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Articles by Jim Devine
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Purposeful Talent Development: Don’t Just Follow the Latest (Business Book) Fad
Ask Google for the “top business books of all time” and you’ll get some great titles: The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz, Start with Why by Simon Sinek, Good to Great by Jim Collins and many others. While a lot of good has come to people and organizations who’ve read these books and applied the authors’ ideas, there’s a problem with leading only with the advice of the latest best-sellers, excellent as they may be.
Purposeful Talent Development: How to Create the Right Curriculum for Your Managers' Learning
3 minutes Teaching managers how to do their jobs better is often overlooked—but shouldn’t be. At CUES we’ve been talking a lot lately about the pressure credit union managers feel between the performance focus of leadership and the day-to-day needs of their direct reports. We’ve considered how managers’ development is often overlooked, especially when high-performing individual contributors are promoted to management but not trained in the success skills required for that new role.
Human-Centered Leadership
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HR Answers: 6 Common Leave Administration Pitfalls
6 minutes Leaves of absence can be complex; read on to avoid issues in these areas when administering FMLA or other types of leaves. This article is reprinted with permission from Trüpp. Read the original blog post here. If you have ever administered a leave of absence, you probably understand how complicated the procedures and timelines can be. Details such as employee count, type of leave or employee location can impact the leave administration process.
Leadership Matters: 5 Ways to Prepare for Tough Conversations
5 minutes While you can’t control how others receive your message, you can boost your chances of a positive outcome by being clear, curious and calm. It seems like there are innumerable tough conversations to be had in the workplace—for situations like mediocre performance reviews, cancelled projects, peer feedback and so on. The five tips below will help you prepare ahead of time, so you’re positioned for better outcomes more often.
What does CFPB’s new business loan data collection rule mean for credit unions?
In March, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a new rule that will require lenders to collect and report key data points about their small-business lending, including information about business loan pricing, loan denials, business owner demographics, and minority- and women-owned business enterprise status. CFPB’s chief concern is addressing lending practices that discriminate against women-owned, ethnic minority-owned and LGBTQ+-owned businesses.
What Does CFPB’s New Business Loan Data Collection Rule Mean for Credit Unions?
4 minutes It means doubling down on helping your business members become better at what they do. In March, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a new rule that will require lenders to collect and report key data points about their small-business lending, including information about business loan pricing, loan denials, business owner demographics, and minority- and women-owned business enterprise status.
Lending Perspectives: Are You Collecting Your Stories?
5 minutes Stories are powerful sense-making devices leaders can use to draw others into the point they’re making. How are you using them to boost your culture? As I have shared from time to time with my readers and followers, I really enjoy writing. It’s said that writers write about what they know; I write about what I’m experiencing daily as a lending executive. I have a passion for lending, and I have a passion for helping my peers in the credit union movement.
How Credit Unions Can Help Build a Green Economy | CU Management
Skip to main content 5 minutes First look inward at your own operations, then look around. Financial institutions have a vital role in expediting to play in the shift to a green economy. Credit unions, with their strong ties to members and local communities, are uniquely positioned to drive positive change and enhance their reputations as outstanding corporate citizens.
Kinecta’s ERGs Bring People Together Inside and Outside the Organization
4 minutes Members of the credit union’s affinity groups and their allies support one another and the community. 2020 was a pivotal moment, and not only because of the pandemic. The murder of George Floyd sparked many to recognize the inequities that exist across this country, including within financial institutions. To help address this and foster a culture of inclusion, Kinecta Federal Credit Union established its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council.
CFO Focus: Strategic Planning to Survive and Thrive, Part 2
4 minutes Identify the wildly important goals. This article is reprinted with permission from the original. Read part 1 here. Let’s talk about the hard work required to develop a strategic plan that is clear and concise, identifies the few wildly important goals and institutes accountability. Strategic Planning to Survive and Thrive Of course, there are many ways to approach this, but the reality is that strategic planning can and should be kept simple.
