At CUNA's America's Credit Union Conference last month in LasVegas, some attendees had the chance to feel like grade school kidsagain by hopping on a bus and going on a field trip. There werefour excursions (which CUNA called “community safaris”) to choosefrom at the conference, and without hesitation, I picked the tourof Zappos' zany headquarters in downtown Las Vegas – home of acorporate culture that is the envy of many HR departments.

There are good reasons to be envious of life at Zappos. First,the benefits are killer. Aside from a generous offering ofmedical, dental, vision and financial benefits, the perks includean employee library, life coaching services and luxurious onsitefacilities like fitness centers, cafes and nap rooms. Second, toencourage employees to think creatively and vocalize their uniqueideas, all employees are considered to be on a level playing fieldand traditional managers don't exist (the kooky, colorful décorencourages creativity as well). Plus, working there means abuilt-in social life – the activities calendar is always full andemployees can even be promoted based on the effort they put intomaking friends from other departments.

It's the perfect fit for a social butterfly, but I'm pretty sureintroverts (or really anyone who wants to keep their work andpersonal life separate) would be miserable joining what appears tobe a grown-up, working-world version of a coed fraternity. Zapposencourages socializing during customer calls, too – our tour guidebragged that the longest Zappos call lasted more than 10 hours. (Myfirst thought: Did they at least put the customer on hold forbathroom and meal breaks?)

Whether you find the Zappos culture attractive or a turn-off, itappears to be working for the company. Founded in 1999, Zapposquadrupled its annual sales from $1.6 million in 2000 to $8.6million in 2001, according to its Wikipedia page, and has beenrepeatedly named a Best Company to Work for by Fortune. In2009, Amazon bought the company for $1.2 billion.

Some credit union executives are taking note of Zappos' success.After the tour, I interviewed Maria LaVelle, president/CEO of the$69.5 million Westmoreland Community Federal Credit Union inGreensburg, Pa., who said she came on the tour because she'sspecifically looking to incorporate elements of the Zappos cultureinto her credit union. Here are four things she and other creditunion leaders can learn from the online retail company.

Make members fans of your brand. At Zappos, thefocus 100% of the time is on making customers as happy as possible.For example, our tour guide explained that one of his customers, abride-to-be, received an off-white dress when she in fact orderedwhite. After sending her a dress in the correct shade, he arrangedto have a bouquet of roses sent to her wedding in the Bahamas. Askyourself: What are we doing to make our members feel extra special?If you get to know them on a personal level and treat them like youwould a dear friend, they'll keep coming back and spreadthe word about you.

Give your offices a makeover. The look insideZappos screams fun – colorful wall murals, a disco ball, a coloredball pit and old Pac-Man game machines were a few things I spottedon the tour. Also, an open office design that allows employees tosee each other's faces encourages interaction and collaboration. Sotear down those cubicle walls, forget drab coloring reminiscent ofa doctor's waiting room and let employees decorate their workspaceshow they like. It may foster creativity and spark new ideas, and ifit doesn't, it'll at least make employees smile and feel more athome.

Tear down those invisible departmental walls.When members of each department keep to themselves and are unawareof what other departments are doing, a disconnect will begin tobuild and employees may become less engaged. Think about it: Whywould an employee truly care about making an impact if they can'tsee how their contributions affect the credit union as a whole? Tobreak down those barriers, consider creating cross-departmentalteams and encourage communication across the organization.

This concept applies to the occupant of the corner office, too.Employees who see the CEO as off-limits or intimidating may be lessengaged than those who believe the opposite is true. So if you'rethe CEO, be approachable. LaVelle mentioned she was impressed bythe fact Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh was outside playing musical chairswith his employees and takes 10 hours of customer service callshimself during the holidays, for example.

Cash in on employee satisfaction. Whenemployees are happy at work, they stick around, saving companiesthe time and resources it would take to hire and train newindividuals. According to Forbes, only 13% of Zapposemployees leave on a voluntary basis annually, 7% are let go on aninvoluntary basis for various reasons, and more than 30,000 resumesare submitted each year to fill only 300 roles.

Obviously, most credit unions can't afford the lavish perksoffered by Zappos. But consider what you could be doing to makeemployees feel more appreciated and achieve work-life balance. Thiscould be something like recognizing birthdays and workanniversaries, allowing employees to bring their dogs to work orimplementing a work-from-home policy.

Credit unions and Zappos may have very different businessobjectives, but they both share the goal of providing top-notchservice (or as Zappos calls it, “delivering wow”). If credit unionscan bring that wow factor to both members and employees, only goodthings can follow.

Natasha Chilingerian is managing editor for CU Times. Shecan be reached at [email protected].