Becoming an Equitable Credit Union: Vizo Financial's Journey

What does diversity, equity and inclusion look like? That’s something all credit unions had to ask themselves as DEI was added as the eighth cooperative principle for credit unions in 2019. We, like so many of our fellow credit unions, have since begun conducting a deeper examination of our policies, practices and work culture through the lens of equity and inclusion. Our goal is to create transformative change that allows everyone who works with or for Vizo Financial to feel valued and included.

In 2021, Vizo Financial engaged an external DEI consultant to assess our current work environment and provide recommendations of where to focus our efforts and resources. In order to gain meaningful employee feedback, we conducted a staff survey, held one-on-one interviews with each member of the executive management team and led three focus groups with employees.

Following the data gathering phase, our efforts were focused on forming a 10-member team of employees, which we called DEI Champions, to lead this work from within the organization. This team, which includes members across all four Vizo Financial campuses and represents people of different races, genders, sexual orientations, religions, disabilities and ages, used the information gathered to set priorities in moving forward with Vizo Financial’s DEI goals. The consultant also provided individualized coaching sessions to give feedback and input on our current and future initiatives, as well as advice on how to handle anticipated questions that might arise.

The DEI Champions created a 2022 diversity calendar of cultural days to recognize throughout the year. The calendar also recognizes various religious holidays that we know are celebrated by our employees. This data was collected in our DEI employee survey, where staff could anonymously share various aspects of their identities so we could tailor our activities and efforts to meet their interests specifically. We also published a glossary of terms to define common words and phrases used in the DEI space, provided some introductory education on inclusive language and invited our staff to include their personal pronouns in their email signatures and on their account names in Zoom.

The Vizo Financial DEI Champions began publishing a monthly newsletter, titled Perspectives, in November 2021, and it has been a launching point to invite deeper conversations with staff on various DEI-related topics. In January, we held a lunch-and-learn session for staff regarding poverty awareness in our country. And, in February, a member of the team led a discussion for employees to openly talk about their personal experiences around being Black in America. In April, the DEI Champions will present a DEI-related education session that all staff will be required to attend. In addition to sharing personal stories from coworkers to create empathy and deepen our understanding of others’ experiences, the session will include data from the DEI survey and education on terms, such as the difference between equity and equality. Equality means each person is given the same resources and opportunities, while equity recognizes each person has different circumstances and allocates the resources and opportunities necessary to reach an equal outcome.

In our DEI Champions meetings, we talk about the importance of breaking barriers with our stories and creating empathy amongst our entire staff through personal storytelling. We intentionally seek opportunities and create spaces for our teammates to share their experiences so we can continue to learn from one another.

As an organization, Vizo Financial is working on a number of DEI initiatives to be rolled out over the next 12 to 24 months that were identified after gathering feedback from our staff in one-on-one interviews, an employee survey, small focus groups and DEI planning sessions. Several of these initiatives create intentional actions to increase equity by examining the way those from underrepresented groups are recognized and celebrated, updating and standardizing how managers give feedback, reviewing demographic data to explore possible disproportionate outcomes, and revising hiring and promotion practices.

We know this work is ongoing and never really ends. It is ever-evolving and hopefully, as individuals, as an organization and as an industry, we are all ever-evolving too. Since the cooperative movement was founded, it has focused on reaching out to individuals who might have been overlooked by others in the financial industry. According to recent CUNA research on DEI efforts across the cooperative movement, credit unions are making significant progress in this area. In 2019, 37% of credit unions had a focus on DEI. In 2021, that percentage had increased to 60%, with 80% of credit union members belonging to a credit union with a focus on DEI initiatives.

To enact transformative and lasting change in our credit unions, in our country and in our world, we must fully commit ourselves to DEI principles that celebrate diversity, prioritize equity and foster inclusion. At Vizo Financial, that means going beyond mere lip service to invest substantial time and effort so that everyone who interacts with Vizo Financial in any capacity feels like they belong. As our DEI Vision Statement proclaims, “For Vizo Financial to successfully fulfill this vision and lead the industry, we will strive to hire, retain and equitably promote a diverse workforce across all leadership levels that represents our member base and the communities we serve.”

Erin Doan Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Director Vizo Financial Corporate CU Greensboro, N.C.