Seven Ways to Modernize Performance Reviews | CU Management
4 minutes Regular feedback and coaching are far more impactful than one big meeting a year. Sponsored by The Omnia Group If a performance review doesn’t make an impact, does it even matter that it happened? It’s fair to say that performance reviews don’t have the best reputation with managers or employees. Employees hate them because the process either doesn’t feel organized and consistent or is so rigid that it’s clear it’s just something to mark off the compliance checklist.
NextGen Know-How: 6 Strategies to Deliver Impactful Presentations
6 minutes Preparation and practice can make a big difference whether you’re a fearful or confident public speaker. Earlier in my career, my VP asked me to prepare and deliver a presentation to our board of directors on a project we were leading. I had very little experience speaking in front of people, and I was terrified. I remember filling each PowerPoint slide with information, hoping to wow my audience with detailed data and lots of bullet points.
Focus on Mobile Engagement This Financial Literacy Month
6 minutes Credit unions, we have to tell you about your future! (Spoiler: It hinges on personalized financial guidance.) Americans have been on a personal finance roller coaster for the past few years, so it’s no surprise that 77% of consumers are experiencing anxiety about their financial situation.
Building a Case for Digital Trust
4 minutes Why having confidence in digital relationships should be a strategic objective at your credit union, and seven ways to approach it Ask my grandparents, parents or myself what made us credit union members, and we might sum it up as “trust”—trust the CU would do right by us.
The Green Economy: Opportunities and Risks for Credit Unions
4 minutes More and more financial institutions are helping to finance a low-carbon, resource-efficient and socially inclusive marketplace. Is your credit union ready? What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word “green”? A forest? A frog puppet? A dollar? A recycling box? How about the economy?
Diversity Insight: Financial Transparency Is Fundamental to Financial Inclusion
5 minutes Non-traditional data and data-sharing could help credit unions reach more of their members. Financial inclusion is essential when promoting access to financial services to underbanked and unbanked populations.
Will You Be Ready When NCUA’s Cyber Reporting Rule Takes Effect Sept. 1?
5 minutes Start preparing your incident response plan now. Sponsored by Kaufman & Canoles, P.C., a CUES Supplier member Cyber incidents are in the news and on the rise. Now, there is a cyber incident mandatory reporting rule unanimously adopted by the National Credit Union Administration board members scheduled to take effect Sept. 1.
Trust Is on Shaky Ground
4 minutes Three key opportunities for credit unions today Although few would argue that credit unions represent a trusted brand, trust itself is on shaky ground. Nerve-wracking bank collapses aside, financial institutions have been struggling for years to pin down precisely what it takes to maintain their customers’ confidence. The problem may be one of definitions.
The Importance of Improving Your Members’ Financial Health
3 minutes Industry organizations must work together toward this important goal. Sponsored by Jack Henry The U.S. is facing a financial health crisis. For the first time since 2018, the percentage of people in the U.S. considered financially healthy decreased from 34% in 2021 to 31% in 2022, according to an article from the Financial Health Network.
Tackle the SEO Marathon as a Series of Sprints
3 minutes Search engine optimization work for your website content is never done. Sponsored by CUES Supplier member Edge It’s been said again and again that search engine optimization isn’t a race; it’s a marathon. It works as a metaphor to set expectations that content work takes time and effort. It falls short, however, because the truth is that website content work is never done. Wait, I’m Not Done With the Content I’ve Already Posted? Well, kind of.
HR Answers: 6 Ways to Avoid Stuffy Interviews
4 minutes Humor, coffee and thank-you notes are just a few ways to set your job candidates at ease and foster an engaging selection process. Interviews are one of the best ways to get to know a candidate before they join your credit union team. But let’s face it—interviewing really isn’t fun for either side of the table, and it tends to put people on edge.
Credit Unions’ Traditional 2 x 2 x 2 Onboarding Is 2 Long
3 minutes Today’s onboarding process works; it just needs to work faster. “Thanks for your order, Jayne. We’ll send you an update when it’s ready for shipping.” “Great news! Your order has shipped and will arrive early! Track progress with this link!” “Your order was delivered! How was it? Rate us here!” These are all texts from actual orders and real customer experiences. We come across this kind of instant engagement in many retail incidents every day. A pickup order is ready.
