BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-Not expecting the economy to turn the corner for another 18 months, Dennis Dollar is urging credit unions to begin navigating their way through the fog now.
"You can't wait until the economic picture clears up," observed the Dollar Associates principal. "There are just too many variables-Greece, Europe, a potential further decline in the U.S. credit rating. As long as there are these things out there, there will be uncertainty."
But to sit back, as is often the conservative credit union nature, is a big mistake, insisted Dollar. "Credit unions should not cloister themselves away and wait until there is a solid turnaround before investing in members and growth again. We have to navigate forward, carefully and not at full throttle, but forward."
That means investing in branches, new products, IT systems, and restructuring checking accounts to be even more competitive. Dollar emphasized that branch expansion plans should begin taking shape now due to the time it takes to construct a new location. He cautioned that to wait on any of these efforts will place credit unions behind the big banks. "They are bigger than us and will have an advantage if we all move at the same time."
Dollar observed that banks are very conservative now in their near-term growth plans due to the fact many still have to pay back TARP funds and are not completely confident in their investments. "We have an advantage now because we are smaller and more nimble. To wait, again, is a big mistake, especially with all the consumer distrust of banks now."
