Member finances are under serious pressure. Persistent inflation, high fuel costs, eroding insurance subsidies, and a slew of other economic stressors are making life harder for Americans. Across the income spectrum, members need their credit unions to help them protect what they have and reach their goals.

To meet this moment, credit unions need a shared language and framework. Right now, there isn’t one. Conversations tend to focus on two familiar terms: financial literacy and financial health.

Both matter. Neither tells the whole story. And neither covers the available gamut of options to serve members.

Knowledge Is Necessary, But It’s Not Sufficient

Financial literacy is what people know about how money works — compound interest, the true cost of easy credit, the basics of budgeting. That knowledge is genuinely empowering. It can help members avoid traps and plan for the future, but it can’t change facts.

Financial literacy is not a magic wand for overcoming past mistakes or tackling new calamities. It offers limited help to those without the basic financial health to act on it.

Financial Health Is About Means, Not Just Habits

Financial health is simpler to define: Do you have enough?

Can a member cover food, shelter, healthcare, transportation, and the basics of modern life? Can they live within their means? Do they have slack to pay bills in full and on time? Is their debt manageable? Do they have anything left over at the end of the month?

Without basic financial health, true financial resilience is out of reach.

Don’t stop here. Financial wellbeing isn’t about budgets or education; it’s about trust, confidence, and a sense of control. Read more in “Financial Wellbeing Isn’t What You Think It Is.” Read more today.

Resilience Is Where It Gets Real

Financial resilience is the ability to withstand financial shock or strain.

Do members have emergency savings to absorb an unexpected car repair or plumber’s bill? What about something more serious, like a job loss or a medical crisis?

Most Americans have some degree of resilience, but it’s thin. And even households with the recommended six months of reserves are under real pressure. When gas prices jump 40%, meat prices climb nearly 20%, and insurance premiums spike, those reserves can erode fast.

Credit unions have tools to help, but in this environment, tools alone aren’t always enough. The leaders Callahan sees making a real difference are thinking outside the box in a couple of ways.

Building Financial Access

Credit unions are not-for-profit, but they’re not a charity. Luckily, financial access isn’t about goodwill alone. Financial access is a purpose-led, sustainable business practice.

Here are three examples of how a credit union might do well while also doing good:

1. 1. Form partnerships with local businesses to provide affordable access to critical resources, like working with local car dealers to finance efficient, reliable transportation so people can get to work and keep their jobs.
   2. Build support for small-business ecosystems that create resilient local networks and provide member business lending opportunities.
   3. Deliver essential financial services, like check-cashing, bill payment, and basic transaction accounts, on a risk-managed, profitable basis.

Of course, there are numerous other paths as well. If your credit union is pursuing anything like this, Callahan & Associates wants to hear from you. If you have a story to tell about the impact your team has had on a member’s life, please share it through our Member Story Project. In fact, feel free to share more than one.

Building Emotional Connections

Financial health and financial wellbeing are not the same thing. People who are truly thriving have both means and a sense of security that comes from confidence about the future. For most people, the key piece of this puzzle is a financial partner who cares about them. A partner who anticipates their needs, who always has their back, and who they can trust completely. Credit unions that prioritize emotional engagement can be that partner.

In our work with Gallup leading the Member Engagement & Financial Wellbeing Consortium, Callahan helps credit unions build and measure exactly these kinds of relationships. The data is clear: members who are emotionally engaged with their credit union enjoy measurably better financial wellbeing than bank customers and even than other credit union members who lack that depth of connection.

Credit unions care about the people they serve; but caring isn’t enough on its own. Members need to feel that care consistently and concretely, through every interaction. In times like these, emotional connection can matter even more than financial management tools, competitive rates, and great service. That might sound squishy. The data says it’s real.

Financial wellbeing builds over moments. When credit unions make it easier for members to improve their financial position — whether through smarter payment tools or clearer guidance — they strengthen long-term relationships. Gallup research shows emotionally engaged members are 5.4x more likely to stay and 5.6x more likely to trust their credit union as a financial advisor. The Member Engagement & Financial Wellbeing Consortium helps credit unions turn everyday interactions into measurable gains in trust and wellbeing. Learn more today.

The post Connection And Caring Matter As Much As Knowledge And Resources appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

Top-Level Takeaways

• Differentiation comes from thinking beyond traditional banking norms.
• Credit unions can systematically create “wow” moments, but it must be part of the cultural.
• AI and engagement data is changing how credit unions measure emotional experience.

It’s a typical day at the office for Mike Dobbins when he picks up the phone to make a call.

“My name’s Mike Dobbins,” he says. “I’m the CEO of Alliant Credit Union, and I just wanted to call and wish you a happy birthday today.”

A voice on the other end pauses for a moment then replies, “Are you serious?”

“I am serious,” Dobbins assures.

“Are you really the CEO?”

“I am really the CEO.”

What follows is a brief conversation between the cooperative’s leader and one of its nearly 1 million members. At its conclusion, Dobbins is sure to tell the member that their relationship with Alliant Credit Union ($20.3B, Chicago, IL) matters to him and wishes them well.

Dobbins says he makes these calls as often as possible, not just for birthdays, but for other life events, too.

“As someone who started my career as a branch manager, I always remember the power of that personal touch,” Dobbins says. “Standing there when people come to the door, shaking their hand, learning about them — those things are powerful. We are digital-only in the sense that we don’t have branches, but we want to have great humanity.”

Indeed, as an early adopter of a digital-only model, Alliant has learned that removing branches doesn’t remove the expectation for connection. It’s a challenge that has pushed the cooperative to rethink everything from product design to staff training to how it uses data. Ultimately, it aims to not only serve members but turn them into advocates.

