OneUnited hosted legacy servers, managed network shares, and dealt with the constant operational burden of on-premises infrastructure, all of which created unnecessary friction for internal teams, external partners, and customers. Even basic functions, such as sending secure emails, scheduling appointments, or sharing calendars, got in the way of the user experience. More critically, the on-premises setup prevented integration with cloud-based solutions, such as Salesforce, leaving the CRM disconnected from email and calendar systems.

"We couldn't get the emails that were in our on-prem exchange server to sync up to the CRM, and our calendars were out of sync," Slocum explains. "This put us at a disadvantage in being able to effectively collaborate with our partners and customers."

When OneUnited decided to move to the cloud in 2023, the team knew that their legacy vendor would be the safe choice. The bank's existing technology partner had a clear migration path, and seasoned employees were comfortable with legacy tools — but OneUnited saw an opportunity to align its technology stack with its innovation goals and evolving talent pool.

"Younger employees and new hires were coming into the business with Google Workspace skills, having used these tools throughout college and during COVID-19 remote learning," Slocum explains. "We decided this was the right collaboration technology that would benefit our organization for the future."

But transitioning a tight group of 150 employees from decades of on-premises usage required thoughtful change management. OneUnited partnered with Searce, a cloud-native technology consulting firm, for its migration to Google Workspace, leveraging Searce's expertise in this area. As Slocum explains, "We strategically chose a partner who had a strong change management plan. We knew this would set us up for a smooth transition from our legacy systems, especially for those who were initially hesitant."

The strategy centered on identifying and empowering internal champions throughout the organization. These weren't necessarily just technically skilled employees, but rather enthusiastic individuals who could serve as cheerleaders, trainers, and hands-on helpers during the transition. "Our champions participated in our regular implementation calls, helped their colleagues during training, and assisted on transition day," Slocum says. "They were the ones who made it possible for us to bring the organization to the other side of the project."

The technical migration was equally comprehensive. Beyond moving email and collaboration tools, OneUnited eliminated multiple legacy systems, including network shares, backup servers, email archives, and mobile device management platforms. All of these functions were consolidated under the Google Workspace umbrella. This has generated more than 54% reduction in costs, with Slocum noting that infrastructure cost reductions alone pay for the monthly Workspace investment.

Moving to Google Workspace also allowed OneUnited to implement enterprise-grade security measures that exceeded its previous capabilities and maintained compliance with financial industry regulations. The bank deployed multi-factor authentication across the entire organization, implemented context-based access awareness, and established comprehensive device management protocols.

"We moved all of our cloud-based services to single sign-on from our Google Workspace credentials," Slocum explains. "This was a huge stride forward in our ability to secure our platform. We looked at other solutions, but choosing to stay with the Google Workspace platform was a strategic way to unify our security efforts."

Beyond unifying collaboration and security, Google Workspace also gave OneUnited's employees access to generative AI from day one with Gemini. The bank implemented a structured approach to AI adoption, requiring departments to share weekly Gemini use cases and demonstrating practical applications across business functions.

OneUnited's CFO Charles Boyce recently reported using Gemini to complete investment policy reviews that normally required three or four days of manual work. "Our investment policy requires a detailed review of each securities dealer annually," Boyce explained. "We used Google Workspace with Gemini to complete the review, which yielded one to two pages per security dealer while answering all qualifying questions, in just two or three hours."

Teams have been finding creative uses for Gemini across departments. The compliance team, for instance, uses the tool's deep research capabilities to analyze regulatory requirements for new business lines. Tasks that previously required weeks of manual research are now completed in days, with comprehensive analysis and competitive benchmarking.

Slocum's development team also uses Gemini for Salesforce coding, building custom prompt templates that include coding standards, documentation requirements, and testing protocols. "If we'd had to complete that project manually, I maybe would've seen it two weeks later," Slocum explains. "With Gemini, I can get a prototype in a few hours."

To optimize his own daily work, Slocum uses Gemini's voice capabilities during his commute. "With Gemini, I get more work done in the car on my way to work than I ever used to imagine," he says. "In 45 minutes to an hour of traffic, I clear out my inbox, respond to everything, write up requirements documents, and lay out project plans."

OneUnited's move to Google Workspace represents a strategic alignment between the bank's mission-driven culture and its digital transformation goals. By choosing innovation over convention, OneUnited has created a foundation that attracts next-generation talent while empowering current employees to work more efficiently and creatively.

"I'm excited to see my teams complete their migration off of legacy processes," Slocum says. "As teams get more seasoned with Google Workspace, we'll see simple transformations occurring without IT team involvement. It empowers people to get things done."