A Direct Line Blog

By Donya Parrish, MCU VP Risk Management

Credit union growth is generally regarded as a positive. Examiners want to see it, management cheers it, and it is the heart of many strategic plans. Growth provides you the opportunity to serve more individuals in your communities and gain some economies of scale. As you hire more staff and build out your teams, one thing might become glaringly obvious — you might outgrow your organizational structure.

This is often a challenge that sneaks up on you while you are busy with other projects, but it has real implications. Where do you add positions? Who should report to whom? Are you expecting too much of some positions and not enough of others? Do you hire an IT person or an internal auditor, or find someone to do both? Being intentional and thoughtful in how you build out your team can provide long-term success.

Recently, America’s Credit Unions Small Credit Union Committee announced a resource you might find helpful in looking at this issue. The Small Credit Union Organizational Charts & Staffing Strategies Guide contains successful business strategies sourced directly from small credit unions nationwide. It also includes a comprehensive collection of real-world insights for adapting organizational structures and addressing staffing challenges.

As we often say in credit unions, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. Someone is usually willing to share what they have done with you. In this case, many credit unions shared, and you can now take advantage of their generosity to benefit your credit union.