Mike Welch As I was saying …

Recently, I offered some suggested New Year's Resolutions for credit union CEOs, and separately, for members of credit union boards.

Reaction was immediate, and for the most part, very positive. So I thought it might prove interesting to move up a notch and put together a checklist for national credit union organization leaders.

After talking to a large number of credit union colleagues, several national organization senior staff, and several of the leaders themselves, I drew on my own twenty plus years of involvement at the national level.

All this to come up with a checklist of advice, knowing full well it wasn't asked for in the first place. It probably will be ignored most by the very people we observers all have in mind; those who could best benefit themselves and their organizations by admitting we're really talking about them.

So, wanted or not, ready or not, here goes…

1) Lead, don't follow. Lead, don't manage. Lead, don't politicize. Lead by taking a stand. Lead, by making decisions. Lead by speaking up on important issues; silence is not golden here. Lead because you're in a leadership position and your members expect it from you.

2) Become a better communicator. Know when to write; when to call; when to speak. When to call a meeting. Make open, regular, timely, effective, straightforward communication a top priority for everyone even remotely involved with the organization. Are you getting through? Or merely producing paper for your own amusement with little if any value to the membership? Find out. Ask! Test! Measure!

3) Stay in touch with the membership of your organization. Never forget, it's not your organization. It belongs to the members. Find out what's on their minds. What they expect from the organization. Don't guess what they want. Don't make the common mistake of thinking as a national leader you automatically know what's best for them. Don't get trapped in the Ivory Tower. It's already too crowded.

4) Never forget, no organization, or its leaders is indispensable. There's a pretty good chance that most of what any national credit union organization provides, can be obtained somewhere else. Perhaps at a better price and maybe even with improved quality. As a national level elected leader, I need to be reminded of a sobering thought: our organization has no God-given right to exist forever. In every industry, including credit unions, long time national groups are losing members and influence, dying, or disappearing altogether. Many became so bloated with self-importance, they exploded into oblivion. And immediately another organization, more in tune with member needs and budgets, was ready to fill the void.

5) Don't lose sight of the fact that the purpose of non-profit organizations is not to make money on every project or activity, but to effectively serve the membership's changing and growing needs. That's what “non-profit” means. That's what's behind the tax exemption. Just ask the IRS. Before you lose it.

6) Try and be as flexible as possible. Be willing to change directions as member needs change. Recommend an independent member survey. Suggest focus groups. Travel into the hinterlands and talk, better yet, listen, to the grassroots membership.

7) Remember that national organizations were not created to serve the needs of its elected leadership. The reverse is true. National leadership positions were created to attract individuals dedicated to serve the members. Elected leadership positions provide that opportunity in spades.

8) Stay in touch with your membership; they're paying the freight, including your travel and meeting expenses. They have a right to ask what they are getting for their money. And they will ask. Especially if you raise the dues again. So tell them, before they ask. Higher board expenses is not a good answer

9) Set an example of fiscal responsibility by not ordering the finest wine in the gourmet restaurants you've come to take for granted. Try Joe's Deli just once. It won't kill you, and your waistline will appreciate it too!

10)Establish a personal and organizational goal of identifying, understanding, and concentrating on no more than six priority issues at any one time. Don't meddle in staff work. Do fewer things. Only the most important projects. But do them extremely well.

11)Be determined to stay on the printed agenda. To support the chairman. And the staff. And to at least think of the organization on occasion between formal meetings. And to read the carefully prepared board materials before, not during the meetings. Ask yourself two questions throughout the meeting: “Is this a policy matter?” “Are we doing staff or committee work at the board level?”

12)Although competent and dedicated elected leadership is extremely important to the forward progress of the organization, admit that the CEO and paid staff are the glue that hold it all together. They provide the continuity. It's their full time jobs. Their careers. They want to make you look good. And help get you re-elected. Let them do their job, while you do yours.

13)Finally, never, ever, do anything that causes the CEO to lose confidence in the board. (It really does work both ways). It's precisely that happening that has sent some of the best CEOs in search of greener pastures.

Mike Welch launched Credit Union Times in 1990 and served as publisher until his retirement in 2005.

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