Credit unions needing to serve more members with fewer staff during these hard economic times might consider simplifying their products, increasing their use of technology and cooperating with other CUs.

Those are among the strategies suggested by credit unions that lead the pack in the numbers of members they serve with limited staff (See charts, page 10). In most cases, the credit union leadership stressed that their adoption of these different strategies had grown out of the individual missions and circumstances, but all believed other credit unions could adopt some of them to improve their operations.

For two credit unions, sole sponsorship and a heavy reliance on the U.S. Postal Service plays a large role in their ability to serve members.