Board Compensation Can Be a Strategic Investment
12 minutes Success with paying directors requires both thoughtfulness and hard work. Whether and what to pay credit union directors is getting attention. CUES Supplier member Kaufman and Canoles goes into detail in an article on the subject. “It is a well-known fact that federal credit unions are not permitted to directly compensate members of their boards of directors,” the article states. “As a result, a number of FCUs are converting to state charters primarily so they can pay their directors.
Take It Easy | CU Management
Credit Scoring and Control “Credit scoring used to be a nice-to-have feature that people found in their credit card applications, but now it is part of a credit union’s mobile app,” says Jason Schwabline, chief strategy officer at CUES Supplier member Alogent, Peachtree Corners, Georgia. “It’s become a feature that teaches members financial wellness.” During the pandemic, credit unions saw some mobile users checking their balances up to 10 times a day.
Merging With CUES eVote
2 minutes Electronic voting solutions are being used to facilitate merger proceedings quickly, easily and confidentially. With the credit union industry going increasingly digital, it should come as no surprise that electronic solutions are being used to facilitate merger proceedings. CUES eVote is a highly secure platform that allows CUs to hold votes quickly, easily and confidentially.
Take It Easy (In Your Mobile App)
Credit Scoring and Control “Credit scoring used to be a nice-to-have feature that people found in their credit card applications, but now it is part of a credit union’s mobile app,” says Jason Schwabline, chief strategy officer at CUES Supplier member Alogent, Peachtree Corners, Georgia. “It’s become a feature that teaches members financial wellness.” During the pandemic, credit unions saw some mobile users checking their balances up to 10 times a day.
On Mergers, Mobile and Being the First
2 minutes This month we’re covering some big topics for credit unions. First, check out our cover story on making mobile easy. Kate Rogers, chief innovation officer at $590 million University of Illinois Community Credit Union, says about 85% of the CU’s logins are on a mobile device. So, her team’s goal is to make it as easy as possible to sign in to mobile banking.
Good Governance: A Cautionary Tale of Risk Management in This Time of Bank Failures
4 minutes Defining roles and responsibilities and continuing education help ensure appropriate coverage. While the news surrounding the failings and futures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank remains in the headlines, we are learning a great deal about the role that rising interest rates, cryptocurrency and governance played in each organization’s demise.
Nine Insights on Achieving Board Success With Technology | CU Management
5 minutes The evolution of technology has wide-ranging impacts, and for many companies, that evolution begins in the boardroom. Sponsored by OnBoard During OnBoard’s ATLAS Leadership Series, technology pioneer and IBM Fellow Emeritus Nick Donofrio explained the mindset leaders can adopt to spur continuous improvement.
CEO Sabbaticals Get Popular
4 minutes Executives and boards are revisiting their strategic approaches to retaining key talent. From credit union consolidation to lingering “Great Resignation” trends, several market realities are pushing leadership continuity toward the top of the list of credit union priorities.
Talent Lessons Learned From the Silicon Valley Bank Failure
5 minutes There’s clear value in taking time to plan for your team’s learning and your own. You could easily make the case that credit unions’ situations are incredibly different from that of Silicon Valley Bank (and two others) that failed in mid-March. Credit unions are required to maintain a much higher level of capital than banks; are heavily restricted in what investments they can make; and are allowed to make far fewer business loans as a percentage of their total lending portfolio.
Talent lessons learned from the Silicon Valley Bank failure
You could easily make the case that credit unions’ situations are incredibly different from that of Silicon Valley Bank (and two others) that failed in mid-March. Credit unions are required to maintain a much higher level of capital than banks; are heavily restricted in what investments they can make; and are allowed to make far fewer business loans as a percentage of their total lending portfolio.
Stay Ahead of the Threats of Staff Turnover and Regulatory Oversight
5 minutes A thorough compliance management program can help you manage the laws and transcend staffing changes. Credit unions are facing historic challenges that make compliance increasingly difficult: high staff turnover and increased regulatory oversight. But a thorough compliance management program can help credit unions manage staffing changes, remain compliant and stay competitive in this complicated marketplace. Here’s how.
Your Next Hire? A Chatbot
4 minutes Here’s what to consider when deploying the artificial intelligence-powered technology to help your institution staff up. It’s long been a challenge for credit unions across the country to attract talent that stays.
