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Leadership & Culture

A collection of 22 posts

The Most Important Decision a Credit Union Can Make

Leadership & Culture

The Most Important Decision a Credit Union Can Make

There is one decision most credit unions make on a regular basis that can determine the success or sub-optimization of the credit union’s performance. It has nothing directly to do with which product to offer or which system to implement. It isn’t about what strategy to create or

Let Your Employees Bloom!

Leadership & Culture

Let Your Employees Bloom!

Before spring officially sprung here in Pennsylvania, we had the pleasure of experiencing a few days of early spring. In between the gray, cold and wet days, we had one or two days of beautiful blue skies and warm sunshine. The unexpected spring gave flowers the courage to sprout from

The One Trait That Can Make or Break Your Team

Leadership & Culture

The One Trait That Can Make or Break Your Team

Do people on your team feel safe? I’m not talking about physical safety (which, of course, is supremely important). No, I’m talking about psychological safety. This term was coined and popularized in 1999 by Amy Edmondson, a Harvard Business School professor, when she was researching and working with

End of Year Motto: Finish Well

Leadership & Culture

End of Year Motto: Finish Well

While visiting with family recently and reliving memories, I was talking to my niece about a one-mile fun run she participated in back when she was nine. There were a few practice sessions to help the kids prepare for the final race, and she started out really enjoying the race

Be Careful Where You Spend Your Leadership Energy

Leadership & Culture

Be Careful Where You Spend Your Leadership Energy

A few Sundays ago, I was sitting in church and, a couple of pews in front of me was a family of four. The family consisted of a mom and dad, a little boy who was about four years old and a little girl who was about six years old.

Are we "Trick or Treating" Ourselves?

Leadership & Culture

Are we "Trick or Treating" Ourselves?

It’s almost Halloween! This is the time of the year where we embrace all things spooky and get to take on a new identity. Pirates, ghosts, princesses, superheroes and all kinds of creative characters appear! For one night (or maybe more if you’re a real thrills and chills

How Do You Engage in a Virtual Workplace?

Leadership & Culture

How Do You Engage in a Virtual Workplace?

As time rolls on, many credit unions are trying to figure out how to handle the new world of remote work. These days, most employees prefer at least a hybrid work arrangement, and many want to work remotely full-time. In fact, Gallup research shows that 30 percent of U.S.

I Get Knocked Down, But I Get Up Again: Lessons in Resilience

Leadership & Culture

I Get Knocked Down, But I Get Up Again: Lessons in Resilience

Does the phrase Tubthumping sound familiar at all? You might know it better from the lyrics “I get knocked down, but I get up again!” Tubthumping is a song written by the British rock band, Chumbawumba (how fun is that name!!), released in 1997 and somewhat of an anthem for

3 Strategies for Managing Weaknesses in the Workplace

Leadership & Culture

3 Strategies for Managing Weaknesses in the Workplace

Whether we want to admit it or not, when it comes to work, most of us have weaknesses. These are the things that get in the way of our performance or the performance of someone else. Weaknesses can come in various forms such as not being able to complete a

Tea, a Drink with German Bread: How Miscommunication Made Me a Better Communicator

Leadership & Culture

Tea, a Drink with German Bread: How Miscommunication Made Me a Better Communicator

Do you recognize this line? Julie Andrews made it famous in the equally famous movie, The Sound of Music. I am chastised frequently by my friends for never having seen the movie AND equally chastised for not knowing the right words to the song. For many years, I would try

Handling Change with a “We Will Triumph” Attitude

Leadership & Culture

Handling Change with a “We Will Triumph” Attitude

Change happens in our credit unions for a variety of reasons and in a variety of ways. Some of those changes are small, like a policy change, while other are significant, like a core conversion. When it comes to dealing with change and the uncertainty surrounding it, a good rule

A Fundamental Secret of Successful Leaders

Leadership & Culture

A Fundamental Secret of Successful Leaders

There’s a lot of information available on leadership. A quick Amazon search reveals over 60,000 books on the topic. Type the word leadership into Google and you find “about 2,570,000,000 results.” It can be beyond overwhelming. So, if you want to be a better leader,

So, You Want to be a Great Manager?

Leadership & Culture

So, You Want to be a Great Manager?

In February, you saw part one of our "So, You Want to be a..." series on how to be a great teammate. Now, we present to you part two on what a great manager looks like through the eyes of your employees. Enjoy! Many times, the best advice we get

So, You Want to be Part of a Great Team?

Leadership & Culture

So, You Want to be Part of a Great Team?

The answer to that question, while not easy, is simple: If you want to be on a great team, be a great teammate! There are many ways to do that, and they can help you set the tone for your team. Here are a few key behaviors to set you

Transforming Vizo Financial through DEI Initiatives

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Transforming Vizo Financial through DEI Initiatives

Everyone who works for and with Vizo Financial will be respected and accepted for who they are—especially those from under-represented groups. We will lead the industry with strategic partnerships and a workforce of diverse perspectives that is realizing its fullest potential and providing innovative solutions to meet the needs

Confidence Rules

Leadership & Culture

Confidence Rules

In case nobody said this already, welcome to National Mentoring Month! This is the time where we celebrate the power of building relationships among leaders and their teams through mentorship. And one of the best things mentors can do is to cultivate a sense of confidence in each and every

Leaders - Coach Strong Performance Too

Leadership & Culture

Leaders - Coach Strong Performance Too

Most leadership training these days will discuss the importance of coaching. In day-to-day practice, coaching is typically carried out by the manager who offers advice to the employee about ways to complete a task more effectively or efficiently. It usually centers on where the employee can improve performance. While this

The Onboarding Road: Which Path Will Your Credit Union Take?

Leadership & Culture

The Onboarding Road: Which Path Will Your Credit Union Take?

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood… We’ve all heard the next line in this famous poem by Robert Frost, but what you may not realize is how it could potentially relate to your employee onboarding program. While there are many different paths you can take when developing an

Make Your Values Valuable

Leadership & Culture

Make Your Values Valuable

If yours is like most credit unions, you have a set of core values. Unfortunately, if you’re like most companies (credit unions and otherwise) these core values eventually devolve to not much more than words on a website. Typically introduced with great fanfare, core values are eventually forgotten and

The Conventional Wisdom of Development Plans is All Wrong

Leadership & Culture

The Conventional Wisdom of Development Plans is All Wrong

Many years ago, when I first became a manager, I was responsible for my department’s budget. I had never completed a budget, so my boss sent me to a training course. I didn’t learn much at that course, not because of the trainer or the content, but because

Great Cultures Follow This Equation

Leadership & Culture

Great Cultures Follow This Equation

Culture has dominated the corporate conversation in recent years. The importance of diversity, equity and inclusion (or DEI) has become more evident than ever. Many credit unions are looking for a recipe to make their workplaces more respectful and inclusive while also getting the highest level of performance from each

Collaborative Strategies to Fund Your Employee Benefits

Leadership & Culture

Collaborative Strategies to Fund Your Employee Benefits

A credit union's greatest asset is not a line item on the balance sheet - it is our employees. When it comes to attracting and retaining the very best individuals, credit unions need competitive employee benefit programs [https://www.vfccu.org/solutions_mobile/people_development.html] that highlight the exceptional