms down to 12 strategic partners and now runs its call center, mobile app, website, and branch operations on Salesforce. Citing the rationale as competitive pressure:
“There was 18,400 banks and credit unions. There’s 8,000 today. Think about that. 500 credit unions and banks are either merged or beaten out of existence every year.”
PenFed’s contact center use case centers on a tool it calls Agent Wingman. Schenck described the workflow as a real-time assist that reduces documentation burden on frontline staff.
The agent listens to the call and transcribes it in real time. A human agent stays in control and approves the content, and the system updates the customer record so the next agent can start with full context.
That human approval step matters in financial services. It gives teams a control point for accuracy, tone, and compliance before information becomes part of the official record.
Why The CEO Showing Up Matters
Most earnings calls include customer references, but fewer include the customer CEO. Schenck’s presence signals PenFed views Agentforce as a meaningful operating change, and it signals Salesforce sees PenFed as a reference for regulated industries.
Asked what other financial services leaders should take away, Schenck emphasized speed and focus, “It occurs faster than you think. Literally, we had the vision where we saw what was possible two years ago. You can build it quickly. The most important thing is having the right partner and not to have too many partners. Too many partners slow things down.”
PenFed tied contact center outcomes to platform consolidation. Schenck said PenFed runs its call center, mobile, web, and branches on Salesforce, and it reduced drag created by overlapping tools. In an assessment, Schenck warned about the cost of tech sprawl:
“Every additional partner or tech siloed capability is a tax on innovation, it’s a tax on speed, and it’s a tax on security.”
This matters because the transcript and approved summary only help if the next interaction can use that information. A unified system of record makes the 360-degree update operational instead of theoretical.
PenFed positioned Agentforce as part of a larger shift to operate with AI agents alongside employees. Schenck said PenFed has 76 AI agents running across operations, mortgages, IT, and HR.
He also framed the impact as scale without reducing staff. The goal is to absorb more volume while keeping employees focused on relationship work.
What This Looks Like As A Model For Financial Services Contact Centers
For other financial services contact centers, PenFed’s approach points to a pragmatic pattern. It starts with measurable operational friction, and it keeps humans accountable for what enters the record.
It also treats the 360-degree profile as the outcome, because it supports continuity across voice, web, mobile, and branches. Over time, this model can turn the contact center into a stronger hub for relationship intelligence.
In the next phase of agentic CX, financial services leaders will likely separate pilots from production in one way. They will ask whether the AI improves the record for the next interaction and whether the organization has the platform discipline to make that record usable.
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