Case Study: First Tech Federal Credit Union achieves stronger engagement and reduced turnover with Workhuman's Recognize and Conversations

Connecting Employees with Human Applications

First Tech Federal Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial institution with more than 1,500 employees across eight states and Puerto Rico, serving over 550,000 members. Rooted in the tech community and guided by the "People Helping People" philosophy, First Tech needed to move beyond annual reviews and ineffective goal-setting toward real-time development, clearer performance communication, and shared accountability that connected employees to business priorities.

Partnering with Workhuman, First Tech launched two human-application programs—Recognize (a social recognition and reward platform with Award Advisor and a 1% payroll investment) and Conversations (real-time check-ins and feedback)—to surface meaningful work and drive more frequent manager-employee dialogue. In year one the programs achieved 100% employee recognition, 3,400+ check-ins in the pilot, stronger engagement and communication, and tangible retention benefits (those who receive recognition are over 2.5x less likely to leave), while generating HR data to focus improvements and support measurable business results.

First Tech

Chary Krout

Former Senior Vice President, Human Resources