By Ray Birch
MADISON, Wis.—When CUES began rethinking its consulting business, the goal wasn’t simply to offer more leadership coaching or executive assessments. Instead, the organization concluded many credit unions needed something deeper: help understanding how the entire organization functions together—and where the systems connecting people, departments and leadership teams may be breaking down.
“That connective thinking, that systems thinking, is really essential,” said Pixie Gray, SVP of organizational development at CUES, talking about the launch of the organization’s new CUES Leadership & Organizational Services. “When you look at an org chart, any horizontal part of the organization represents a leadership team requiring alignment and cohesion with one another first. You really have to pay attention to the entire organization, every department, every business unit, every horizontal team, and understanding how each of their work is impacting one another.”
Gray described the initiative as an evolution—and in many ways a reinvention—of CUES’ previous consulting offerings. Historically, she said, the organization focused primarily on executive coaching, leadership assessments and facilitating educational content delivered by outside experts. But after joining CUES in 2024, Gray said it became clear many credit unions needed broader organizational development support that looked beyond individual leaders and examined the systems, communication structures and workplace behaviors shaping performance across the institution.
“This is much deeper work,” Gray said. “We’re looking at what is traditionally called organizational development—the integrated tissue between departments, between projects, within the organization—to really build aligned and cohesive leadership no matter what area of a credit union you’re supporting.”
The new solution is designed to help credit unions address operational, leadership and strategic challenges through customized consulting engagements. According to CUES, the service draws on a team with more than 40 years of combined credit union operational experience and is structured around a collaborative, organization-wide approach focused on strengthening culture, leadership pipelines and strategic execution.
Important Difference
Gray said one of the most important differences between the new model and traditional consulting is that CUES is not approaching institutions with a one-size-fits-all solution. Instead, the organization begins with extensive discovery conversations aimed at identifying how a credit union operates internally, what challenges exist beneath the surface and where leadership or operational gaps may be limiting growth or performance.
“We’re coming in side-by-side with organizations,” Gray said. “We’re starting by looking at all the great things they already have, taking a look at what could use improvement, and then actually getting in right alongside them to do the work to make those improvements happen.”
A key part of the model is what Gray described as a “modular” approach. Working alongside the credit union, CUES builds phased recommendations tailored to each institution’s needs, allowing credit unions to decide which elements to implement, modify or handle internally.
“We tell folks to think of it kind of like Legos,” Gray said. “We build the program we think makes the most sense based on the problems they need to solve, but they remain active participants in determining how the project progresses.”
That flexibility, she said, is especially important because no two credit unions face the same operational realities or resource constraints. In some cases, a credit union may want CUES deeply involved throughout an engagement, while others may only need guidance in certain areas before taking over internally.
“We really align with best practices,” Gray said, “but sometimes organizations need something a little more uniquely customized than what is considered best practice. So, we work into the best practice.”
The initiative also reflects a larger strategic shift underway inside CUES itself. Historically known primarily for hosting leadership events and bringing in outside experts to teach leadership concepts, the organization has spent the past several years building internal operational and leadership expertise capable of delivering that work directly to credit unions.
In-House Team
Gray said the organization now has in-house professionals with direct credit union experience who also understand leadership development methodologies, organizational behavior and adult learning principles.
“We have a team of credit union operations and leadership development experts,” Gray said. “We’re coming at this through the lens of, ‘Is it possible? What would it take? What would have to be true to make this work in a credit union?’ We’re not sitting on the outside directing traffic.”
That transition, Gray said, marks the beginning of what she described as “a new era” for CUES. Rather than simply orchestrating leadership programming through third parties, the organization now sees itself as directly responsible for helping credit unions build stronger leaders, healthier organizational cultures and more sustainable operational structures.
Gray said the work already underway with credit unions has reinforced the importance of helping organizations become more willing to challenge long-standing assumptions and rethink legacy practices.
“Being critical of why we’re doing something the way we’re doing it—is it because it’s how we’ve always done it, or is it because there’s really good business sense behind it?” Gray said. “And then being okay with making it better, even if that means some change or discomfort in the process.”