Transitions Of Power
Reimagining Your Board Meetings
To make your gatherings more effective and engaging, first look at the real reasons boards meet. Leaders everywhere seem to be asking the question, “How do we make our board meetings more effective and more engaging?” To answer that question, I think you have to first look at the real reasons that boards meet. To…
Read MoreTaking Action On Credit Unions’ No. 1 Director Recruitment Priority: Diversity.
The credit union and women’s movements are clearly doing something right. But we still have a long way to go. The day after Kamala Harris was picked by Joe Biden as his running mate, I was talking with a colleague of mine about his choice. I have to note that the colleague in question is…
Read MoreRIP RBG: The Thin, Strong String That Ties Women Together
Our foremothers paved the way for us; now we pave the way for the women now coming of age. This was written by the author Saturday morning, after the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I’ve been thinking about all of the stories of the strong women in my family today. This day. The day after…
Read MoreEmbracing our New (Virtual) Reality
I saw an interview recently in which author, American diplomat and former State Department official Richard Haas observed that the COVID-19 pandemic is not so much a turning point for our society, but an accelerant. His comments alluded to the idea that trends only just beginning to emerge before the pandemic, have been “fast-tracked” and…
Read MoreGovernance Committee – If You Don’t Have One, Get One!
Every now and then we are asked why governance committees are such a good idea, and it’s a good reminder to us not to take for granted that everyone knows or even shares our opinion. But, we think that they could be the most important committee your organization can have, so, in the immortal words…
Read MoreInto the COVID-19 Fire to Make Things Better for Members and Staff
A strong alignment of the CEO, senior leaders and the board enabled early, effective action. We were talking with one of our clients, F&A Federal Credit Union in Monterrey Park California, the other day and were struck by their early, decisive actions in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. (F&A was chartered in 1936 to…
Read MoreThe State Of Credit Union Governance 2020
Key findings include diversity as a priority and a desire to increase focus on strategy. For years, we’ve dreamt of studying the state of credit union governance. We know what you’re thinking: Dream bigger. Some people dream of European vacations. Fast cars. Beach houses. But for governance geeks like us, it’s often all about the…
Read MoreGood Governance: Did You Dust Off Your Old Pandemic Plan?
Key ideas about response oversight and future strategy If you’re like most in this world today, you likely feel like you’ve lived a lifetime in just the last week. I know that we have. As we write to you safely from our home offices, we send well wishes to you and everyone in your circles…
Read MoreGood Governance: The Importance Of A Truly Independent Supervisory Committee
If you’re shifting to an ‘audit’ committee instead, be careful not to sacrifice independent oversight at the altar of efficiency. We’ve seen an important trend relevant to a good number of state credit unions nationwide. It’s one of those quiet trends that we believe could—in the long run—have significant governance consequences, perhaps for the entire…
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