Happy 25th Birthday, Filene!

‘Our namesake, Edward Filene, constantly looked at disruption because disruption is ever-present.’

“Progress,” credit union pioneer Edward Filene once said, “is the constant replacing of the best there is with something still better.”

On May 29, the organization bearing his name, the Filene Research Institute, celebrated 25 years of striving to do just that: engaging in credit union and finance research and providing a place to test new ideas without fear of failure. Filene’s CEO Mark Meyer tells Credit Union Magazine what the future holds for the “think & do tank.”

CU Mag: What needs was Filene Research Institute formed to fill in 1989?

Meyer: The real impetus behind forming the Filene Research Institute was to prepare for the opportunities that were to come.

Our founders saw that business and finance were changing, and they knew that understanding this change was crucial to maintaining relevance, particularly as credit unions evolved from independent institutions at the state level to a national network.

Survival and growth would require access to solid research and creative ideas that lead to useful, effective tools for consumers/members.

True innovation is always a moving target. Our namesake, Edward Filene, was constantly looking at disruption because disruption is ever present. If you rest on your laurels, your business will lose.

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