CU Association of West Philosophy: Think Regionally, Act Locally

FEDERAL WAY, Wash. -John Annaloro sees the philosophy of the Credit Union Association of the West – an umbrella organization of the California/Nevada, Oregon and Washington credit union leagues – as similar to the “think globally, act locally” philosophy espoused by the environmental movement. Except in the CUAW’s case, the motto is more “think regionally, act locally.” “I believe at this particular time all of the staffs of all of the leagues think regionally,” said Annaloro, who serves as association chairman and is president and chief executive officer of the Washington Credit Union League. “It’s much like the environmentalists saying, `Think globally, act locally.’ “There’s a great similarity in our staffs’ thinking regionally, acting with the interests of their members first, but knowing that they can provide a particular service, business program or educational offering over a larger area,” he said. The advantages of such a regional approach are obvious. Not only does it avoid a duplication of effort among the leagues but also frees up league staff to offer more and varied programs. Credit unions which belong to the leagues come out the winners, Annaloro said. “It’s also a matter of economics as well an opportunity for member credit unions to get far more than they’ve been able to get in the past,” he said. A case in point was the recent CEO conference held in Squaw Valley, Calif., in which credit union leaders from all four states were able to network, learn and share ideas. “It gives the CEOs a broader opportunity to share perspectives about events occurring in the industry,” Annaloro said. The meeting was held in Seattle last year and will continue to rotate locations in the future. That way, each of the three leagues who are members of the association – the California/Nevada Credit Union League, the Washington Credit Union League and the Credit Union Association of Oregon – share the responsibility for putting on the program. Rotating the location and sharing the responsibilities “frees the other leagues from having to organize that particular conference, allowing the staffs to turn their energy to other projects and to create new educational opportunities.” The CU Association of the West was started about two years ago. “CUAW was built so that we could find mechanisms for eliminating duplicative activities . . . as well as to allow members of any of the leagues to have access to the products and services of all of the leagues as an additional benefit of membership,” Annaloro explained. He stressed that the association was meant to be a “transparent” organization and was not designed to “eclipse” the roles of the existing leagues. “This was a way for three very strong leagues to leverage their uniqueness across the entire western states marketplace,” he said. After nearly two years of operation, Annaloro said he is happy with how the organization is functioning. “I am very pleased with the progress,” he said. “What was once an experiment is certainly a success.” He said the initial strategic plan for the association was cross-border participation in education and networking activities. One goal was to allow members of leagues in any of the states to have access to both online and printed educational materials including various classroom sessions. The plan also allowed the leagues to import and export the seminars over a wide geographic area, he said. “It’s worked fabulously,” he added. “I don’t have a full list of all the things we`ve taught,” he said, adding, “Sometimes it`s hard for me to even remember if a particular seminar was originated in this state or if it was originated in California or in Oregon. We may have an offering in Washington state that was actually constructed – curriculum, instructor, classroom materials – elsewhere but offered here in one or two locations.” A legal update seminar produced by the California league, for example, deals primarily with laws specific to that state “but with a slight amount of modification could be made specific to Washington or Oregon,” Annaloro said. He noted that such modifications have been made to the seminar and its presentation outside of California was “very successful.” As the association continues to grow its offerings, he said it will have to consider whether to add a full-time coordinating manager. That option is currently being looked at, he added. But he said it would be premature at this point to look at adding other regions or states to the association. Instead, the association is looking at strengthening service partner relationships. The CUAW Web site currently lists four service partners: Boise Office Products, Centrix Financial, Clarke American and TitleAuctions. “Regional partnerships with service providers that bring broader advantages at better costs to more credit unions is part of the mission of the CUAW,” Annaloro said. Leagues who are in the CUAW represent a total of more than 960 credit unions with nearly $100 billion in assets, according to the association. -