MADISON, Wis. - CUNA Mutual has been in the headlines for layingoff over 400 people in the last few months. CEO Jeff Post says thelast thing he wants to do is cut employees, but in this case, thecuts are for the greater good of a company that is seeing morecompetition all the time. Post was enlightened by a survey ofcredit union CEOs. The survey was a clear indicator to him thatCUNA Mutual is getting a break from credit unions just becausethey're CUNA Mutual. Credit unions are utilizing the company'sservices even though in some cases there are cheaper and comparableoptions out there. "Credit unions clearly give me the benefit ofthe doubt on price. At a certain point and time they have to buyfrom someone else," said Post. "I'm not just talking about thebond. Bond is where we clearly have our greatest market share, butthe fact of the matter is as credit unions become larger they haveopportunities. A lot of other people want to sell them products,"said Post. (See sidebar for listing of CUNA Mutual's top productsand their fiercest competitors, according to CUNA Mutual.) In aninternal survey of CUNA Mutual employees, 98% said the company wastoo pricey on most products. The company is in the midst of athree-year plan to get more efficient and in turn deliver betterpricing to credit unions. Post said with employees and benefitsaccounting for 80% of company costs, job cuts were necessary andthe logical place to save money. He does not believe they will hurtservice levels. "I've been down this road before. The downsizingwill actually help service. There will be a much clearer line ofsight between our people and the customer. We'll eliminate multipletouch points to the customer, so customers have one place they go,"said Post. He described employees as "scared and excited." In apre-Thanksgiving memo, Post told employees it's OK to be nervous,and he too was nervous, as even he is uncertain how the changeswill play out. But Post stresses that he would not be doing hisfiduciary duty if he did not cut costs and make the company morecompetitive. Aside from the sale of its mortgage division to PHH,which did enrage some CU clients for the company's short notice ofthe sale, most of the layoffs are still months away. Post said thatwill give employees time to find new jobs. The company is offeringtraining and working with the state to place displaced employees.CUNA Mutual's hands were tied somewhat on the PHH deal because PHHis a public company, and leaking the sale ahead of time could drawregulatory action. "We didn't give as much lead time as we wouldhave liked to. I think it [the sale] was the right decision," saidPost. Post has long described CUNA Mutual as having a siloenvironment for each product area. "Every single business had itsown call center, every single business had its own claimoperations, every single business had its own customertouch-point," said Post. He wants to change that to one businesstalking to the customer. He wants a better customer experience andacknowledges that it is a confusing company to deal with. CUNAMutual has 36 different call centers. He believes that number hasto be reduced, though that does not necessarily mean a reduction instaff. He wants to centralize them where it makes sense, but someareas, like claims, where field work is vital, centralization isn'tprudent. The efficiency efforts at CUNA Mutual are out there forall to see, but what about new business ventures or organic growth?Post believes CUNA Mutual has a number of partnership opportunitiesthat could see it serving entities other than credit unions.However, he said the company will only do so if it benefits bothCUNA Mutual and credit unions. He cited a number of potentialexamples. CUNA Mutual could offer its 401(k) products to smallbusinesses and at the same time cross-sell credit union services byoffering a list of CUs in the area that could offer the businessesfinancial services. CUNA Mutual could partner with the AARP forinsurance, and cross- sell credit union services with one of thelargest groups in the country. It could partner with a provider ofcrop peril insurance to reach out to farmers and at the same timemake America's farmers more aware of credit unions. Post floatedthe idea of CUNA Mutual reaching out to other groups to creditunion CEOs on a recent trip and said the response wasoverwhelmingly positive. This year's revenues are expected to comein just below planned, at approximately $130 million, said Post.He's not concerned about missing the planned mark for two reasons -the company had $20 million in plastic card losses which heattributed to the rising tide of identity theft, and it had tocover claims for the most expensive hurricane season on [email protected]