Make New Ideas Part of Everyday Business
People always think innovation means “new” and “way out” new, but it also may just be figuring out better ways to do things.
Rita McGrath, a professor at New York’s Columbia Business School, will be a keynote speaker at CUES’ CEO/Executive Team Network http://www.cues.org/professional-development/conferences-and-networking/ceo-executive-team-network this November. In her words:
“Innovation needs to become a systematic capability, not light entertainment or episodic.”
The CUES Skybox post, “Novelty Comes in Flavors: Better and Different” http://cuesskybox.com/home/2013/5/27/novelty-comes-in-flavors-better-and-different.html also talks about this.
In all, innovation needs to be something organizations do every day. Sometimes, the ideas your innovation process surfaces will be revolutionary—but many times they will be “just” valuable improvements in the way you process a loan or serve a member. Both are important.
One place I find that credit unions can implement valuable improvements on a regular basis is in their branches. Right next to the CUES office in Madison, Wis., $1.8 billion Summit Credit Union has its “inspiration branch.” The CU’s video http://www.summitcreditunion.com/locations/madison_area_locations/fitchburg.html suggests that this special space is designed to remind members about their dreams and goals in a place where they can make plans to do something about them. Members can talk with CU representatives under a beach umbrella or near the cross-section of a home being remodeled, not just in traditional CU settings.
It’s like what happens at Nordstrom, when the retail store’s representatives come out from behind the register to thank you for your business. A seemingly small innovation—taking the desk (or counter) out of the way—makes a difference in the experience, makes you better connect with people.
At CUES we are working to instill a culture of innovation that will welcome game-changing ideas, but also celebrate ideas that simply better our offerings and our delivery of them.
We have already implemented incremental innovations into our plans for CEO/Executive Team Network where McGrath, quoted above, will speak. Besides inviting keynote presentations from experts on innovation, we’re also tweaking our traditional logistics. For example, we’re offering even more opportunities for peer-to-peer networking; bringing in ideas not only from our own movement, but also from outside industries; and inviting in leadership coaches to facilitate discussion about session takeaways attendees can apply at their own organizations. The economy has improved enough that we think CUs are ready to look beyond compliance and safety and soundness to new possibilities.
But making some changes to one conference isn’t where this is at. CUES also is dedicating valuable resources to developing a corporate-wide system of innovation that we’ll use on a daily basis to create new ways to attract people to our products, schools and conferences. According to an article that will appear in the August issue of Credit Union Management http://www.cumanagement.org magazine, three key steps to implementing a culture of innovation include:
1) leadership that seeks to include ideas from all levels in the organization;
2) a deliberate process that promotes taking time to submit ideas that are then prioritized for possible implementation; and
3) the creation of a climate that facilitates creativity.
I would add to these three steps that it’s important to recognize that it takes courage to implement new ideas, and your staff members may need help building it up.
One of the key things that CUs can do in the next few years is to differentiate between what they do and what the rest of the financial services space does. Some of the larger banks have put a focus around service, too. So, let’s be creative. If there’s a gap and credit unions are ahead, we need to stay a moving target to keep our distance and stay ahead. Integrating innovation into our daily work will be a key part of our success in doing this.
