Ten years ago, the credit union had five of its 75 employees ready to deliver babies around the same time–meaning five simultaneous maternity leaves that could potentially last several months. After polling the entire staff and considering the cost of temporary replacements, Valley CU launched the pilot that allowed babies up to eight months or crawling to "work" side-by-side with their parent.

After the trial period, employees were surveyed again and the program met with rave reviews. One member who had come in to close an account decided to keep it open because the accountholder saw the program in action and decided Valley Credit Union was where she wanted to keep her money.

Sounds crazy. Sounds counter productive. Sounds, well, noisy. But one credit union was bold enough to test the waters and ended up with a great recruiting tool for employees that allowed members to see the credit union difference in action. The success of Valley Credit Union's Babies at Work program inspired two other California credit unions to follow suit.

Another impressive and practical initiative that was the talk around a recent CUES conference where we had a reporter was Orange County Teachers Federal Credit Union's call center technology that allowed attendants to telecommute.

I spoke with two representatives of the credit union who were very enthusiastic about it. They emphasized that for OCTFCU, it's not so much a matter of personal accommodation for the employees but a business strategy. From a service and efficiency standpoint, the credit union is better able to reel in call center employees for split shifts and have them on call for Saturdays as needed.

OCTFU started the program in 1996, but at the time employees who were further away–the most likely candidates for telecommuting–cost more in terms of set up, toll calls and other expenses. Now, with Voice Over IP and a new Cisco phone switch, set up and maintenance is much faster and cheaper.

Additionally, OCTFCU said the telecommuting employees tend to have higher productivity than others. This is very well monitored just through regular call center monitoring. Simple and smart.

These employees are required to touch base on-site with their supervisors once a month; it is also made clear that this program is not a substitute for daycare for young children.

The credit union has also found that these employees express higher levels of job satisfaction, loyalty, and commitment. An added bonus here again was increased member satisfaction; they have no clue the representative isn't in a call-center office.

I'm a huge fan of telecommuting having done it much of the last eight years. For one, it saves the company money, not only in office space but also by sparing itself lost productivity due to severe weather or illness. I know I have worked many days I wouldn't have if I had to go into an office.

Obviously telecommuting wouldn't work for a frontline teller but for a call-center employee or a compliance officer, why not?

It can also provide for a less stressed-out employee due to the lack of a potentially grueling commute in areas like Washington, D.C. or other metropolitan centers with lousy traffic, another big plus not only for the employee but also the employer.

I understand that many employers like to have an eye on things, but with the right employees, direct oversight really is not necessary. Nearly all of our reporters telecommute and they could not be more productive–be sure to check out the mega-issue we'll put out next week for delivery at CUNA's Governmental Affairs Conference.

Other credit unions like MCT Federal Credit Union in Maryland offer an in-house gym and Navy Federal Credit Union gives employees regular 15-minute, sit-down massages.

Tokens of appreciation like all of these go a long way toward showing staff how much the credit union values their hard work. When employees are treated well, they will return the favor.

These programs are also great recruiting tools as the credit union workforce continues to gray. And many of these employees–from the community development officers to the tellers–are the "face" of your credit union to the members and potential members. Give them a reason to smile.

Comments? E-mail [email protected]