“You’re probably not going to tell a friend, ‘Here’s my debit card.’ But you might tell your friend, ‘I bank somewhere where people call me on my birthday,’” Dobbins says.

Operationalizing “Wow”

According to Dobbins, to succeed as a digital-only institution, two things must be true.

“Your digital can’t just be good, it has to be pretty much everything,” he says. “But the most important piece is delivering ‘wows’ every time you get a chance. I use the term ‘beautiful’ in our strategy document because that’s what it has to feel like. You want that Tiffany bag experience.”

It starts with creating compelling products. The goal is to provide a seamless, visually appealing experience that consistently delivers quality.

“Customer expectations are shaped by experiences like opening an iPhone,” Dobbins says. “Everything is intuitive right out of the box. That’s the baseline. It has to be reliable.”

After onboarding, Alliant focuses on guiding members toward the ways they can use those products.

“Give members the tools and everything they need,” Dobbins says. “Then, use those high-value interactions, such as when you’re giving advice, to over-index on the wow factor.”

In fact, one of Alliant’s five strategic pillars is “Wow Servicing.”

“We have things like a Wow Lab with about 20 people in it every day experimenting with different ways to deliver high-touch experiences,” Dobbins says, “We experiment a lot, figure out what works, and when we come up with good ideas, we push them back out across the organization and encourage people to adopt them.”

For example, one employee who manages desktop computing suggested sending branded tennis balls with handwritten notes to members after hearing barking regularly in the background of calls. It’s exactly the kind of unexpected moment Alliant seeks to create. Employees also routinely make note of things like birthdays, anniversaries, illness, and other life events and then send physical greeting cards out to those members.

“If you walked into our contact center today, you’d find a mini Hallmark store,” Dobbins says.

For Dobbins, that kind of attention to detail must permeate the culture.

“You want people thinking about how to do things better and how to delight members,” the CEO says. “I’m just trying to lead by example.”

Data-Driven And Delightful

Of course, it’s not all just good vibes. A strong data architecture and a data insights team supports Alliant’s strategy.

“We measure everything,” Dobbins says. “If something doesn’t look right, we dig into it, figure out what’s wrong, and fix or improve it.”

Today’s advanced tools have only helped Alliant double down on insights. For example, it uses AI to examine contact center call transcripts.

“If we have 10,000 calls tomorrow, AI can analyze all of them, identify sentiment, determine how many were great or delightful interactions, and detect patterns or recurring issues,” Dobbins says. “We don’t have to wait to understand where we need to step in and improve.”

That discipline has helped Alliant turn insight into action. Today, net promoter scores are high, membership grew 2.48% from year-end 2024 to year-end 2025, and loans increased 4.11% during the same period.

“My objective for Alliant is to become one of the most recommended financial institutions,” Dobbins says. “Recommendations come from emotive experiences. I like to experiment. I’ll call people on their birthday to see if it creates a powerful reaction. I’ll call when someone opens a new account. If someone reaches out on LinkedIn or sends me an email, I respond to it myself because I want to learn.”

The CEO says the key is to look beyond financial services for inspiration and embrace unconventional thinking.

“Little things — things that bring joy and humanity — make a difference,” he says.

The post No Branches? No Problem! Alliant Delivers The Cooperative Difference Digitally. appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

That realization landed with force for Tracy Verner, community development manager at Alltru Federal Credit Union ($392.5M, Wentzville, MO). After years of watching members absorb financial education but remain boxed out of the system, she began pushing the cooperative to rethink what real progress looks like — what financial empowerment looks like.

“Financial empowerment is information combined with access,” she says. “Many financial institutions offer well-meaning financial literacy — workshops, gamified apps — but it’s still just information. We’re doing an injustice if we provide information without the tools to apply it.”

The philosophy has changed the way the St. Louis cooperative operates, from product design to employee training. The result? Stronger culture, deeper partnerships, and helping more people who otherwise might have remained unbanked.

Gaps And Barriers

To truly empower members, it’s necessary to understand the barriers they face and examine who the credit union is not yet serving.

“If you’re truly committed to empowerment, it’s your responsibility to provide access,” Verner says. “Credit unions were built on inclusion, so ask: ‘Who’s being left out, and why?’”

An early experience in Verner’s credit union career underscored to her the importance of doing things differently. Speaking with a workshop attendee after an event, Verner learned the woman couldn’t open a checking account.

“I was floored,” Verner says. “She had steady income working for the city of St. Louis but couldn’t access a checking account. This was before fintech tools like Venmo or Cash App. She was receiving paper checks, and when the city stopped issuing them, she was forced onto a prepaid card with fees.”

Verner met with her boss and learned the woman had an incident in her ChexSystems report that barred access to checking. In these kinds of screening systems, even a single overdraft charge can easily turn a short-term issue into a multi-year obstacle. At the end of 2025, approximately 6% to 7% of U.S. households were unbanked, according to Bankrate, largely because of prior banking problems.

So, Alltru turned ChexSystems off.

“This was before the Bank On movement even reached St. Louis,” Verner says. “Altru was already questioning those barriers. Leadership was already asking why.”

Don’t stop here. The community development manager at Alltru FCU turned in her barbells for bank accounts and is building access one account at a time. Read more in “Tracy Verner Is Breaking Barriers In St. Louis Finance.”

Expanding Access Without Increasing Risk

Opening access at scale shifts responsibility inside the institution and can raise questions about risk management, making effective collaboration with finance and compliance teams essential.

“Our compliance manager tracks outcomes closely,” Verner says. “We’ve found people flagged in ChexSystems do not show higher fraud or delinquency rates. The data simply doesn’t support the perceived risk.”

