The Credit Union Journal has announced the dates for what promises to be its best-yet SEG & Business Development Conference.
The Journal will host its fifth SEG & Business Conference on March 4-5 at the Coronado Springs Hotel and Resort in Orlando, Fla. The meeting will follow on the heels of four unique predecessor conferences and once more will use the input of attendees in designing the 2004 agenda to serve the tactical and strategic demands of recruiting and retaining members.
The two-day conference focuses specifically on strategies for building credit union growth, and recognizes that the very best growth opportunities often lie with current members who have far more business to bring to their credit union. The 2004 speaker agenda, which is now in the planning stages and will soon be unveiled, will again feature a mixture of analytics and the practical, with some of the keenest minds in research and consulting joining with credit union practitioners to share in-the-trenches lessons learned.
The Journal's 2003 SEG & Business Development Conference, held at the Westin Hotel in San Diego, included as part of the agenda:
* A presentation from Bob Lawhead, president of Raddon Financial Group, on the true profitability of members and products that led many attendees to admit later had forced them to rethink much of what they were doing.
* 15 Lessons Learned in SEG Marketing from Robert Hoel, Director of the Filene Research Institute, and Michelle Bloedorn of Baxter Credit Union.
* Insights on what members are really thinking from Neil Goldman, president of Member Research in Los Angeles, who shared with attendees some critical information on what member perceptions following mergers and name changes.
Additional sessions included:
* Developing a Business Plan based on a Weighted Scorecard for Pre-board Decision-making and more, led by Michael F. Twomey of Lockheed FCU in Los Angeles.
* One CU's reasons for expanding into low-income communities, led by Shelly Horan of Communicator Credit Union in Houston.
* Strategies After Converting To A Community Charter, led by Teresa Freeborn of Kinecta FCU in Manhattan Beach, Calif.
* The first day's agenda closed with a popular staple of The Credit Union Journal SEG & Business Development Conference, with all of the day one speakers returning for more than an hour of Q&A with the audience.
The second day of the conference kicked off with a keynote address entitled, "Making Unprofitable Members Profitable" by Joe Prunty, president of CoreProfit Solutions, who like the day one keynoter forced credit unions to reexamine methods of changing member behavior. Other sessions included:
* Compensation strategies for SEG-business development by Delynn Daniels with First South Credit Union in Memphis.
* Marketing strategies as a community charter, led by Deb McClean of Charlotte Metro Credit Union.
* And a closing look at the fastest growing demand from SEGS: the needs of businesses and business owners themselves, led by Michael Hales of Counter Intelligence Associates.
Details on how to register for the 2004 SEG & Business Development meeting will be published in The Journal and online at www.cujournal.com over the coming weeks and months.
