PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
COMPREHENSIVE RESOURCES AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
This past year was one of growth and adjustment rooted in collaboration, connection, and People Helping People. League offerings returned to how they were pre-pandemic, with in-person seminars and celebrations—all focused on innovative ways to strengthen the credit union movement and its workforce. Between brand-new trainings to meet your credit union and your members’ ever-evolving needs and regular in-person programming reaching farther parts of the state, the League’s efforts were designed to keep the industry flourishing.
During 2023, we strived to offer more of our in-person trainings statewide to meet credit union staff where they are. In addition to broadening the reach of our programming, 2023 also brought twelve brand-new education classes and events focused on workforce development and uniting role specific and Symitar end-user training for a more complete teller training experience.
ANNUAL CONVENTION
The 85th Annual Meeting and Convention centered around the theme of “Engage. Connect. Evolve,” with the hopes of inspiring leadership and financial well-being for all. More than 525 different credit union employees and vendors came together to lean on and learn from one another, strengthening both our individual skillsets and our relationships with one another. The full program contained presentations from highly sought-after industry experts, the much-anticipated annual awards, ample educational and networking sessions, entertainment from mentalists Larry and Raven, and an exhibit show complete with 43 vendor booths. It was tremendous to see so many of our credit unions together again for our signature event!
In addition to Convention, we continued to provide our BSA, IRA, and Compliance Conferences with success. More than 150 individuals attended both the Management Roundtable/Synergent Connect Conference and the Volunteers’ Conference. The learning did not stop there, though, as the revival of in-person events allowed us to offer CU Orientation at the Credit Union Service Center in Westbrook more frequently, educating nearly 100 credit union staff about the League and Synergent, offering a tour of the facility, and introducing League staff and our partners to credit unions.
TOWN HALLS
There was a total of seven virtual Town Hall meetings in 2023. Topics included timely, relevant discussions with regulators and other industry leaders and experts, a review of AARP’s BankSafe program, a conversation on the results of the Regional Dialogue Sessions, electronic lien titling, and more. On average, 80-100 credit union employees joined the Town Hall calls. The August meeting was the most well-attended session of the year, covering electronic lien titling with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, with more than 150 attendees.
CHAPTERS
Maine’s credit union chapters are longstanding pillars of our movement’s rich history in the state. To help ensure chapters continue to thrive and cultivate local engagement and collaboration among credit unions for years to come, the League’s Chapter Committee revised the structure of chapters. The new structure enhances what was already in place, with membership to chapters now being open to all credit unions that have a branch in an existing chapter’s geographic region.
With some credit unions now eligible to belong to multiple chapters, it was important for there to be governance continuity between chapters. Working with the League, the Committee also developed new universal chapter bylaws for each chapter’s consideration. It is our shared goal that the bylaws are approved by each of the eight chapters before the conclusion of the year. The revised structure and new universal bylaws will promote better engagement between credit unions, and serve as a vehicle for advocacy, philanthropy, financial literacy, networking, and education.
LEAGUE COMMITTEES AND NATIONAL INVOLVEMENT
Our ability to collaborate and make a meaningful difference in the lives of our members, employees, communities, and state is an example of what sets the credit union industry apart from others in financial services. Across Maine in 2023, 148 participants from 38 credit unions volunteered their time and talent to one of the League’s nine committees.
On the national level, Maine is represented on CUNA’s Examination & Supervision Subcommittee and the Payments Subcommittee. In addition to CUNA involvement, the League’s Robert Caverly serves on the American Association of Credit Union League’s Governmental Affairs Committee and Jen Burke serves on its Public Relations Committee. The League also values its lasting relationship with TruStage™. Their comprehensive solutions and advocacy support help our League and credit unions deliver positive outcomes.
COUNCILS
The League continued to coordinate events for its four councils (Financial Literacy, Human Resources, Lending, and Marketing).
The Financial Literacy Council will be convening before the end of the year to help credit unions reach and teach Gen Y and Gen Z, as well as maximize the return on hosting financial education sessions.
The Human Resources Council held an in-person workshop on June 6 at the Senator Inn in Augusta. The event, titled “Human-Centered Leadership: How to Boost Employee Well-being,” featured speakers Amy Wood and Mary Axelsen and detailed what human-centered leadership is and how to implement it, how to work through common leadership beliefs that often cause complications and stress, ways to “upgrade” leadership to actually see desired results, and how to bring a new leadership mindset into the workplace for sustainable workplace health. In total, 30 credit union employees attended.
