Mergers, network credit union operations and shared services can save credit unions as much as 30% in back-office operational costs. The primary, strategic reason for consolidating is to create scale and lower the credit union's expense ratio, but it must execute an actionable plan in order to reach that goal.

Credit unions are struggling with how to grow and innovate, yet manage expenses. How do we invest in innovation and simultaneously produce enough income to sustain our capital? Reaching both goals is essential. The first requires continuous investments in people, technology and product development. The other requires managing expenses to create a strong return and sustained member value.

To achieve both, extract value from back-office operations and technology (in other words, use scale, mergers and collaboration to save money) and funnel those saved resources into innovation and your bottom line.