I recently started in my fourth decade in the credit union movement (20 years at natural person credit unions and 13 years at Corporate One FCU). During that time, I've seen my share of regulation changes, legislative mandates and economic cycles. And there have always been those who have predicted that "this or that" will result in the demise of credit unions. Yet, credit unions are still here and still thriving. Sure, we've had tough times, but we've also had great successes. That's the strength of credit unions; we turn adversity into opportunity by the thing we hold dear–keeping the focus on the members.

It's no different for corporates. Lately, I'm frequently asked about the future of the corporate system. There is a common misconception today that corporates must radically reinvent themselves or that there won't be any strong corporates in the future. I've provided my thoughts to four of the more common questions and concerns I frequently hear from credit union leaders about the future of corporates.

Aren't all corporates essentially the same, with the same challenges and/or the same business model?