Alltru regularly evaluates programs and purposefully keeps guardrails flexible. For example, the credit union noticed an issue involving fraud through ATM deposits among its youth workforce program. So, it pivoted.

“Instead of shutting it down, we increased our fraud education efforts, reduced ATM withdrawal limits, and added monitoring,” Verner says. “We didn’t stop the program. We refined it.”

Alltru takes the same creative approach to lending. Traditional secured loans tend to rely on upfront cash or collateral. That’s a barrier for members without savings. Alltru’s credit builder loan removes that requirement, although it doesn’t release funds immediately to reduce risk while still helping members build credit. In practice, however, early usage indicated Alltru needed to recalibrate the loan.

“Initially, it was $1,000 over 12 months,” Verner says. “We realized some members couldn’t handle that.”

Today, the Missouri cooperative offers loan options as low as $300 because even $30 every month can help members without creating excess financial strain. Alltru has also gradually leaned into relationship lending, and half of its first-time auto loan borrowers don’t have a credit score.

“You start with good intentions,” Verner says. “Then you refine based on real needs.”

Empowerment As An Organizational Mindset

Financial empowerment starts with understanding the consequences of credit union decisions. Verner spends time in the community working alongside nonprofits and listening to members outside the branch to identify where well‑intended policies still limit access.

“Being in the community, working with nonprofits, seeing real challenges brings up more questions,” she says. “It forces you to ask why.”

Of course, asking why only matters if it changes how people make decisions, which is why financial empowerment at Alltru also rests on a shared understanding of what it means to struggle, how strain shows up in everyday life, and who needs support.

“The rising costs of housing, groceries, and auto loans have impacted everyone,” she says. “This isn’t someone else’s problem. This is about our neighbors, families, and even our coworkers.”

That awareness changes decisions, from product design to flexibility at the margins. As a credit union focused on empowerment, Alltru is willing to look for ways to preserve access instead of restrict it.

Forward-thinking credit unions are leading with financial wellbeing. Alltru FCU’s evolution from education to true financial empowerment reflects a broader shift across the industry. The Member Engagement and Financial Wellbeing Consortium, led by Callahan & Associates in collaboration with Gallup, helps credit unions embed financial wellbeing into strategy, product decisions, and culture. Through shared insights and peer collaboration, participating credit unions are aligning around what drives real member confidence, engagement, and long-term growth. Learn how the Consortium is helping credit unions turn empowerment into measurable impact.

The post Why Financial Empowerment Matters More Than Financial Literacy appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

Federal poverty level (FPL) guidelines vary by household size but rely on a single national baseline for the continental United States, regardless of wide differences in local cost of living. Only Alaska and Hawaii have separate guidelines. Additionally, although the FPL is adjusted each year for inflation, the underlying methodology and assumptions used to calculate the poverty guidelines date back to the 1960s and have not been fundamentally reworked to reflect modern spending patterns and economic realities. Today, essentials such as housing, healthcare, childcare, and transportation comprise a far larger share of household budgets than they did back then.

To address this gap, the United Way of Northern New Jersey developed a way to capture the households that earn more than the federal poverty level but still struggle to afford basic necessities. The ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) framework calculates a Household Survival Budget based on the localized cost of basic necessities such as housing, childcare, food, transportation, healthcare, technology, taxes, and more for every county in the United States. It then compares that budget with household income sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to establish the ALICE Threshold and provide a more accurate picture of financial hardship.

According to the 2025 State of ALICE Report, the cost of household necessities plus taxes greatly outstrip FPL guidelines. Thus, households below the ALICE Threshold must make difficult decisions every day. They often earn too much to qualify for public assistance but not enough to comfortably afford necessities like groceries, car repairs, and medications, placing them between a rock and a hard place.

SHARE OF U.S HOUSEHOLDS ABOVE AND BELOW ALICE THRESHOLD
FOR U.S. HOUSEHOLDS | DATA AS OF 2023
SOURCE: United Way, U.S. Census Bureau

Strategic Insights

• The K-shaped economy continues to define the post-COVID landscape. According to Axios, 59% of all consumer spending in the United States comes from just the top 20% of income earners.
• Money markets reflect this inequality as well. Bloomberg claims the top 1% of U.S. households now hold close to one-third of the nation’s wealth, the highest level since World War II.
• Widening inequality helps to explain deteriorating consumer sentiment; many people simply have not seen improvements in their standard of living. The University of Michigan Survey of Consumers expects consumer sentiment to fall to all-time lows of 47.6 in April 2026, driven by stubbornly high inflation expectations and the Iran conflict.
• When money stops making sense, people suffer a crisis of financial confidence. That’s when financial nihilism can take hold.
• According to JD Power’s March Banking and Payments Intelligence Report, 68% of U.S. consumers are considered financially unhealthy with one-third expecting their financial situation to worsen over the next three months. The vast majority have changed spending habits, purchasing less expensive grocery items or even less food overall.

What Can Credit Unions Do?

• In Tucson, a handful of credit unions have paired up with their state credit union association’s foundation to make housing more affordable. Read more today.
• DuGoood Federal Credit Union is strengthening local households through a workforce partnership that combines products, education, and philanthropy to support job training and technical education. Read more today.
• Holy Rosary Credit Union is giving young people a leg up before they enter the workforce and establish their own households. Its career and technical education program offers scholarships, internships, and courses eligible for college credit. Read more today.
• Nuvision Federal Credit Union’s Added Advantage program tracks member engagement across the credit union, then rewards relationships through better pricing and other perks, easing the stress some households face. Read more today.

