Invest in your employees and they will invest in you

Your employees don’t invest in what your credit union does. Transactions, accounting, operations, the upkeep and day-to-day business are not the kinds of high-octane elements of an organization that keep the blood flowing. They’re vital, without question, but wherein do they provide the freedom for an employee to explore their skills, find their passion, or truly bond with your mission?

The war for talent is taxing and as you sit by idly watching turnover plague your frontline and those once promising stars burnout in front of you, your active participation in this war will thrive. Take a few steps back and drink in the view…a staffed credit union is a wonderful thing, ripe with potential. And as long as leadership fears change instead of embracing it, as long as that fear snakes its way into the hiring process, the firing process, and most importantly the training and development process, you’ll never fully understand that view.

A credit union that is in touch with their staff is one that is constantly pushing forward, constantly inspired to improve their workplace. Wearing jeans on Friday and hosting a winter celebration where the board hands out cash and lottery tickets isn’t enough.

Task your human resources team, your training team, and especially your leadership with employing a training program that develops emotional intelligence, integrity, trust, and relationship-building. Encourage staff to get involved outside of the credit union, applying for scholarships through your association to attend conferences, competitions, and peer-engagement groups. Identify the underrepresented at your credit union and equalize all employees by offering the same growth-opportunities from top to bottom.

The wait for investment to come from your people will be a fruitless one, which is why a holistic assessment of your organization, built around a comprehensive investment in your staff, is the answer. Be willing to maximize on the potential of each and every employee and you will inspire great things, but most importantly, you will inspire your employees to invest in the credit union.