How Credit Unions Can Reset Their Digital Transformation Effort
4 minutes 3 strategies for moving more quickly and making a meaningful impact More than ever, it’s critical for credit unions to find ways to prioritize the speed of innovation and delivery when it comes to digital transformation. The pressure is on to improve member journeys, reduce operating costs and create efficiencies across the organization while simultaneously bringing new features and technology to market to remain competitive.
Tech Time: Embedded Finance Is the Path to the Next Generation of Members
4 minutes This modern approach to ‘People Helping People’ occurs when members are most in need of a trustworthy lending option. Finding the right strategy for growth is a challenge for many credit unions today. According to the most recent data from the NCUA, annual membership growth hovers around 4.4%. And credit unions often struggle to reach younger consumers who have a lifetime of financial needs ahead of them.
Rising Check Fraud Puts Credit Unions at Risk
5 minutes Here’s a cost-effective response to fraudsters leveraging digital banking and the dark web. If you don’t think the saying “Everything old is new again” applies to financial fraud, think again. Check fraud is on the rise again. While that might seem like stealing a horse and buggy in the digital age, criminals know when there is money to be made. They’re using modern tools to make old-school fraud work to their advantage.
Managing Mergers Needs Communication, Maybe Even Love
12 minutes Understanding goals and strategy leads to a smoother transition for staff and members. When British Columbia’s Prospera Credit Union and Westminster Savings merged at the beginning of 2020, the new organization’s executives looked for a secret ingredient to make the merger work—love. “We had our credit union’s culture team develop workshops that we called The L.O.V.E Workshops, which stands for Living Our Values Everyday. Just the name was really popular with employees,” says Terence J.
Is This the Right Job for You?
3 minutes Questions to ask yourself about whether it’s time to move on—and whether an open position has the potential to be a good match for you This blog was adapted with permission from the original. Whether you are currently employed or seeking a new opportunity, how will you know if the job you’re in—or one you might be pursuing—is right for you? Here are a few consideration points for both situations. Is Your Current Job Good for You?
What’s the best way to get more small-business loans today?
The rising interest rate market means spreads are back—and credit unions, like other financial institutions—will be looking to make loans. However, rising rates also mean the end of the mortgage refi boom of the past several years and might just slow down car buyers too. Business loans banking might be an area to look at with renewed interest right now.
Key Considerations for Crossing the $10 Billion Threshold
9 minutes Credit union leaders and industry experts outline challenges and considerations for organizations approaching this major growth milestone. There’s a magic milestone for financial institutions in the United States—an asset mark that has loomed large since Dodd-Frank was signed into law in 2010.
Small businesses and small lenders to star in PPP, round 3
New rule addresses IRS confusion—but will it be too little too late? Passed by Congress on Dec. 21, 2020, the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses and Nonprofits and Venues Act, a part of the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021, covers the incremental $284 billion allocated out of the $900 billion COVID-19 aid package for small businesses. The focus of this third round of the Paycheck Protection Program is smaller businesses.
Addressing PPP forgiveness questions
Economic stimulus plan is demanding lenders’ staff time and may not ultimately succeed in keeping small businesses afloat. There is obviously a lot of confusion regarding the forgiveness issue for the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program loans. The ultimate fallout of this is the significant non-productive time requirements lenders are going to have to devote to address the wide range of confused and frustrated questions they will be asked by the borrowers.
PPP forgiveness and other COVID-19 concerns creating a perfect storm?
Hopefully, the relatively strong capital position credit unions have will help. The U.S. Small Business Administration has indicated that financial institutions (including credit unions) under $10 billion in assets have stepped up and collectively have around $60 billion (about a third) of the second-round Paycheck Protection Program funds under their management.
The balancing act of member business lending - CUInsight
A little more than a year ago, we wrote about our “Sunny Forecast for Member Business Lending.” With anticipated double-digit growth, we encouraged credit unions to invest in the competency of their lenders and their MBL program. Fast forward to 2017. You’ve done everything right to build a quality commercial lending portfolio and take advantage of market opportunities: You’ve trained your lenders.
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