The post 42% Of U.S. Households Experience Financial Hardship appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

For the past 20 years, Holy Rosary Credit Union ($487.1M, Rochester, NH) has operated a career and technical education (CTE) banking program at Spaulding High School through the Richard W. Creteau Regional Technology Center, pairing classroom instruction with an on‑campus branch. This year, enrollment is at full capacity. There’s even a waitlist.

But it wasn’t always that way.

The New Hampshire cooperative made some changes due to the impact of COVID. Because the program relies heavily on hands-on instruction, a staffing gap and lack of in-person instruction put its future at risk. Five years ago, Carlynne Pouliot, who was at the time assistant vice president of financial services, stepped in to rebuild the program. Today, it’s on firmer footing.

“It’s really evolved in the past four years,” Pouliot says. “This is our most successful year since the pandemic.”

According to Pouliot, who is now vice president of retail and business development, student feedback and a deeper relationship with school administration has helped strengthen the program. The biggest factor, however, was finding the right teacher.

“I have the best students,” says Kayleigh Erwin, who has run the program for two years. “Yes, they can be a little silly. Of course, they’re high schoolers, but they are still hardworking.”

Real World Experience Is The Differentiator

Sometimes, the best way to learn is by doing. HRCU’s flagship course is Banking & Financial Support Services, a year-long course that blends financial literacy with workforce development.

In the classroom, students cover personal finance topics such as budgeting, saving, and investing while also learning about banking regulations and working with members.

“The first month is learning cash handling, confidentiality, and our teller system,” Erwin says. “Even if they don’t go into banking, it’s usually their first customer service experience.”

The on-campus branch is open three days a week, and each student is assigned one shift per week as a part of their instruction. There, they handle real member transactions with the same systems tellers use in all HRCU branches. Additionally, students in the Hoy Rosary banking program have the opportunity to earn college credit.

“Students in the tech center can earn three free college credits, so this helps them save money,” Erwin says.

Last year, Erwin worked with Great Bay Community College, submitting her credentials and curriculum for approval. Now her class counts as ECON 225 Personal Finance (worth three credits).

Pouliot says this helps to further connect academics with real-world careers.

“Research shows students who earn college credits in high school are more likely to enroll, stay enrolled, and graduate,” she says.

Students in the year-long program can also earn a $750 scholarship from HRCU based on their performance.

Students who might not want to commit to a year-long class have the option to take Introduction to Banking. This eight-week feeder course for the main program covers the same personal finance topics but offers a more general overview of banking concepts and industry basics, such as the history of the credit union movement. The shorter format lowers the barrier to entry and has proved to be popular.

“It increased enrollment,” Pouliot says. “Next year we expect 20 students, split into two classes. We have already filled next year’s program.”

Student Growth. New Opportunities.

The program’s growth and popularity has enabled HRCU to offer an expanded extended learning opportunity (ELO) this year. This advanced, individualized experience is designed to allow select students to take full ownership of branch operations.

“One of our students this year will be an intern next year running the branch for a dedicated class period,” Pouliot says. “She’ll have a job description role responsibilities. We’re fully confident in her skills.”

Responsibilities include opening the branch, managing a cash drawer, and handling day-to-day operations on their own. The role also extends beyond the classroom, incorporating a paid internship component during both the school year and summer.

What sets the ELO apart is it’s fully self-directed.

“There is no curriculum,” Pouliot says. “We create a job description, they come into the role, and then they self-operate. They have to connect back to the ELO director about their training, their experiences, and the projects they’re working on.”

The credit union trusts these students to operate at a professional level, making this the highest tier of responsibility within the program and a direct bridge to workforce readiness. Moving forward, HRCU hopes to expand this offering to accommodate more students in the future.

Enrollment and participation are important success metrics for these courses, however HRCU also monitors branch usage, account openings, and how effective the program is as an opportunity to help students adapt into the career world.

In regard to that last item, the credit union has multiple success stories, including one from several years ago in which a former student stuck with banking and eventually returned to work at HRCU as its consumer lending manager. According to Pouliot, they remain in the industry to this day after moving to a different state.

More recently, a student who graduated from the program last year as a senior is now working full-time in the credit union’s main office.

“We also hired a part-time student from our program last year,” Pouliot says. “He’s in his junior year of high school, so he works with us every Saturday.”

Evolution Based On Student Voices

Perhaps the biggest reason the banking program is so popular is the fact that student feedback plays such a major role, not just in how HRCU structures classes but in how it approaches youth banking overall. This year, HRCU established an annual volunteer student focus group open to all students.

Pouliot says it’s been an invaluable resource.

“Every piece of data we’ve got from those focus groups we’ve put into play,” the VP says. “Now, marketing and I can present to our executive team about how we can restructure our teen accounts based on the feedback we’re receiving from those focus groups.”

Student insights support services, too, not just products. For example, students told HRCU they wanted to know more about budgeting, so the credit union is hosting a seminar on the subject in May just for them. Erwin says there’s a strong interest in how savings and credit work, and she receives several questions about how students can get the most out of their money. She also says students are a lot more engaged than some might think.

“There’s a misconception that students aren’t motivated, but that couldn’t be further from the truth,” she says. “They want to learn, attend college, and give back. They challenge themselves. They hold jobs while balancing CTE, clubs, and volunteer work. They are working.”

Hands-On And All-In

Pouliot says HRCU’s banking program relies heavily on participation from credit union leadership and strong integration with Spaulding High School and the surrounding community.

“Our board is hands-on,” she says. “We have our chair of the board, our vice chair of the board, and another board member who attend the focus groups. When we do donations at the school, the board comes.”

