CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—More than 200 “movers and shakers” from throughout credit unions attended the big.bright.minds event hosted by the Filene Research Institute here.
The meeting included discussion of a diverse setoff topics including the financial capability of Americans, member loyalty, credit union market share, strategic leadership, consumer-focused innovation, and financial technology. A number of presentations were made by Filene’s i3 teams, “Day Away” trips took place and a team of Crashers representing The Cooperative Trust were on hand at the event, held at the Harvard Faculty Club, Filene shared results from the past fiscal year (ended June 30, 2015) and previewed the exciting plans for 2016.
“I’m excited about the future for credit unions. Filene’s nearly 1,000 members remind me daily that together we can create change in consumer finance,” said Mark Meyer, CEO of Filene Research Institute. “This event gives Filene a chance to thank our members and hear their feedback and ideas. And that is invaluable.”
Among the meeting’s highlights:
- Dennis Campbell, the Dwight P. Robinson, Jr. Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, showed how strategy has to embrace business culture and depends on it for execution. "Culture is the shared beliefs and values of employees that guide their discretionary behavior in ways that are beneficial for the sustained performance of the organization. But another useful definition is: Culture is what guides decisions in the absence of policy,” explained Campbell.
- Annamaria Lusardi, the Denit Trust Chair of Economics and Accountancy at George Washington University and a respected authority on financial literacy and financial education, explored the disturbing gaps in financial capability in the United States and around the world. Some gaps are worse than others, she observed. “People really understand inflation. But risk diversification is hard. It's not intuitive. Because so much of financial well being depends on prudent diversification, we have to do better teaching this and making it crystal clear,” Lusardi told the meeting.
- Credit unions earn world-class satisfaction scores every year. But why do members rave about their credit union and then borrow elsewhere? Lerzan Aksov, professor of Marketing at Fordham University, said he has been seeking an answer to that question. “Credit unions have much lower market shares than large banks despite higher satisfaction. The differences are stark in credit card use, as just one example, credit unions win on relationship and APR, and banks win on rewards and prestige of the card," Aksoy told big.bright.minds.
I3 Teams Compete For ‘Investment’
Against stiff competition, the Filene i3 team that attracted the most faux Filene investment capital—which is how the winner was selected--was Debt Dragon, a modern online tool that helps prospective students calculate the costs of college and find ways to maximize savings. In other words, the team said: “Control your debt. Command your future.”
Other teams and their projects included:
QCash Small Dollar Lending
There is a way to minimize small-dollar lending fears while better serving member needs, according to Filene. As a result, Filene and a former i3er, Ben Morales, are kicking off a collaboration to bring a new pilot to life. QCash is an omni-channel lending solution that offers relationship based underwriting (without a credit check) to members in search of small, short-term unsecured loans.
SavvyMoney Success
SavvyMoney shared a case study of American Airlines FCU that highlighted the transformation of a Filene i3 idea. SavvyMoney Credit is creating real impact for the credit union by providing transparency and knowledge to members about their credit score, while deepening member relationships and growing loan volume through a seamless member experience.
Watching Members Interact With A CU’s Website
During the big.bright.minds event, a big screen broadcast in real time potential members of Harvard University Employees Credit Union as they experienced the credit union’s site. Using “live, observational research (read more here Live Observational Research, attendees were given insight into what is working on the credit union’s website and mobile app, and where improvements could be made. According to the Filene, some of learning from the workshop included:
- Millennial members still want to talk with someone as a part of their process of opening a new account.
- Big banks are still top of mind for consumers even if they desire to work with a smaller local financial institution.
- Financial calculators are highly desirable but they must be easy to find and use.
- Consumers are ad blind and often do not see what is included in “hero” images.
Also during the event, i3ers spent one day diving into the minds of end-users, a process that lies at the center of the Filene Method of Innovation, Filene reported.
“Attendees witnessed firsthand how virtual reality technology and motion capture is being used by Focus Vision Media to understand the stress troops are under when fighting on the battlefield,” Filene said. “Focus Vision Media shared how their technology helps military leaders and contractors see how changes in mission design, equipment and pack weight impact physical and mental stress on soldiers.”
Also At The Meeting
Entering the world of adult education at the Society of Grownups, the Crashers representing The Cooperative Trust learned about money and life from this rapidly growing start-up. Then off to meet with the MIT Poverty Action Lab to discuss the work needed to lessen financial woes for the under privileged at home and around the world, Filene reported.
Filene’s Research Council and select guests worked with Harvard Business School professor Dennis Campbell on the Handelsbanken case: A Scandinavian bank drives exceptional efficiency by pushing decisions as close as possible to its customers. “Then, from the front lines of today’s war for talent, current MBA students talked about how credit unions can recruit and retain the best,” Filene said.
Finally, Harvard Business School professor Ryan Buell showed how to improve member engagement by revealing precisely what goes into providing their service.
Further summaries from big.bright.minds and presentation slide decks will be available for download on filene.org, Dec. 8.