CHICAGO–During a meeting at which payments, and especially faster payments, was front-and-center in nearly every presentation, credit unions were cautioned not to let the need for speed cause them to rush right past their fundamental mission.
For more than a century that mission has been described as “people helping people.” But what does that really mean at its heart? Can it be measured? Jim Nussle, CEO of CUNA, and Gigi Hyland, executive director of the National Credit Union Foundation, offered their ideas on how credit unions should answer those questions, reminding on several occasions that fulfilling that mission isn’t just about good deeds, it’s good business.
Nussle’s and Hyand’s remarks came during a session at Co-op Solutions’ THINK Conference.
“I had heard people helping people, but coming into credit unions from the outside and having been a member of Congress, I didn’t quite understand the mission until I got immersed in it over the last eight years. I get to see the heart, the daily mission, the moments every day,” said Nussle. “To me people helping people needed definition. I really believe financial well-being for all is the definition of people helping people moving forward.”
Nussle said the pandemic and its economic fallout over the past few years have only demonstrated what credit unions have done throughout their history during members’ “most challenging moments.”
‘Mudpuddle Moments’
While credit union responses around natural and manmade disasters has always been high profile, Nussle said, “What we didn’t always see was the daily mudpuddle moments that go on for our members every single moment of every single day, such as someone who doesn’t have the money to pay for a spare tire for their car so they can get to work.”
Nussle said he regularly monitors what is known as the ALICE data, which stands for people who are Asset Limited Income Constrained and Employed.
“These are people without a lot of assets,” said Nussle. “They are in some of the most challenging financial situations that happen throughout this country and happen to members every day. It happens to our own people who work in our credit unions and our associations.”
Nussle said the surveys have shown just how strained Americans are, including:
- 42% of country identified themselves as financially struggling.
- 17% said they quit a job in order to deal with child care
- 60% of Americans lost income during the pandemic.
- 68% said they have no rainy day funds whatsoever
‘Between the Eyes’
“The one statistic that hit me almost between the eyes was 44% said they are either anxious or depressed” over their finances,” said Nussle. “If you think this is just a checkbook issue, look again. When you are one paycheck away from financial devastation, that weighs on you. It challenges you as a human being and a person. Yes, faster payments, being more efficient, all those things are important and we have to be there. They are table stakes. But we can’t just be faster if we are rushing right past the mission and where people are today and what they are struggling with.
“People say, ‘No margin, no mission.’ I’m here to tell you if there is no mission, there is no credit union, we’ll be just like everybody else. If that is what we are, we are wasting our time.”
Take a Deep Breath
Hyland urged her audience to take a deep breath and relax. It’s something many Americans can never do, noting that those 68% who are struggling represents 166-million Americans.
“Everything in life we do is connected,” said Hyland. “At the Foundation our job is to bring you back to why we exist. Credit unions were a disruptor. French-American mill workers just wanted to build a life here in America (which led to creation of first CU, St. Mary’s Bank). Those same struggles exist today. Life has become so much more complex. When challenged to rethink everything, start from the very beginning. Start with your why. Your why is based on being human. How do we serve our members in ways that advance their financial well-being and how do we do it for all?”
Message for Legislators
Nussle recalled that during his days in Congress many powerful organizations came to see him every day asking for things.
“The most compelling stories I heard were the ones that told stories that connected with people in my district and which were backed up by data that tells a story. The second thing is you want to do more because you are moving the needle, you can show how you are affecting the daily lives of your members. That’s very powerful.”
Nussle, who urged CUs to begin with their own staff when it comes to “refreshing your mission,” said there are five good reasons to invest in financial well-being to manifest people helping people:
- Right thing to do
- It attracts talent. “Having something to believe in attracts the talent of the future”
- It attracts new members
- It’s a powerful advocacy platform that works for both Republicans and Democrats
- It enriches “our cooperative superpowers”
The Q&A
Nussle’s and Hyland’s remarks were followed by a panel discussion Q&A that also included Dan Michaels, chief strategy officer with Co-op Solutions, and David Tuyo, president and CEO of University CU. The discussion was moderated by conference emcee Jean Chatzky.
Chatzky: There is a push and pull between mission and margin. How does your credit union balance that?
Tuyo: It’s almost built into our system by design to think of those things separately. At University FCU we are trying to define margin around the mission to our members, and we have seen 20% growth. If you came from banking or a similar background, the attraction to come to credit unions is this people helping people mission. Financial well-being happens at the action level for your member-owners.
Chatzky: As head of strategy at Co-op you are always looking at leading edge technologies. What do you see as the financial well-being trends we can’t ignore?
Michaels: One trend we are seeing is around actionable data. It’s taking data, personalizing it, and taking action. It’s digital and real time or near-real time. It’s going beyond basic budgeting tools and figuring out ways to help them.
Chatzky: How do you bring financial wellness to people via their devices?
Hyland: We all know banking is incredibly hard and complex. It’s shameful to admit we don’t know about money. It’s in the little-bitty nuggets of ‘Hey, you want to save for a vacation? What if you put this much aside?’ As you think about lifestyle, and Co-op has done great research on this, it’s meeting them where they are in their lives.
Michaels: Financial well-being doesn’t start from a margin perspective. It starts with how can we help people. When you do that good things come from it. When you do it it leads to members discovering credit union products and services, and that leads to margin.