The last few years have been very interesting to comment on thenews and, while some things have slowed down, now is no different.Many issues from credit union management to matters in Washingtoncontinue to evolve and deserve commentary.

The modern, horizontal org charts have done wonders for givingmore people a voice in the operations of their business and allowedmore ideas to move uphill. At the same time, some are discoveringthat employing vice presidents along various verticals creates avoid for successors at the top.

I understand this concern, but I also believe that leadership isleadership, whether it’s overseeing the lending program or theentire credit union. Some people have it, some people develop itand some won’t. But many of the skills employees learn on theirjobs below the CEO position and in their lives that seemingly havenothing to do with, for example, a balance sheet are transferableto other, higher positions. Current leadership has theresponsibility to clearly explain the credit union’s overallstrategy and everyone’s part in it. Not only does it allowemployees to feel a part of something, but this trains their mindsto see the bigger picture.

Every CEO was a first-timer at some point. Credit unions need tobe willing to take a chance, provided proper groundwork is presentin a candidate’s résumé. David Hilton noted in our page 1 storythat nearly all of the CEOs at credit unions over $100 million areexpected to retire in the next 10 years. There’s still some time tomentor the next generation of leaders, so don’t miss out. Executivedevelopment of employees should be a part of every credit union’sstrategic plan.

On the NCUA front, the administration has not yet received ahearing for Carla Decker as its nominee to replace Gigi Hyland on the NCUAboard. There are a couple of roadblocks aside from negativeinformation reported by Credit Union Times, though atleast one new name for a candidate has surfaced.

It’s probable that during an election year, particularly one ascontentious as 2012 is shaping up to be, Democratic appointmentswill be few and far between as Republicans hope to take back theWhite House. However, a seat on the NCUA board is not so visible as to cause too much of a flareup. On the other hand, these approvals are typically made in pairsand open seats at the better-known and more prestigious FDIC thatan NCUA nominee could be paired with, as is the common practice,might make the GOP less likely to allow action. Still, thedebatable recess appointment of Richard Cordray to head theConsumer Financial Protection Bureau is in the back of allRepublicans’ minds.

It’s very possible that Hyland will maintain the seat for a gooddeal longer if she wishes. Former NCUA Chairman Dennis Dollar leftthe NCUA board a year beyond his six-year term, and it still tookmore than 18 months for the vacancy to be filled. Given all theissues before any administration, including personnel appointments,the NCUA board is not a high priority. After Debbie Matz resignedher seat in 2005 at her previous tenure, also serving beyond herterm, the NCUA board was left with then-Chairman JoAnn Johnson as the sole board member.

In other news, board assessments were of such interest at therecent volunteer institute (see coverage, pages 6-7) thesession attracted half or more of the total attendees during a timeslot when two other sessions were taking place. A repeat of thesession later in the day attracted nearly as many. Volunteercomments and questions on performing board assessments were diverseand constant throughout the session.

The high attendance was a good sign, but what really struck mewas the fact that only a few in the session I attended said theyperformed assessments of their volunteers at all. Reasons variedfrom not knowing where to find good resources for an assessment tonot wanting to offend.

First, I’d note that the credit union community is a cooperativeone and I would imagine another credit union in a similar situationwith comparable goals would share their assessment tool. The factno one seemed to think of cooperating on something as simple asthis bothered me. There are also several resources from the tradeassociations to vendors that can provide this type of information.Anything can be a starting point if a credit union really wants toperform an assessment.

Additionally, it’s very important for everyone in life to beable to take constructive criticism. Who is againstself-improvement? As long as the process is respectful and resultstreated with dignity, if some volunteers are afraid of or don’tlike the results, that should not be the credit union’s problem. Ifboards do not assess where they are, it’s difficult to determinehow to move the board or the institution forward. That is, afterall, the board’s duty.