The credit union also hosts panels with employees from different departments so students can see different career paths that are available.

“We invite the business program, the marketing program, and our banking program,” Pouliot says. “It’s a well-rounded panel.”

The value of a strong relationship with school administrators also cannot be understated.

“Anytime we have challenges, we go to the school administration,” Pouliot says. “There’s a director of the CTE and she really helps us create our partnership. We work together as one big team.”

HRCU even attends open houses and orientations for incoming eighth graders, and credit union staff are regulars at events like fundraisers and sports games.

Concern for community is one of the industry’s cooperative principles, and it’s one HRCU emphasizes when working within the school. For example, after learning how many students rely on a local food pantry, the credit union and its student participants began making regular contributions, including organizing donations and physically helping stock it. Students also attend community events the credit union is involved in.

“They’re giving back to their peers, and they value it,” Pouliot says. “They embrace the community impact of the credit union, and that’s huge.”

Next-Gen Members. Next-Gen Relationships.

Early engagement can build relationships that last a lifetime. Callahan Webinars highlight real-world stories of credit unions that have turned youth programs into long-term member relationships. Explore the catalogue today.

Learn more about Callahan webinars

The post Inside An In-School Model That Links Classrooms With College And Careers appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

Every year, the Callahan team travels the country convening credit union leaders. Inevitably, one question comes up again and again: What are you hearing? Where are other executives focused right now?

It is a fair question. Change is constant, and leaders want to understand how peers are navigating it. Drawing on hundreds of strategic planning sessions, roundtables, and conversations with credit union executives, Callahan has identified six clear priorities guiding credit unions’ work in 2026.

These are not predictions. They are reflections of where executive teams are already investing their time, energy, and attention.

1. Growth Mindset

More than any single strategy, executives are emphasizing a growth mindset. This shows up in how leaders think about expansion, innovation, and relevance.

Organic growth through deepening member relationships as well as attracting new members through branches and digital channels remains a major focus, particularly as competition intensifies. Inorganic strategies such as mergers and indirect lending continue to play a role, too. Physical expansion and new-market entry is also back in the conversation, with many credit unions planning new branches in 2026. Increasingly, digital transformation ties these efforts together, reinforcing growth as both a mindset and a long-term discipline. ,

2. Tech Focus

Technology is no longer a differentiator on its own. Executives recognize that without continued advancement, credit unions risk falling behind.

We are hearing consistent focus on fintech partnerships, AI enablement, digital experience optimization, data analytics, and cybersecurity. The challenge is not in deciding whether to invest but in determining where technology creates real value for members and the organization.

3. People First

As the workforce evolves, leadership teams are placing renewed emphasis on succession planning and leadership development. Many credit unions are asking hard questions about who will lead next and how they are preparing those leaders today. Strong strategy requires strong leadership, and executives are investing accordingly, knowing that talent and culture remain critical long-term advantages.

4. Money Movement

Payments and money movement are rising quickly on executive agendas. At recent roundtables, topics like real-time payments and stablecoin generated significant interest. The underlying question is simple but important: how can credit unions help members move money quickly, securely, and with minimal friction in an expanding payments landscape? At stake is whether credit unions remain the primary hub for how and where members move their money.

5. Community Development

Leaders are viewing community development less as a set of programs and more as a strategic imperative. Executives are focused on understanding evolving community needs, forming meaningful partnerships, and aligning resources where they can make the greatest impact. The goal is not just to participate in the community, it’s to become indispensable to the communities credit unions serve.

6. Mission/Emotion

The final priority is perhaps the hardest to define; it’s also one of the most powerful.

Mission emotion is about leading with purpose and telling a clear story about impact. Executives are asking how they communicate their “why” in a way that resonates with members, employees, and communities. Just as important, they are questioning how to measure success and looking beyond traditional metrics to better capture the real value credit unions create.

Taken together, these six priorities point to an industry that is asking smarter questions and thinking more intentionally about the future. Credit unions are connecting strategy, performance, and purpose in new ways — and that is encouraging to see.

As always, these insights are shaped by the conversations we are fortunate to take part in every day. Watch for future articles on CreditUnions.com that delve deeper into these topics as well as continued examination in our webinars, roundtables, speaking engagements, and more. We look forward to continuing the dialogue and learning from the leaders who are shaping what comes next for our industry.

No matter where you are on your journey, Callahan’s facilitators can help. Whether your credit union is navigating one or many of these priorities, Callahan can facilitate the conversation and empower your stakeholders with the data and insights to drive you forward. With more than 180 years of collective experience, we provide the guidance and support you need to ensure your team is aligned, your strategy is clear, and your goals are within reach. Learn more today.

The post 6 Credit Union Executive Priorities For 2026 appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

Top-Level Takeaways

• Whitefish uses member stories to show how it’s part of larger, meaningful narratives.
• Member-first storytelling builds trust in ways traditional marketing can’t.
• Impact shows up in reputation, advocacy, and emotional connection rather than immediate conversions.

Marketing for Whitefish Credit Union ($2.1B, Whitefish, MT) doesn’t always lead with products and services. In fact, in some of its content, they barely shows up at all. But through a long-running series of credit union member stories featuring professionally produced short films and companion articles, the Montana-based cooperative is spotlighting the lives of its members with the credit union playing a supporting role.

“The credit union story is caring about members’ stories, their lives, their goals,” says Josh Wilson, senior vice president of marketing at Whitefish. “How do you tell someone’s story where the credit union is part of it but not the center? It’s about showing how the credit union fits into their life and helps them accomplish what matters to them.”

