How an outsider can support the credit union strategy conversation
Three approaches to bringing in a third party that can help advance the dialog—plus, one to avoid
My strategy journey started at CUES in 1998 when I worked in the professional development department. CUES was in the early stages of its CEO Institute programming, and I had the unique opportunity to be the onsite staffer for eight institute cycles.
I’m a slow learner, so after listening to luminaries talk about all manner of business topics for eight years, a few things eventually stuck. CEO Institute I: Strategic Planning at Wharton held a particularly special place as then lead faculty member Paul J. H. Schoemaker and former CUES executive Franck Schuurmans provided clarity and imagination around credit unions’ strategy conversation.
Eventually, I moved on from CUES to lead research at Filene Research Institute. During those 15 years, I was invited into countless credit union boardrooms for strategic discussions based on Filene’s research. Recently, I decided to go off on my own and synthesize these experiences to provide strategic advice to individual credit unions. This article shares a few approaches that you may find useful for your credit union’s strategic conversations.
Before we get started, let’s acknowledge that inviting an outsider to your organization’s most intimate discussions is risky. Will the person understand your culture and capabilities? Will the person add value or just be an interesting side show? Will the person push your organization forward or take you off course? Personality fit is key to a successful relationship, and sometimes an outsider is not the right answer. As this article title indicates, strategy should be a conversation, and as with any good conversation, the strategy conversation should be reciprocal and engaging.
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