Good Governance: Serving members’ best interests benefits from a constructive partnership

I spent the better part of my career working in the nonprofit sector. I like to say that I’ve had every job from executive assistant to executive director. And I loved every minute. When you work for a nonprofit—any kind of nonprofit—you do it because you love it. You know, in the back of your mind somewhere, that you could make more money in the corporate sector, and sometimes kind and well-meaning family and friends even remind you of it. But you stay because you love it, and you feel committed to what you’re doing.

I’ve found the same to be true for all the credit union staff that I’ve met, interviewed and worked with since I joined Quantum Governance more than seven years ago. While credit unions aren’t exactly like some of the charitable nonprofits where I worked, they surely are mission-driven, and as you know, it’s all about serving the members.

Of course, one of the central roles and responsibilities of a credit union board member is to “carry out his or her duties as a director in good faith, in a manner such director reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the membership.” And we hear this from credit union board members all the time. Ask a credit union board member what his or her job is, and he or she will most often reply “to represent the best interests of the members.”

 

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