WASHINGTON — Likening his role as an NCUA Board member to that of a CU director, Richard Metsger urged volunteers at CUNA's Governmental Affairs Conference to make sure their credit union remains relevant to members.
Noting that serving on the NCUA Board and the board of a credit union is an honor, Metsger emphasized there is "nothing honorary about our roles. You and I are expected to give our best efforts to engage, question, evaluate and act as necessary to ensure a credit union's viability."
The newest addition to the NCUA Board emphasized that the financial marketplace is quickly changing, and so too are credit unions, adding the agency is mindful that CUs must not be "so constrained by their regulator, or so risk-averse that they cannot meet the financial needs of their members. Credit unions must remain relevant in the mix of financial services options available to the American public. A credit union that is safe and sound, but irrelevant to its members' needs, is not a viable outcome of regulation."
Metsger, a former CU director, asked board members in the audience to pause and review their objectives and critique their performance in meeting those objectives, adding that membership targets, loan growth, assets and earnings are not the only standards of success.
"They are meaningful only to the extent that the outcomes link clearly to meeting the needs of the membership within the not-for-profit cooperative model in which you operate," said Metsger. "Credit unions must measure their performance against a double bottom line — the bottom lines of their members, as well as their own bottom lines. Your best line of defense against those who would curtail your ability to meet your members' needs is to document how your credit union differentiates itself in the community it serves and meets the needs of your field of membership, both as borrowers and savers."
