As the new president/CEO of the World Council of Credit UnionsBrian Branch has hit the ground running since stepping intothe role following Pete Crear’s retirement.

“Credit unions deal with so much now, and we’ve always talkedproudly of the work we do. And now we need to listen in and findout what is useful information to share with credit unions,” saidBranch.

“What we find everywhere, across all borders are real compliancechallenges, and credit unions are left trying to figure out how tocomply," he said.

"That is just one common theme, so we’re going to continue toask ourselves how what we’re doing is relevant to helping creditunions. Part of the challenge today is how we can serve as aclearinghouse of the information, experience and trends we see inother countries and share what’s useful to move ahead–that is whereWOCCU can show value,” Branch said.

He got his start at WOCCU as a graduate student and over the years worked with credit unions,microfinance providers and other financial institutions and hashands-on field experience in 47 countries.

A part of WOOCU for over 20 years, most recently as executivevice president/chief operating officer, Branch has held a varietyof positions ranging from economist and manager of research anddevelopment to regional manager for Latin America and vicepresident of development services.

Under his operational leadership, WOCCU has diversified its funding sources, tripled annualoperations and introduced handheld technology for credit unions toextend remote service delivery in rural areas. He has overseendevelopment programs in more than 40 countries and led legislativeand regulatory development in 12 countries.

Branch has also increased opportunities for internationalengagement and exchange among credit unions and leagues acrossdeveloped and developing systems.

“I have lot more opportunity now to sit and talk big issues,challenges, strategic credit union systems,” said Branch. “I reallyenjoyed working with Pete. He gave me the best advice, which was tohave fun and don’t become overwhelmed with it all. In my previousposition, I used to be very involved in operations, so it took someadjustment. I had to shift gears, step back a bit, delegate moreand stay with the big picture view of where we are goingstrategically.”

Part of the strategic view ranges from membership growth anddevelopment to furthering the international partnership programsand taking some of the technology produced through the WOCCUServices Group to credit union systems in other countries withlittle to no access to electronic delivery.

“We’re looking around the world and some of the credit unionsystems out there have no link to the international system, sowe’re reaching out to those in Asia for example,” said Branch. “Wealways will be a development organization, and it has been harderto get funding for that as the recession has impacted some donors,so we’re going to be more aggressive in pursuing thoseopportunities.”

He added that much can be gained from looking beyond localcommunities served and even a country’s borders to embrace more ofa global perspective.

“There’s been lots of interest in experimentation of hand-heldtechnology as ways to deliver service to members at theirconvenience. We see lots being done with ways to achieve greaterefficiencies everywhere and how other countries model collaborationto share back-office systems and try new ways to give greaterscales of efficiencies so small credit unions can continue tooperate,” said Branch. “It’s all a work in progress and always atrade off, freedom of the individual credit union to member demandand how to protect the quality of account information and productdelivery. But it’s exciting to realize what can happen when we gettogether and partner internationally.”

Drumming home the idea that credit unions worldwide share acommon mission and values has been the purpose of InternationalCredit Union Day. It’s a moment where credit unions can bask andshare with consumers in what bonds them together and sets themapart from other financial institutions.

“To a lot of our international members, International CreditUnion Day is a big deal. What’s always struck me is that I could gointo a credit union in the mountains in Ecuador or in a village inMalawi and that ICU Day Poster in the credit union lobby gives asense that you are part of something more than just a village butpart of an international system. If those same arguments and logichave less appeal in the United States, then we need to startthinking how to make it more appealing.”

That feeling of being a part of something bigger has also beenthe driving factor for WOCCU to push credit unions to be a part ofthe United Nations’ International Year Cooperativescelebration.

Slated to launch the week of Oct. 31, the IYC celebration willkick off with a series of meetings and workshops at the U.N.'s NewYork City headquarters. WOCCU' s online IYC platform,www.woccu.org/iyc2012, contains information and resources for WOCCUmember organizations interested in recognizing and celebrating theyear-long designation. The website also features a forum throughwhich members, credit unions and other cooperative business leaderscan share ideas, photos and video about IYC and current issuesaffecting credit unions.