Two thought leaders want to reinvent credit unions’ approach to work

Can there be innovation without change? What about productivity without selectivity? Or growth without open mindedness?

Two of the business development industry’s most renowned speakers and authorities think not. Leadership expert, Neen James and innovation leader, Lisa Bodell differ greatly in their tactics and areas of expertise, but at this September’s co-located conferences hosted by the CUNA Technology Council and CUNA Operations, Sales and Service Council, they will both share an important message with credit union leaders:

When it comes to how you approach work, there is always room for improvement.

Folding Time with Neen James

We live in an era of productivity traps. Even the most hardworking professionals find themselves constantly wishing for more hours in the day, toiling away long after everyone else has left the office or taking work home with them on a daily basis. Neen James has made it her mission to free those individuals from their traps and help them get more done in less time, making room in their lives for more significant, meaningful moments.

Her high-energy productivity presentations have shown audiences across the world how to achieve twice as much in half the time by embracing the philosophy that productivity “is not about managing time anymore, because time’s going to happen whether you like it or not.” During her internationally popular workshop, Folding Time™: Achieve Twice As Much in Half the Time, this September’s pre-conference attendees will learn that they simply don’t have time to do everything; they only have time to do everything that matters.

James also advocates for approaching business development in fifteen minute increments, “because no one has an hour anymore.” In fifteen minutes, even the busiest individual can clear through some emails, have a real phone call or a “tele-coffee,” a pre-planned meeting wherein both parties make a coffee and have a compact – but complete – meeting over the phone.

Audiences love James’s practical strategies and engaging energy. Her fun, Aussie attitude makes her a sought after keynote speaker loved by meeting planners and attendees alike.

Killing the Company with Lisa Bodell

What’s the worst kind of business culture you can imagine? Consider the methods and mindsets that leave a once-booming company in steady decline until they become a shadow of what they once were. Can you pare it down to just one word?

In Lisa Bodell’s opinion, that word is complacency. This September, her globally well-received keynote presentation, Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution, will invite credit union audience members to examine their own cultures and determine what might be holding them back from constructively innovating on a daily basis.

Bodell’s presentations layout the simple tools to solve problems creatively and break out of the dangers of the status quo:

• Perspective

One of the main goals of Kill the Company is to encourage leaders to have an “out-of-company” analysis. This exercise allows executive teams to take on the role of their own #1 competitor and try to put themselves out of business. In the process, participants discover their true weaknesses, possible solutions, and ideas for effective partnerships.

• Change

It sounds obvious, but a leader who is resistant to change can be the biggest barrier between an organization and its future. Although they have the most responsibility on their shoulders and the most to lose if a new idea backfires, leaders must assume an openness to fundamental change if they ever hope to innovate toward advancing.

• Shared Responsibility

Making new changes stick and remaining adaptive requires buy-in from employees at every level in a company. Bodell teaches that the most sustainable change spreads from the middle of a company on out, and that some of the most crucial skills an employee can possess are perseverance, agility and strategic imagination.

In 2003, Bodell founded futurethink, on the principle that everyone has the power to innovate; they just need the knowledge and tools to know how. Since then, she has helped thousands of senior executive leaders at companies such as the New York Stock Exchange, Merck, HBO, and Lockheed Martin unlock new potential and create value. This September 21-24, credit unions will have a chance to be a part of that group as she takes the stage in Las Vegas.

The co-located CUNA Technology Council and CUNA Operations, Sales and Service Council will bring leaders and innovators from across the credit union industry together in Las Vegas this September 21-24, where they will work to advance credit union cultures and problem-solving efforts movement-wide. Find out more about the conference’s speakers, sessions and registration details at www.cunacouncils.org.