AUSTIN, Texas–When is the best time to plan for an economic slowdown? When the economy is doing well, which is why one upcoming event seems ideal for credit unions.
With numerous economists telling CUToday.info they expect the economy to see a slowdown by 2020, and with new data showing auto sales are tapping the brakes and hot home markets are cooling, credit unions will need to take smart steps now to prepare for potential threats to income streams, pointed out Frank J. Diekmann, Cooperator in Chief at CUToday.info. That includes new lending programs, improving at new employee onboarding (which can have a drastic effect on performance), reducing costs, getting more walletshare from members, and other market-proven strategies for growth.
“Fortunately, that’s exactly what the CUTomorrow Conference is 100% about,” said Diekmann. “The meeting’s agenda is completely based on feedback from credit unions, and every speaker comes from a credit union that has a successful program that has been very effective for them and that they are willing to share. It’s really an unparalleled opportunity to start planning for 2019 and the challenges beyond to ensure the credit union continues to thrive and serve its members. CUTomorrow is a terrific way for credit unions to invest a piece of their NCUSIF refunds to help control their futures.”
Old and New
The CUTomorrow Conference is scheduled for Sept. 9-11 in Austin, Texas at the Omni Hotel downtown. Both the low registration cost of just $499 and the discounted room rate are part of the broader effort to support credit union growth through old-fashioned collaboration in new ways. The deadline to get the hotel room discount is Aug. 10.
The low registration fee is being made possible due to the support of sponsors that include Catalyst Corporate, Volcorp, Harland Clarke, CU*Answers, Emery Financial Group, and CUNA Mutual AdvantEdge Analytics.
James L. This & Associates is also co-sponsoring the meeting and volunteering time with organizing the meeting. All CUTomorrow speakers have agreed to waive any speaking fees to also help keep costs down.
The meeting’s two-and-a-half day agenda features credit unions that have been some of the leading CU success stories published by CUToday.info talking about their real-world accomplishments, which will send attendees home with plenty of ideas for doing the same.
“We are obviously excited about all the momentum the CUTomorrow meeting is now seeing, and as we see a potential economic slowdown in the future there couldn’t be a better time for this event,” said Diekmann. “That’s why we are encouraging everyone who’s planning to attend to sign up now and make their room reservations. Just as there are a limited number of rooms available, we also have a cap on the number of attendees who will be able to be on hand for this fantastic inaugural event.”
Diekmann noted Austin was selected because it is a vibrant city, is centrally located, and is served by a discount air carrier, which helps keep travel costs lower.
What’s On Tap
The meeting will kick off on the evening of Sept. 9 with a special session led by Filene’s Joel Hartzler offering insights on how attendees can make the most of what they will learn over the next day and a half, along with sharing other practical lessons Filene has learned about implementing change. That will be bookended with a closing session led by Dr. James This on how to take home all of the information and strategies shared and effectively implement them.
Also on the agenda of the meeting, which is designed to tap the old-fashioned concept of credit union collaboration, are:
- Jim McCarthy, CEO of Trailhead Credit Union in Portland, Ore., who will share his credit union’s unique and effective approach to onboarding new employees.
- Bobby Michael, CEO of Army Aviation Center FCU and who has led both a $90-million CU and a billion-dollar credit union, who will share insights on building walletshare among current members.
- Shari Storm, CEO of Category 6 and a former CU exec, talking about “The Mom Market & How Credit Unions Have Built Marketshare Among Women.”
- Phillip Buell, CEO of Superior Credit Union, who will detail how his credit union has repeatedly delivered peer-leading results and growth.
- Bill Burke, CEO of Day Air Credit Union, will share his credit union’s “secret sauce” for success.
- Sandy Cloutier of Infinity FCU and Jeff Owen of Rochdale Group talking about how Infinity Federal has adjusted its approach to risk in order to drive greater growth.
- Lori Ho and Stacey Collins of BECU in Seattle, who discuss the lessons learned by the credit union in successfully onboarding new members and capturing relationships, and how it has changed its approach to doing so.
- Jane Dobbs, CEO of Canyon State Credit Union, who previously was brought in by NCUA to turn troubled credit unions around, will discuss the changes implemented at CSCU to drive its growth.
- The ‘Big First Day Q&A’ will put an exclamation point on day one, with all of the day one speakers returning to the podium for an hour of Q&A and discussion with attendees.
- Dave Klavitter of Dupaco Credit Union will discuss “Rethinking Rewards,” and how Dupaco has developed a “Thank Use” campaign to generate more relationships per member.
- Brad Smith of Cornerstone Advisors will address common issues in expense management, cost control and vendor management and how to successfully resolve them.
- John Sahagian of BCU and Anne Legg of CUNA Mutual AdvantEdge Analytics, will share how BCU has been able to drive greater revenues and improve member relationships thanks to analytics.
Special Bonus Session
There will also be a very special session on day two during which attendees will be able to share some challenges and issues they are facing at their credit unions and then have other attendees “crowdsource” ideas and experiences for overcoming those challenges.
“CUTomorrow is the result of feedback from the credit union community and readers of CUToday.info,” said Diekmann. “There won’t be a golf tournament or any 30,000-foot-views or TED Talks. What there will be are two days of ROI and collaboration.”
Registration information is available here.