When Rules Trump Common Sense at Credit Unions
When my team begins a relationship with a new credit union, we take some time to analyze everything about our new client. Our analysis goes well beyond marketing– into processes, culture, and staff. What we often find is that the procedures in place at many credit unions prevent growth. Sure, those policies and procedures make the examiners happy, and create lines in the sand for the front line staff. Yet, how often do those rules and regulations prevent your credit union from growth?
Recently, our VP of Branding and Communication went to a Subway and asked for a sandwich with both roast beef and turkey on it. He was told “I’m sorry we can’t do that, we’re not sure how to ring that up.”
Though your credit union isn’t making sandwiches, it does make loans. And some of the policies and procedures credit unions have in place have the same result. One credit union recently decided to take on more loans from D and E paper. However, a policy in place prevented them from having over 25% of their loans to D and E paper. It was for no particular reason, just an arbitrary number chosen by the board many years ago that sounded good at the time. Maybe they just didn’t know how to “ring that up”?