Musings from the CU Suite

Shamelessly written by Anthony Demangone

I hope over the past few years you have enjoyed these musings. I hope to write them for quite a few more!

Today, I want to share with you a little project I've been working on. Yes, this is a shameless plug. But I hope that you indulge me. The project?

A training session and a book. 

I speak with quite a few directors, and this effort is for them.  Learn a bit more about the training session here. It will take place May 10 at this year's Board of Director's Conference in Louisville, KY. The foundation of the workshop is a book. Rather than describe it, I'll share with you the book's introduction.

As always, let me know if you have any questions, and feel free to forward this email to any credit union directors that might find this useful.

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Why should you read this book? That’s the right question to ask. Please allow me to explain why in my usual round-a-bout way.

The credit union industry is a wondrous thing.

Decades ago, men and women gathered around a table, or a workbench. Or they may have met after a school meeting. Or following a religious gathering.

While the stories are many, each one follows a similar pattern. There was discussion of starting a credit union. If the men and women of “insert group” could pitch in some money, they could start one and take control of their financial lives.

You’ll hear stories of eight people putting $42 into a shoe box. Or fifteen people starting with $167.

Fast forward to today, and what you see might shock those early credit union pioneers.

Thousands of sophisticated credit unions offer products and services that rival anything the biggest banks can offer. But with an edge that no bank can. But we’ll get to that later.

But there’s a problem for many credit union directors. While the great credit union industry has been chugging along for decades, most directors come to their role with little or no credit union experience. Like someone watching a soap opera for the first time, new directors can feel lost with so many story lines swirling around.

While time and experience can chip away at the initial confusion, the process can be long and erratic. Fiduciary duties. Regulations and guidance. Interest rate risk. ROA and the net worth ratio. There’s a lot on your plate.

I’m lucky enough to speak before thousands of credit union directors each year.  I see many directors struggle with their learning curve. They want to know more about the industry in general, but they don’t know where to start.

I had one attendee come up to me after a talk and jokingly suggest that I visit him some afternoon at his home and tell him everything I know about the credit union industry over a few cups of coffee.

To make a long story no longer, that’s why I’m writing this book, and why I think you need to read it.

If you wish someone would give you a holistic view of the credit union industry and how you fit into it, then I’m your guy. In short, this book is my “brain dump.”

Now, a few other housekeeping notes before we start.

1. I’m biased. Everyone is, more or less. 

• I love the credit union industry. It has characteristics that give it certain edges. I will not apologize for being a quasi-cheerleader for what we do. Sue me.
• I’m a federal guy. I love all credit unions, but I work for NAFCU. (Remember all those acronyms?) That stands for the National Association of FEDERAL Credit Unions. I will write things generally, but when I want to give a concrete example, I will borrow from the world of federal credit unions. Whenever I can, I will highlight the differences between the federal and state charter.
• I’m going to preach a wee bit here and there. I think you deserve someone trying to synthesize all of the various things that are going on. So, I’ll have an opinion or two. Feel free to disagree with me. I won’t mind. I have a lovely wife and two beautiful children.  I’m used to it. When I hop on my soapbox, I’ll let you know. 

 There are a number of things that this book is not.

1. This book is not everything you need to know. In fact, that may be my first “soapbox” moment of the book. Beware of any guide (or person) that claims to tell you everything you need to know. There’s simply too much information and ideas to convey in one “guide.” The best I can do is to give you a taste. If you want more, I’ll try to give you some additional resources to dig deeper.
2. This book is not the end. Related to the last point, the true burden of learning is on your shoulders. Not mine. There’s a ton of places to keep learning – conferences, websites, blogs, journals, magazines and more. You need a commitment to keep learning to be successful. I guess that was a soapbox moment as well.
3. This book isn’t the only way to pick my brain. Email me at ademangone@nafcu.org. I’ll respond. I promise.

Now, that was enough of that. Please turn the page and let’s get started. But before you do, understand this.

I have the utmost respect for what credit unions do, and for the boards that lead them. I tend to use humor and sarcasm, but do not allow those personal quirks to shroud my love of credit unions. We are the good guys. In financial services, we wear the white hat. Much of this well-deserved reputation comes from our industry’s directors.

For that, I thank you.

OK, now you can turn the page...

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(Get more information about this workshop.)