OKLAHOMA CITY-Quality service and high performance go hand-in-hand at Tinker FCU here, helping the $1.97-billion institution to boost its operational efficiency, ROA and household profitability while also earning high marks for member satisfaction.
"Member service is always job No. 1. You never go wrong when you err in favor of the member," President/CEO Michael Kloiber told Credit Union Journal. "Fiscal responsibility must drive decisions and service, and quality member service should never be sacrificed even during the tough operational times."
That combination of focusing on both fiscal responsibility and member service enabled Tinker to earn a Crystal Performance Award from Raddon Financial Group.
A solid management team that keeps everyone's eyes on service and a commitment to the brand has enabled Tinker to become a performance leader according to Senior Vice President of Marketing Matthew Stratton. Though Tinker strives to be a market leader in price, Stratton called it a "no-win game" to rely on better pricing to break through the noise in the financial sector. Building a brand and culture that revolves around seeing each member's situation uniquely and working diligently to solve those problems has been effective in growing the credit union.
"It's not rocket science. A lot of it is listening to the members...We really focus on listening to members and offering recommendations specific to their needs as opposed to the standard cross-sell. Our employees have really taken to that," said Stratton. "The more we communicate with the members and let them know the bigger picture, the more you can help them realize there are hidden costs from the competition that need to be taken into account if you're price sensitive."
Members are clearly taking a liking to the culture Tinker has built as more than 60% said they were "very satisfied" with the credit union in a recent Raddon survey. Even more telling is that Tinker scored above average in all 21 "attributes of satisfaction" as defined by Raddon Financial Group's Crystal Performance Awards and is approaching top performer status for front line staff people-related skills.
Raddon Strategic Advisor Eric Wittekiend said Tinker has seen "dramatic improvements across the board" in the last several years. "There has been a fundamental shift from the survey in '05 to '08," he continued. "Whatever they have done has worked."
The credit union's operational efficiency, return on assets and household profitability has also been very strong. Wittekiend called Tinker a "very efficient shop," noting it only spends 60 cents to generate a dollar of revenue and has leveraged its branch network successfully with the vast majority of its 15 locations outperforming the average CU branch.
"Create and put to use a meaningful strategic business plan agreed to by the credit union's volunteer and professional management team," Kloiber advised. "Try to avoid 'fad' products and trends. When challenges occur, stick to your long-term plan. These challenges develop over time and their cures take time and patience to correct."
