Credit Union Conference 29th March 2021: Materials

by | Mar 31, 2021 | Past Events

Towards New Business Models

Our fifth conference, and second online, successfully delivered on our traditions of great presenters with lots of interaction. Perhaps the key takeaway from the day was that in planning the development of the credit union, and whether merger should form a part of this, boards and executives must keep central the current and future needs and preferences of members.

A summary of the proceedings of the event can be viewed here, including the contact details for presenters. The presentations and a video for each session can be downloaded below. The two excellent breakout sessions were an opportunity for attendees to share thoughts and ideas freely and were not recorded. These materials are being made available to CFCFE members and conference ticket-holders only. A big CFCFE thank you to all presenters and attendees.

Here are the materials by session:

  1. Brian Corr on Market and Economic Outlook and with Chris Donald on implications for business model – presentation and video. Brian, Head of Credit Union Policy at the Department of Finance within the Irish government, used a range of sources to illuminate the economic, competitive and social business environment for credit unions. Building on Brian’s opening presentation, he and Chris Donald, from the Prudential Regulation Authority at the Bank of England, discussed the implications for the credit union business model in Ireland and the UK, offering policy maker and regulator perspectives.
  2. Dr Jeff Callander on reimagining strategy – presentation and video. Jeff, founder at EMAG Consulting, offered a persuasive challenge to traditional strategy development, pointing to the criticality of starting from a sound understanding of organisational purpose, particularly important to social businesses such as credit unions.
  3. Michael Byrne on merger as transformation – presentation and video. Michael, CEO at Core Credit Union, showed how merger was a key component of Core’s strategy, and how the scale achieved has enabled the credit union to widen and deepen its service to members.
  4. Merger as strategy round table – video. Ralph Swoboda, Chair at CFCFE, facilitated a discussion between Michael Byrne, Robert Kelly, CEO at the Association of British Credit Unions (ABCUL), Caroline Long, CEO at Limerick & District Credit Union, and Michael O’Reilly, Chair at St Canice’s Credit Union. Panel members shared their experience of mergers and their perspectives on the challenges and opportunities that mergers might present in the ongoing development of credit unions.