Today, the credit union has produced 30 of these stories, each focusing on an individual or business that makes the Whitefish field of membership stand out in the market.

“Frankly, the most interesting stories often come from people who are a little quirky or have unique perspectives,” Wilson says.

Some examples include the story of a historic ranch that might or might not have a ghost and a local woman known fondly as Sanders County’s “Plant Lady.”

Over time, this strategy has positioned Whitefish as not only a place to bank but also an active participant in its community. Wilson describes the videos as a love letter to its members and their engagement with the credit union versus something that’s explicitly about Whitefish Credit Union.

Where Do Stories Come From?

To make these stories possible, Whitefish hires an outside videographer that specializes in documentaries. Such a videographer brings a story-first lens to the end product. The credit union’s in-house team serves as producer.

As for where stories originate, that starts in the branches.

“Who shows up often?” Wilson says. “Who tells stories? Who stands out? We built a list of members who branch staff know personally pretty quickly.”

Part of what makes these member stories stand out is the distinct, strong identities of each community.

“These are tight-knit communities, the kind where people come out of their businesses to cheer on the high school football team as the bus heads to an away game,” Wilson says. “People know each other.”

When Whitefish started the project, it referenced brands like Yeti to explain to sources the style of storytelling it was hoping to capture. Today, the credit union leans on its own library of previous examples. Still, some people decline the request, and that’s okay. But when a member does say yes, the credit union and videographer take special care to make sure the process is comfortable.

“We do a pre-interview with the videographer and producer,” the marketing leader says. “It helps them understand it’s just a conversation, even with a camera present, and reassures them that we’ll treat their story with dignity and respect.”

Beyond surfacing story ideas, producing stories from start to release requires approximately a year.

“We collect stories at the end of the year, spend two to three months vetting them, then produce seven or eight stories over a two-and-a-half-week period when the videographer flies out,” Wilson says.

The credit union spends the back half of the year editing and building the production calendar. At the beginning of the following year, Wilson’s team executes the distribution strategy as part of Whitefish’s marketing plan.

Where Do Stories Go?

According to Wilson, the biggest challenge has proven to be distribution.

“Having a firm game plan from the beginning on how you’ll distribute the content is probably the biggest lesson,” he says.

When a member’s story is ready to share, Whitefish publishes the full version on its website with an accompanying written article and still photography. It also cuts short-form videos for platforms like Instagram and Facebook in addition to paid advertisements at local broadcast stations and movie theaters.

The credit union’s most unconventional distribution channel, however, is film festivals.

“We sponsor them and ask if they’ll play our stories instead of traditional commercials,” Wilson says. “Audiences often think they’re part of the festival lineup. They applaud and engage. Now, film festivals actually reach out to us asking to include our stories because they want that local connection.”

Whitefish also uses member story videos in conversations with policymakers, with Wilson serving as the credit union’s representative for state-level advocacy.

“As the largest credit union in the state, we’re active legislatively, but we’ve found that many lawmakers don’t fully understand what credit unions are or how we’re different from banks,” he says.

These member stories help humanize the work Whitefish does by connecting it to real, everyday Montanans —  otherwise known as voters and constituents. The videos also help explain things like commercial lending and how Whitefish’s approach differs from that of large, nationwide competitors.

“For us, it might mean helping a bakery on Main Street buy a couple extra ovens or a brewery purchase a property to create workforce housing,” Wilson says. “That’s the kind of commercial lending we do. Not massive out-of-state developments but homegrown businesses serving their communities. These stories show that.”

All of this is why high-quality production matters.

“This isn’t content meant to go viral or hit a million views,” Wilson says. “We’re focused on meaningful interactions, and that’s how we’ve led with this strategy.”

The result is a body of work that compounds in value, with each new story adding to the credit union’s broader narrative.

Returns That Reflect Mission

For Wilson, that long‑term payoff matters more than quick metrics.

“I teach data marketing at the graduate level,” Wilson says. “As someone who’s data-driven, this started as an experiment.”

Whitefish intentionally carves out small parts of its budget to test theories and concepts without attaching a direct ROI. The idea is to learn what works and use those insights to influence larger marketing campaigns.

“There wasn’t a direct ROI component to this, and there still isn’t because it’s difficult to directly attribute video content, whether paid or organic, to loan applications, mortgages, or deposit accounts,” Wilson says. “What we have seen is that when we target these stories to specific audience segments and share them through social media, film festivals, and our partners, something tangible happens.”

That something tangible is a mixture of strong brand differentiation, member engagement, and community trust. Visibility from these stories attracts both new members and new hires, each citing the work the credit union does as the reason they came in.

“We own that space in a way traditional banks and other businesses don’t,” Wilson says. “I received a job application this week from someone who referenced seeing our member story at a film festival this month and wrote in their cover letter ‘this is the type of place I want to work.’”

The impact of storytelling like this doesn’t always show up in traditional KPIs, and for credit unions accustomed to measurable outcomes, this approach can feel uncomfortable.

“This is qualitative data, but it’s essential to demonstrate the real-world effect your credit union has in its community, whether you’re in a large metro area or you’re a SEG-based credit union,” Wilson says. “You have to humanize what a credit union does in a very competitive industry.”

Your members’ stories belong here. Join fellow credit unions in uplifting the everyday moments that define the movement. Add your member story and help spark a ripple of inspiration across the industry. Submit a story today.

The post The Case For Marketing That Doesn’t Lead With The Credit Union appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

To answer that question, Affinity Federal Credit Union ($4.3B Basking Ridge, NJ) let go of long‑held assumptions that financial wellbeing looks the same for all members and that it must serve everyone everywhere. What it discovered was that helping members thrive was about focus, purpose, and meeting members where they actually are.

