By Frank J. Diekmann
Some items from the notebook, your emails, the road and more…
I Wish I Had Thought of This…
Following one of CUToday.info’s extensive reports on credit union mergers, including those that involve members giving up considerable equity to either another credit union or to management of their own CU without getting anything in return, Ancin Cooley, principal with Synergy Credit Union Consulting, offered this take via my LinkedIn page.
I admit, I wish I had thought of this merger metaphor:
Grandson: Hey, grandma. How are you doing?
Grandma: I'm good, baby. How are you doing?
Grandson: Grandma, I was wondering... I heard you did something with the house?
Grandma: Yeah, baby, I went ahead and let the next-door neighbor merge with my house. Now we are all together in one big house.
Grandson: When did you decide to make that decision?
Grandma: Oh, baby, we decided a couple of days ago.
Grandson: The house had $500,000 in equity, Grandma. You just gave that away?
Grandma: Yup, they didn’t give me any money.
Grandson: What!?!?
Grandma: I got better cable and better air conditioning.
Grandson: Services?!?! Grandmother, with your equity, you could've bought cable and air conditioning. You didn't have to give it all away.
Grandma: I know, but this nice person came over and said we'd just be better together.
Grandma: I'm happy. I can watch Judge Judy as many times as I want now.
Grandson: Who presented you with this idea?
Grandma: It was our property manager. He said the cost of keeping the house maintained was going up.
Grandson: Let me see the contract…. Grandma, the manager got 50k of your equity when you merged. That’s why he brought up the idea.
Grandma: Baby, you are blocking the TV
Because You Just Know Someone Would Have Asked
One credit union vendor that was hosting a webinar included this disclaimer, “Due to this program being offered free of charge, there will be no refunds issued.”
Yes, It’s a Verb
Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), a long-time supporter of credit unions, made an observation during a recent hearing that simultaneously made credit unions unhappy and happy: “Thank God for the CFPB. They have returned $17 billion back to Americans. That is tip of iceberg. They have discouraged a whole variety of bad practices that otherwise would have cost Americans tens of billion of dollars. I want everyone to be banked, or credit unioned.”
“Thank God for the CFPB.” Probably not a t-shirt that is going to see a lot of buyers at a credit union fundraiser.
A Cookie Sheet to Go With That Balance Sheet
CUToday.info has received several press releases saying credit unions must be prepared for open “baking.”
That Explains That 51st Star on the Flag
Numerous credit unions distributed press releases in conjunction with the Diamond Awards they won from America’s Credit Unions’ Marketing and Business Development Council, one of which noted awards submissions had come from “168 organizations from 44 states, including the District of Columbia.”
Bringing Home to Work
One technologist with a CUSO recently pointed out that among the reasons credit unions should be exploring generative AI such as ChatGPT is because their employees are already using it. “All of these organizations are leading from the top down, but their people are already using it at home,” he said.
Registration Packets Should Include Earplugs
Hey, I know I’m getting older, but does every credit union event now have to have a DJ and a deafening soundtrack? Do I, or any of us, really need DJ Stevie Steve or whoever the hell this wannabe DJ Khaled is with the blaring mixtape and the thumping bass at 7 in the morning? And what’s with the sunglasses, Stevie McSteve? It’s a hotel ballroom and they’ve got it so dark in here already people are using their phone flashlights to find open seats.
Frank J. Diekmann is Cooperator in Chief of CUToday.info and can be reached at Frank@CUToday.info. Mr. Diekmann is also author of several new book, including the brand new “The Last Lyric,” a humorous satire about a murder investigation at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in which every line of dialogue is either a classic pop/rock song title or lyric. Available on Amazon, Apple iBook, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords. Mr. Diekmann is also author of a non-fiction compilation of the very best & worst he has seen and heard in covering more than 500 CU meetings and conferences, “501 Name Tags: How Everything You Need to Know About Business Can Be Learned at a Conference & Forgotten in the Trade Show.” It is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Lulu, and Smashwords.