Cuna News Podcast

Financial institutions covered by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) with deposit insurance are subject to comply with Affirmative Action Program obligations under Executive Order 11246, the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistant Act (VEVRAA), and Section 503. With credit unions prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) work, and the Biden-Harris Administration’s interest in enforcing measures related to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), credit unions should remain proactive and ensure they are in full compliance. This episode of the CUNA News Podcast features Chris Lindholm, vice president of compliance at OutSolve. He outlines steps to take to ensure compliance, shares commonly overlooked details to take note of, and explains the consequences of noncompliance. Lindholm has been involved in affirmative action planning for more than 20 years, assisting clients with OFCCP audit support, training, and Equal Employment Opportunity compliance, including implem

The nature of leadership is changing as cultural and demographic forces transform the workplace. To maximize the potential of their teams, leaders must create more inclusive environments that encourage the expression of different cultures, contexts, and perspectives. In this episode of the CUNA News Podcast, global workforce expert Dr. Shirley Davis explores how leaders can foster inclusive work environments and create productive and rewarding team dynamics that reward top performers. Today’s workplace calls for leaders to be not only culturally intelligent but culturally humble, says Davis. This requires an ability to listen and to begin to understand other perspectives. With that understanding, employees will engage more deeply and are more likely to align their values to the organization’s meaning and purpose. Culture is everyone’s responsibility, but it starts with an organization’s leaders. Davis suggests leaders start with “The Platinum Rule”: Don't treat everybody the way you want to be treated. T

When Angie Bastian studied the snack aisle in the grocery store, she noticed an important omission: No representation of women except for foods geared toward weight loss. That led to a revelation: The decision to be loud and proud about celebrating the feminine. This episode of the CUNA News Podcast features two keynote speakers from the 2021 CUNA Marketing & Business Development Council Conference, which takes place virtually March 23-25. Bastian, the namesake of Angie’s Boomchickapop, transformed a garage popcorn business into one of the nation’s fastest-growing brands of natural popcorn. She shares lessons in effective branding and how she cut through marketplace clutter with an emphasis on female leadership and empowerment. Public speaker and motivator Gian Paul Gonzalez discusses his philosophy of being “all in” and the power of commitment.

Cheryl Deborde has served as the Members Choice CEO for five years following a 29-year banking career. From the start, she eschewed advertising for hands-on community involvement. “I don’t want to spend money on a billboard,’” she says. “We want to make a difference. We support the local sport teams and the area schools with scholarships—that’s our advertising. “We want to be known for taking care of people in our community,” Deborde continues. “When I look at people helping people, it's not just writing a check, it's about rolling up your sleeves and making a difference in people's lives.”

“He gave me a chance.” It’s what Nick Kessenich hopes members will say when asked about the impact he had on their financial lives. It’s also what $28 million asset Members First Credit Union in Madison, Wis., would say if credit unions could talk. For nearly 40 years, Kessenich led the credit union as it grew from an organization run out of a basement and a briefcase into a community-based credit union that serves more than 3,000 members. “The credit union was my life. What I’m proud of the most is when somebody thanks me because no one else would give them a chance,” Kessenich says. “I gave them a chance, they took it, and they succeeded.”

Bill Lawton’s path to credit unions was almost a birthright. His grandfather served as a credit union board member in the 1950s; his mother worked for the Michigan Credit Union League; and his father, George Lawton, served as manager of Community Financial Credit Union when Bill was growing up.  “It was only as I got a little older that I appreciated the background of those stories,” recalls Lawton. He serves as president/CEO of the same credit union his father ran in Plymouth, Mich. Bill started at the credit union in 1974 at the age of 14, filing ledger cards. Eventually, he took on a more substantial role, leading the credit union’s transition into the computer age in the early 1980s and building the organization’s information technology infrastructure. Through the years, his role expanded. He took over as CEO in 2004. Today, the credit union holds $1.1 billion in assets and serves 79,500 members. One of Lawton’s employees, marketing coordinator Kristen Todd, offers her own take on Lawton’s role at the cre

In her first credit union job, Val Mindak worked in almost every area of the organization. This paved the way for a career in the movement and sparked Mindak’s passion for community involvement. Today, the president/CEO of $275 million asset Park City Credit Union in Merrill, Wis., says her extensive credit union experience shaped her leadership style. Since Mindak became CEO in 2009, Park City has seen overall growth of more than $200 million in assets.“Effective leadership means moving people toward a common vision,” she says. “We can contribute so much more when we work together.”

