Five Tips for Paving the Way for Merger Conversations
As a credit union leader, you’ve determined that proceeding with a merger is the best way to grow your financial institution. Perhaps you’ve even identified some potential merger partners. Now the question arises: How do you start the conversation?
Four Ways to Ensure a Good Merger Fit
One factor that credit unions search for when choosing a merger partner is a “good fit.” But what does “fit” mean? It’s not like trying on a pair of shoes where you can tell instantly if the fit is comfortable or not. With mergers, there are several ways to consider whether the fit is good. Here are four criteria to consider.
Stuck Between Gears – Vision matters.
Vision matters. Looking further ahead, planning, and shifting in advance would have made an enormous difference. You can guess what happened next. Keeping my eye on the road ahead, anticipating inclines and declines, engaging the chainring effectively, using my momentum on the incline’s approach, and dropping through the gears quickly and smoothly was the plan of action to ensure an enjoyable ride through the hills. Each hill was more easily navigable with a mindset of looking ahead, strategizing, and improving my shifting.
Organization Alignment Part 1: Work Toward the Ends, Not Managing the Means
Employee engagement, satisfaction, and internal Net Promoter Scores are now common practices; even the NCUA is focused on increasing its employee engagement. As a consulting partner with a talent–management focus, we’re all in favor of organizations improving their cultures.
Board renewal and recruitment: A profound need to modernize the process
The COVID-19 environmental disruption, the call to enhance and expand member digital services, #blacklivesmatter, and the retirement of board members comprise a profound confluence of opportunities. These opportunities should not become issues with the right actions. Two years ago, a significant percentage of board members (30-40%) declared they would retire in three to five years.
Six Mistakes Credit Unions Make When Recruiting Female Directors
Women make up the lion’s share—or should we say “lioness’s share”?—of membership at U.S. credit unions, but their representation on credit union boards is sorely lagging.
Leading During Crisis – Communication and Culture from a Distance
Just when you thought you knew everything you needed to know about collaboration, communication, and culture…and then you didn’t. The current COVID-19 crisis is changing our lives and “workplaces” dramatically, and daily.
Nine Hallmarks of a Strategic CEO Evaluation
Few board responsibilities have more potential for positive organizational impact than evaluating CEO performance. When done well, this process can generate ongoing powerful and meaningful conversations between directors and the chief executive and align them all in the same strategic direction.
Build a Better CEO Evaluation Methodology
Move your board’s performance review process from routine to dynamic.
There are two types of board-CEO relationships in our industry—good relationships and bad relationships. At either end of that spectrum, revamping the CEO evaluation process could help your credit union step up its game.
Looking Ahead For Successful Succession
Leadership development and continuing education efforts today lead to smooth transitions tomorrow. Succession and internal development are a “major focus” for $400 million Century Federal Credit Union in Cleveland, says CUES member Sharon Churchill, CPA, CCE, president/CEO of the organization.