By the looks of things, Baby Boomer credit union CEOs are nearing retirement age, which used to mean boards had to have their succession plans in place—-but wait just a minute.

Boomers are now staying put! As the poet Dylan Thomas wrote, “Do not go gentle into that good night.”

Older executives who were set to retire are putting it off because their nest eggs have been decimated by the plummeting stock market, which doesn’t bode well for the generations waiting in the wings.

But to stay in their jobs, CEOs need to get up-to-date with technology, which has become more important over the years because of the need to compete on economies of scale with larger financial institutions and the credit crisis. (more…)

The loan files at BECU are empty, in fact, for the past year, they have been non-existent.

Washington’s largest credit union began offering members the state’s first “paperless” mortgage about a year ago and the program has been a remarkable success.

Last month Joe Brancucci, executive vice president and chief lending officer at $8.5 billion Boeing Employees Credit Union filled an ACUMA (American Credit Union Mortgage Association) audience in on details about how BECU pioneered an entirely paperless mortgage experience. (more…)

When I walk into my credit union—- USE Credit Union—- I am always greeted by name, but these days I am also asked how my life is going.

The folks at my CU genuinely care and don’t judge me by my dwindling savings account because they get it. The economy is in the tank and their members are hurting, but they know what they stand for.

In 1935, when credit unions were helping Americans through the Great Depression, the treasurer of a Midwestern Credit Union said that credit unions were “not for profit, not for charity, but for service,” and that philosophy holds true today.

A budget impasse in late June prompted California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to threaten to cut state workers’ pay to the federal minimum of $6.55 per hour – not nearly enough to get by in the hi-rent Golden State. Around that time, though, a notice appeared on the door of my credit union, which serves state workers as a primary SEG. The notice offered help in the form of low-interest loans in case Schwarzenegger came through with his threat.  He didn’t, but how many state workers with accounts at banks had that peace of mind? (more…)

Common sense and research tell us that credit unions and CUSOs should put time and effort into newly placed executives, preparing them so they hit the ground running from day one. That’s where a comprehensive process called ‘onboarding’ comes in.

“It’s a relatively new word and concept,” said Mark Elliott, founder and CEO of PowerStart Onboarding. “You’re not teaching them how to do the job, but research shows that new leaders, even those with years of experience, face many challenges that can slow or derail their progress. Those first few months on the job have a disproportionate impact on the new leader’s success or failure.” (more…)

What is an opportunity network?  What is the mindset required to define a network as an opportunity network?  What defines peers?  What would it mean to truly drive a network as a peer-to-peer network?  Can opportunity overwhelm an organizations senses to the point that it is driven to redesign its business processes, the way it selects playing fields, and the way it embraces collaborators?  CU*Answers hopes so, and not just for its business model alone.