DEARBORN, Mich. — Perhaps no branch managers see on the faces of their members the effect the economy is having more than managers in this market.
Melodie Maciejewski, VP and branch manager for DFCU Financial's Oakwood location here, acknowledges that it's a "very tough market in the auto capital. Members are struggling in so many ways. It can be tough to keep the staff upbeat and motivated so they can give members what they need. But we do it."
What makes it hard, admits Maciejewski, are the stories she and her staff hear from members struggling with their finances. "I can tell you about 10 new stories a day," she shared. "It's dealing with members whose accounts are overdrawn more often than not. It's about those who are having trouble finding money for groceries. And then there are others who are out of work and are going into their 401(k) money. For us, it means finding the right product and solutions for these members to help them through their problems."
The Oakwood branch is one of four in Dearborn, a working class city located just west of Detroit, and home to 100,000. It's the birthplace of Henry Ford and the world headquarters of Ford Motor. Co. Maciejewski's office is one of DFCU's largest, handling 20,000 transactions a month. It's staffed by 20 with seven service stations and a satellite drive-throughz across the street. DFCU is community chartered with 21 locations statewide.
Maciejewski keeps her staff functioning at a high level by coaching, rather than managing. "I only manage when staff need to be managed. It's all about fostering teamwork and building commitment to the member, making service a top priority."
Managing costs is something Maciejewski believes needs extra attention at the branch level today. Overall, DFCU is highly efficient, having reduced the cost of generating a dollar of revenue to 48 cents and has leveraged those efficiencies to deliver a $17-million member dividend each of the last three years, and is projecting a $19-million payout in January. The $2.5-billion DFCU increased assets by $272 million and 3,200 members last year in a down market.
Cross-training also keeps a lid on costs. "If you have people who can step into another position in a manner of seconds, that flexibility prevents you from needing extra employees."
Maciejewski said one of the reasons DFCU is very effective is because it allows branch managers to run their locations "as a franchise. There are certain policies, guidelines, and procedures that are standard across the board. But managers are empowered to make a great deal of the decisions on their own. I must admit, we are making a lot more of those types of decisions with the economy."
This special report on Branch Management is reported by Ray Birch.
