Onsite: CUinDenver2015 – Creating the path forward for credit unions

This week over 3100 people representing 61 countries from around the credit union movement have converged on Denver. CUinDenver2015 is the joint conference between CUNA and WOCCU bringing the credit union world together in one place.

CUNA President and CEO, Jim Nussle, welcomed attendees highlighting the three paths to credit union growth. “Our future is not a place we are just going and it is not a place we are just going toward randomly” Nussle said. “To me our future is something we must deliberately create.”

Nussle laid out the challenges the CUNA board set for him when he was hired last September:

• Refresh the Credit Union National Association’s value proposition
• Focus on advocacy
• Challenge CUNA’s member credit unions to achieve new heights

WOCCU President and CEO, Dr. Brian Branch, talk about the global community of credit unions. There are 57,000 credit unions in 105 countries serving 217 million members. Credit unions globally have over $1.8 trillion in assets. Branch praised the attendees for enduring, transcending borders and helping improve members’ financial lives during times of societal transition.

Branch stated the common challenges facing the global credit union community are an increased regulatory burden, payments innovations, and growth. Specifically, Branch spoke of the challenge of attracting members from the millennial generation who now make up the largest segment of the workforce.

The keynote speaker Monday at CUinDenver2015 was Alan Mulally the former CEO of two of the worlds largest companies, Ford Motor Company and Boeing.

Mulally spoke about collaboration being the key to unleash the creativity to solve problems. This topic resonated with the credit union professionals in attendance. Another point that came through was Mulally passion for the direction he viewed his career. ““I’ve always wanted to contribute to important things for the people of our world,” Mulally said.

Mulally finished talking innovation stating “Digitization is going to continue to change all of our lives. It’s going to provide great products and services, and dramatically improve quality and productivity. It’s going to touch every aspect of our lives.”

Luke Williams was the Tuesday’s speaker at CUinDenver2015 . Williams started his presentation on innovation by stating that “innovation drives growth.” Mr. Williams is the executive director at the NYU Stearns School of Business and a fellow at the design firm, frog. His presentation is based on his 2011 book, Disrupt: Think the Unthinkable to Spark Transformation in Your Business.

Williams walked attendees through his five steps to move an idea to a solution:

• Craft a disruptive hypothesis
• Define a disruptive market opportunity
• Generate several disruptive idea
• Shape a disruptive solution
• Make a disruptive pitch

“If someone offers an idea and everyone nods in agreement, then it’s incremental and not disruptive,” Williams said. For growth to occur you can’t just have one disruptive idea and move on. You have to keep creating disruptive change or you will fall into complacency.

Check out some of the pictures below from CUinDenver2015 and keep following along on twitter at #CUinDenver2015 for real time updates.

Distinguished Service Awards

CUNA Pres/CEO Jim Nussle

WOCCU Pres/CEO Brian Branch

2015 Credit Union Hero of the Year Gail Lewis

WOCCU Board

Keynote Alan Mulally

Keynote Luke Williams

Friends 🙂

Hey look!!! It’s our very own Amanda Reed on the big screen.