COO Pam Cohen joined Callahan & Associates for the year-end data Trendwatch webinar to walk attendees through Affinity’s evolution from a traditionally financial‑first institution to one that embraces wellbeing in all its forms. That shift began internally, with employees reconnecting to purpose and breaking down silos, and expanded outward into a holistic strategy centered on financial, mental, physical, career, and community wellbeing.

The result is a credit union that shows up differently for its members. From relief funds and food security initiatives to career workshops and mental health resources, Affinity has built an ecosystem designed to support members through real life. To do all this and more, the credit union must be disciplined saying no, testing ideas before scaling them, and having the patience to let long‑term impact take root.

For credit union leaders rethinking growth, relevance, and what “people helping people” looks like today, Affinity’s story offers a powerful reminder that when one part of wellbeing suffers, they all do. Luckily, credit unions are positioned to respond.

Watch Cohen’s presentation today.

The post How Affinity FCU Became A Financial First Responder appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

The club sponsors a variety of regular events, including everything from movies and educational offerings to day trips and international travel. Any member in that age group can join, but participants must hold at least $2,500 with the credit union in loans, deposits, credit card balances, or some combination thereof.

The credit union launched Adventure Club in 2019, then had to quickly pivot the group to virtual events during the pandemic. Since then, it has mixed virtual and in-person activities, says JulieAnn Worthen, Adventure Club coordinator.

The credit union was originally chartered to serve teachers and still maintains strong ties with that profession. With many longtime members now retired, My Credit Union recognized an opportunity to build on a shared history and sense of camaraderie, making a project like Adventure Club a no-brainer for keeping older members actively involved with one another and with the credit union.

The club currently has an email list of approximately 700 people, and participation in events varies. A recent “What Is AI?” seminar attracted 50 people or so, whereas a card-making course had a somewhat smaller draw. The group also sponsors local trips, like a visit to an Amazon fulfillment center. There are even overnight travel excursions, and a planned trip to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library — expected to open this summer in Medora, ND — already has 30 people signed up.

“It’s a community, and they love traveling together,” says Worthen, adding that participants have not only made friendships but some also have formed other clubs because of their time in Adventure Club.

Adventure Awaits

Of course, events don’t come together on their own. In addition to Worthen serving as a dedicated coordinator, an advisory council also helps select Adventure Club activities, some of which Worthen automatically plans while others go to a vote that the club promotes through newsletters to the group, with Worthen having the final say.

“That helps me understand my crowd a bit,” Worthen says. “And I’m always open to ideas.”

Adventure Club caps advisory council membership at 10 people, but it’s open to anyone who’s a member of the club. The group officially meets two to four times per year; Worthen, however, has a year-round open-door policy.

That structure doesn’t just ensure pertinent programming; it also control costs. Adventure Club is able to offer some activities at no cost to participants whereas others require a fee, which varies depending on the event.

“The goal is to break even on these, not to make money,” Worthen says. “I have to look around and price things and be cost-conscientious. But if I can do it for free, I will.”

Any money the credit union does make on overnight trips for Adventure Club goes toward the group’s annual Thanksgiving lunch, an event that includes entertainment, bingo, live music, and more.

“About 200 people come to that,” Worthen says. “We showcase our services and they have a face they can put with [an employee’s] name.”

Although My Credit Union has reported declines in metrics like member growth and share growth, it maintains a stronger average member relationship than many credit unions within its peer group of credit unions with $250-$500 million in assets. Additionally, its net interest margin has been higher than or level with its peers for the past several years, and its loan-to-share ratio is more than 20 percentage points higher than its peers.

Meeting The Need

The club is one way the credit union is keeping top of mind as the Great Wealth Transfer approaches, when trillions of dollars are expected to pass from older generations to their Gen X and millennial inheritors. For My Credit Union, that means reinforcing trust and relevance with members whose relationships with the cooperative span decades.

According to Worthen, Adventure Club’s impact extends beyond social connection to long‑term loyalty, particularly among members who remember the credit union’s earliest days under Bob Lean, who ran operations out of his home in the 1950s.

“It was Bob Lean’s house, and people would go to the basement and do their transactions,” Worthen says. “It was people helping people. A lot of them remember that, and we’re trying to continue that legacy and carry on that idea of community.”

That continuity matters, Worthen says, because it strengthens the credit union’s role not just as a financial provider, but as a constant presence across life stages. And although the program fills a clear need within the membership, the work is also personal. Worthen’s parents were active in a similar group at their own credit union years ago.

“I have a soft spot for the seniors,” she says. “My parents were much older when I was born, so I took care of my parents until they passed. This is a neat way to give back and create that sense of community. It’s really important here.”

The post Aging Is An Adventure At My Credit Union appeared first on CreditUnions.com.

Top-Level Takeaways

• Storytelling doesn’t require scale — it starts with noticing small, human moments.
• The most effective stories follow a clear challenge-and-progress arc.
• A single member story can travel across channels without losing its meaning.

State-of-the-art storytelling is a key piece of the arsenal as Navy Federal Credit Union ($194.0B, Vienna, VA). The country’s largest financial cooperative considers storytelling a delivery channel for mission, using it to deepen connection, engagement, trust, and preference through small, human interactions that exist at institutions of any size.

“We aim to build a storytelling culture,” says Allison Stevens, senior communications strategist. “We search for and share true stories about real people.”

Storytelling Culture With A Surround-Sound Message

Storytelling is a long-standing priority at Navy Federal.

