Set the tone for risk
Establish a growth strategy that has a clear purpose.
How we see the future determines our tolerance for risk and desire for growth. If we envision a future of economic turbulence, we might be inclined to limit risk and growth for higher capital ratios.
But if we envision a future that’s dynamic, highly competitive, and demanding of greater investments in technology and human resources, we might decide we need growth to achieve scale to generate the earnings required to support rising investment and costs.
You can spot a risk-averse culture a mile away. These are credit unions that consistently underperform when compared to peers, or ignore growth opportunities in their market.
These credit unions are consistently behind the technological times because they’re holding onto capital levels that were pre-determined years ago. They have management teams that hold back and fail to be relevant in their markets. These teams focus more on what could go wrong instead of what could go right.
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