Row, row, row your boat down the cooperative CU stream

Another CUNA GAC has come and gone, another Wegner Dinner under our belts, and with that comes a renewed sense of purpose and excitement for the credit union movement. I don’t know about everyone else, but there’s something about being in a room full of credit union people that just gets you completely jazzed about the work we are all doing to make the lives of those around us better.

Not only is the GAC a great opportunity to advocate for the importance of credit unions while hiking the hill, but also a valuable time to get connected with other credit union professionals. I think this is one of the most valuable aspects of the conference – connection.

Jim Nussle and Gigi Hyland made opening remarks for the conference about “coopetition” – the competition that we as credit union organizations feel against one another. Which – as Jim so eloquently pointed out – makes no sense for us as a movement as we only hold 7% of the marketplace. 7%.Let that sink in.

Credit union organizations see each other within the 7% as competition and will oftentimes focus energy on those within the percentage, rather than looking at the remaining 93% of the marketplace. Instead of cooperating and connecting within our 7% to build each other up, we do the opposite.

 

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