HONG KONG - A lively debate here sought to answer whether credit union philosophy can successfully co-exist with competitive member service. The general consensus? Superior service can’t exist without a philosophical commitment. Nor should it.
During World Council’s World Forum, Tom Dorety, CEO of Suncoast Schools FCU in Tampa and CUNA’s chair, and Phylip Doughty, CEO of mecu in Australia, debated those questions during a discussion moderated by Marlene Shiels, CEO of Capital Credit Union in Edinburgh, Scotland (see photo below, left).
One difference between the two CUs: lending has slowed down in the U.S., noted Dorety, while business in Australia is “booming,” according to Doughty.
“There are three reasons large credit unions should be cognizant of financial trends,” said Dorety. “There’s the social part–we’re supposed to look after all members. There’s the political part–U.S. laws tell us to provide services to members of modest means. And there’s the financial part–credit unions have the capability to offer services to people at all income levels.
“In the end, it just makes sense to provide good service to all members,“ he added.(c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com