The credit union relies on its more than 25,000 employees to surface member experiences, highlight service moments, and spotlight military-community successes across its 15 million members. The search for authentic stories spans life stages and financial needs, from young savers to veteran entrepreneurs, from families starting out to those rebuilding after military service transitions. Stevens and her team present these stories through an array of channels, reinforcing the single idea that the credit union exists to serve the military community.

“Our team works to elevate stories across various areas,” Stevens says. “Whether that’s products, such as savings accounts and business memberships; services, such as corporate social responsibility efforts or personalized member service; and brand campaigns, such as support for members of the military community.”

Building culture and telling stories includes uncovering and synthesizing data insights with narratives; training subject-matter experts to tease out personal anecdotes to share in speeches, media interviews and other thought leadership; and producing an internal “moments in the mission” video campaign that demonstrates how staffers support members.  The credit union even added a dedicated storyteller role to the corporate communications team in 2023 to help share member successes in external media and owned content.

To that end, the credit union publishes stories across blogs, podcasts, social channels, and sponsored content to maintain a consistent voice, integrating owned, earned, paid, and social media so audiences encounter the same narrative everywhere. This coordinated approach to marketing and advertising creates what Stevens describes as a coherent, member-centric “surround sound.”

Tiles In A Larger Mosaic

Stevens and her team work across the credit union to surface member stories, bringing team members into close contact with mortgages, loans, banking, investments, brand campaigns, executive leadership, and more — storytelling runs through all of it, guided by Navy Federal’s growth goals.

“We see stories as tiles in a larger mosaic that communicates a narrative about the value of membership and support for members of the military community,” Stevens says.

Meanwhile, the term “storytelling” can mean a lot of different things, and “brand storytelling” can be particularly confusing. According to Stevens, the biggest misconception is that a story is simply “words with a face on it.” To make the message memorable, however, a story needs elements such as plot tension and a strong protagonist who resonates with target audiences. The protagonist also must have a clear goal, whether that be buying a first home or retiring early to care for grandchildren.

In brand storytelling, the protagonist also needs to address how someone or something related to the brand helped them overcome challenges in their path. For Navy Federal, that someone or something could be a member service representative who goes above and beyond, a branch on a military installation abroad, or even just access to low-cost accounts.

Additional components Stevens says are nice to have include dialogue, pictures, and clear, descriptive text. Finally, if the credit union wants to secure earned media, it’s easier when the narrative has news value.

“Finding such stories sometimes feels like searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack,” the communications strategist says. “But with 15 million members, we know many great stories are out there.”

Like the Gipsons’.

A single story can have many lives — whether that’s a short post on social media or an hour-long podcast. Entrepreneurs are among those who make great storytellers because, in many ways, they live the hero’s journey — a natural story arc where a protagonist sets out on an adventure and, if successful, overcomes challenges to achieve a goal.”

A “Vetrepreneurs” Story

Aaron Gipson is a Marine Corps veteran who co-owns Hair Formations Salon in Jacksonville, FL, with his wife, LaVonia. They came to the marketing team’s attention as it was working to raise awareness about Navy Federal’s support of “vetrepreneurs.”

“We interviewed the Gipsons and published their story around National Family Owned and Operated Business Day in June 2024,” Stevens says.

Since then, the credit union has promoted the Gipsons’ story in media interviews, across social channels, in an email newsletter to business members, as a sponsored content piece in Military Times, as branded content, and on a podcast on the credit union’s Your Next Mission channel.

“A single story can have many lives — whether that’s a short post on social media or an hour-long podcast,” Stevens says. “Entrepreneurs are among those who make great storytellers because, in many ways, they live the hero’s journey — a natural story arc where a protagonist sets out on an adventure and, if successful, overcomes challenges to achieve a goal.”

In this case, with the help of Navy Federal.

The Thrill Of The Hunt, The Right Thing To Do

Stevens says a story is not a story if it doesn’t involve some kind of conflict.

“We keep this principle in mind when searching for stories to share: if our protagonist has not overcome an obstacle, then there’s no story to tell and we move on,” she says. “The obstacle does not have to be intense or extreme. It can be light, like exhaustion during a running race, or heavy, like coping with PTSD.”

The Navy Federal communications strategist says that identifying the obstacle — or “tension in the plot” — is key because it triggers the release of cortisol, which sharpens the focus and causes the brain to retain information. That’s one reason that stories stick in one’s memory more than data and facts, Stevens says, citing research on that topic from Harvard Business School. Stevens also points to empirical evidence showing the power of storytelling in creating emotional connections and strengthening relationships with core audiences, noting a piece in the National Library of Medicine titled “Why Inspiring Stores Make Us React: The Neuroscience of Narrative.”

“Ultimately, we hope brand stories build trust with our audiences, and trust can be hard to quantify,” Stevens says.

So, how does Navy Federal measure storytelling success?

The credit union applies industry standards to metrics that measure awareness, such as unique visits and average time on site (i.e., dwell time) on owned assets; impressions and engagement on social assets; and sentiment, messaging quality, and reach on earned assets.

“We also lift up stories because it’s simply the right thing to do,” Stevens says. “Shining a light on members of the military community —  their struggles and their accomplishments, their challenges and their triumphs — is one of the many ways we carry out our mission to serve our members.”

That work, Stevens says, has its own kind of payoff.

“The best part of my job? The thrill of the hunt,” she says. “Finding a great story about how a member of the military community achieves a goal with our help. That, and the kind words many share upon seeing their story out in the world.”

Your members’ stories belong here. Join fellow credit unions in uplifting the everyday moments that define the movement. Add your member story and help spark a ripple of inspiration across the industry. Submit a story today.

The post Credit Union Storytelling With A Mission Focus appeared first on CreditUnions.com.