The events of 2020 have affected consumer behavior in many ways, and the payments landscape is no exception. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has driven significant changes in consumer payment preferences. Through its 2020 Eye on Payments study, PSCU set out to gauge those payment preferences among credit union members and customers of other financial institutions and explore how they have shifted over the past year.  This episode of the CUNA News Podcast features Tom Pierce, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at PSCU, and Norm Patrick, vice president of Advisors Plus Consulting at PSCU.  Pierce and Patrick discuss key findings from the study and share takeaways that credit unions can use to better serve their members and optimize their product and service offerings. 

The past year of living with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has presented many challenges for credit unions. But in the face of difficult times, numerous credit unions have used the modification of in-person operations to reimagine business strategy, product and service delivery, and the member experience. This episode of the CUNA News Podcast features Derek Everett, general manager of credit union solutions at Fiserv. Everett explains that credit unions now have a unique opportunity to rethink operations and strategy. That includes technology optimization, process improvements, creation of new products and services, and other priorities that can lead to a better member experience and accelerated growth. Everett shares specific solutions credit unions should explore, from digital banking to in-branch technologies, and outlines potential next steps for credit unions that have already started putting enhancements in place. He also previews Fiserv’s sessions and other exciting plans for the 2021 CUNA Govern

At their very best, credit unions serve at the hearts of their communities. In this podcast, Cathie Mahon, president/CEO of Inclusiv, describes how her organization promotes financial inclusion and builds more inclusive economies through community-owned financial institutions. Inclusiv is a national network of community development credit unions formed by and for low-income communities to serve disinvested and underserved populations. Membership is open to credit unions designated as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) or Minority Depository Institutions (MDI) and to credit unions primarily organized around the mission of promoting financial inclusion. Inclusiv operates on DEI principles, with programs that empower disenfranchised communities and promote cooperative solutions among credit unions. Mahon explains that DEI is critical to everything that Inclusiv does—and emphasizes that it’s also everything credit unions are about.

CUNA News continues pre-conference interviews with some of the speakers addressing the 2021 CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference. This episode features:Former New Jersey governor and 2016 presidential candidate Chris Christie on the 2020 election and the future of the Republican Party.Former Chicago mayor and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel on next steps for the Democratic Party and opportunities for bipartisanship.Former Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb on the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and health-care policy.To hear more from this year's GAC speakers, listen to the first part of the CUNA News Podcast's interviews with author, speaker, and social-change agent Kevin Carroll; former U.S. national security advisor H.R. McMaster; and award-winning journalist, documentarian, and author Soledad O'Brien.

As the upcoming generation of consumers enters the financial services marketplace, credit unions should prepare to meet their expectations. Younger generations select financial institutions based on a very different set of criteria than their parents used.  They look for convenient, digital-first, personalized experiences—and they’re willing to walk away if a financial institution doesn’t deliver them.  In this episode of the CUNA News Podcast, Jamie Cosgrove, head of financial services at Podium, explores what the modern member expects from financial institutions, including the importance of a mobile-first, cashless transaction experience.  He also shares how credit unions can build trust with these members and explains how their preferences fit into growing consumer acceptance of digital banking due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  Cosgrove says there are many tools available to move credit unions in the right direction, and they can provide feedback much more quickly than ever before.

The 2021 CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference is right around the corner. This year’s GAC takes place virtually from Tuesday, March 2, to Thursday, March 4, and, as always, features an unmissable lineup of speakers. This episode features pre-conference interviews with some of the thought leaders who will share their expertise at GAC:Author, speaker, and social-change agent Kevin Carroll on advancing sports and play as a vehicle for creativity and change.Former U.S. national security advisor H.R. McMaster on leadership, resilience, and strategy.Award-winning journalist, documentarian, and author Soledad O'Brien on the current social, political, and media landscape.To hear more from this year’s GAC speakers, look for an upcoming episode featuring interviews with former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, and former FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb.

