Work smarter, not harder

The urgent often fills credit union leaders’ time before they can even get to what’s important. We must shift the balance from overwhelming task saturation toward more strategic work and goals.

In the current disruptive business environment, from the economy to keeping up with the technology members are demanding, it’s important to ensure we make time to look ahead. How are we going to adjust to members’ new financial realities and continue providing stellar member service? We can’t answer those questions with our collective noses buried in the daily fire drills. We’re not alone though – strategy+business.com reported that only 8% of 6,000 senior executives surveyed were actually considered “strategic leaders,” according to a PWC study.

That leaves one to wonder, how can we buy back our time to devote to strategy?

One of the first things credit union leaders can do to get unstuck is to review leadership’s job descriptions. They likely have sat on a shelf collecting dust for a while, so consider how the credit union has grown and evolved since these were written. That practice can help us start refocusing our minds on what’s truly important for our credit unions.

 

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