DES MOINES, Iowa — In line with a mission adopted a year ago by its “growth commission” to help credit unions achieve gains in membership, the Iowa Credit Union League said Tuesday it hopes to put together financial analyses and concrete business plans by September on courses Iowa CUs might follow.

“At a time when credit union membership growth in Iowa is generally stagnant, credit union members are aging, competition is increasing, margins are shrinking and new markets are emerging, the growth commission recognized the need to focus on strategic, innovative and collaborative ways to serve Iowans in the future,” said a league press release.

Composed of 23 Iowa credit union leaders, the growth commission “spent more than six months reviewing research and discussing the future of the credit union movement,” said the league. Their meetings, facilitated by John Lass, senior vice president/product development of CUNA Mutual Group, “ultimately led to the identification of five key areas to help stimulate growth in Iowa.”

These areas include back office, human resources and marketing support plus mobile banking and virtual banking.

The league concluded that the financial analysis in August would determine the most viable solutions and business/product plans to go forward but “only if there is a need and demand from credit unions.”