It’s been almost a year since the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic triggered nationwide lockdowns, remote work arrangements, and other massive challenges across the country. Through it all, credit unions have adapted and innovated to continue to serve members—but it hasn’t been easy. Fortunately, credit unions don’t have to go it alone. Groups like CUNA Strategic Services (CSS) work with credit unions to identify their business challenges and find solutions through industry providers. This episode of the CUNA News Podcast features Barb Lowman, president of CSS. Lowman shares what credit unions should know about CSS, including how it works with providers and the changes CSS has made to serve credit unions effectively during the pandemic. She also highlights some of the ways providers have supported credit unions and suggests a few solutions credit unions should consider in the days ahead.

The most impactful moments don’t always appear on a resume or LinkedIn profile. “Sometimes the best things that happen to people to improve their life and to help them make great decisions are those things you would never hear about unless you are willing to deeply ask and get curious,” says Antonio Neves, speaker, author, and host of “The Best Thing” podcast. Neves will be the emcee at the 2021 CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference, which will be held virtually March 2-4.

For credit unions, the member experience has been virtually redefined since the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Member expectations have shifted as safety and ease of use redefine the consumer landscape. This raises two questions for credit unions, according to Jayne Hitman, national program manager for Creating Member Loyalty (CML), a development strategy program from CUNA focused on increasing employee engagement and the member experience. First, how do credit unions anticipate these changing dynamics among their members and prospective members? Second, what changes should credit unions make to meet these expectations and to deliver consistently great experiences across all their delivery channels? Additionally, assessing member satisfaction must also evolve, according to Paul Robert, CEO of FI Strategies, a strategic partner of CML. Measuring ease of use is at least half the equation in this new landscape, Robert says.

As members’ interactions with their credit unions become more digital, their engagement creates a legacy of data that can be collected and analyzed to improve business performance. In this podcast, sponsored by Trellance, Kaushal Pandya, senior vice president of data management and chief data officer at Trellance, explains how credit unions can develop the tools to catalog and maintain their own data management programs. As Kaushal says in this interview, data management competency is a blend of people, technology, and process. Trellance works with credit unions to ensure each of those elements is integrated smoothly into an organization’s data management system. With the right practices and principles, virtually every credit union can maintain a quality data management platform, paving the way for better member engagement and product and service growth.

Marketers who had adopted an agile marketing mindset before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic were quickly able to pivot their plans without major disruptions when the pandemic began.  “We don’t write big marketing plans,” says Jim Ewel, author of “The 6 Disciplines of Agile Marketing: Proven Practices for More Effective Marketing and Better Business Results.” “We write one- or two-page plans—I call them ‘napkin plans.’ They’re revised frequently. They’re tested against the market frequently. We get a lot of feedback on them and they constantly evolve and change.”  In this episode, Ewel, who will speak at the CUNA Agile Marketing eSchool in February, talks about what agile marketing is, the benefits it presents, how to switch to an agile mindset, and more. 

Sticking to the fundamentals and building relationships with members are key components of lending, say two award-winning lenders. Lloyd Gill, retired CEO at $565 million asset We Florida Financial in Margate, Fla., and Tim Dunham, vice president of consumer lending at $1.1 billion asset Credit Union of America in Wichita, Kan., joined the CUNA News Podcast to talk about lending during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, what lending will look like in the future, the importance of relationship building, and more. The CUNA Lending Council named Gill the 2020 Phil Greer Lifetime Achievement Award winner and Dunham the 2020 Rising Star during the CUNA Lending Council Virtual Conference in November.

The outset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020 provided unforeseen challenges for every credit union leader. Leadership lessons gleaned from webinars and audiobooks were put to the test under the pressure of a crisis, and new lessons were forged from failure and success. In this podcast, two credit union CEOs share their pandemic experiences and how they’re moving forward in 2021. Lynette Smith, president/CEO of $130 million asset TruEnergy Credit Union in Springfield, Va., shares how TruEnergy leveraged a largely remote workforce to serve 9,000 members during the pandemic with a blend of technology and appointment-only, face-to-face member service. Max Villaronga, president/CEO of El Paso (Texas) Area Teachers Federal Credit Union, explains how the $740 million asset credit union serves 65,000 members largely through remote services in one of the states hardest hit by the pandemic. Smith and Villaronga provide insight and lessons that credit union leaders can apply within their own organizations.