‘REACH Deep’ Breakouts, ‘REACHtalks’ & Exclusive Exhibit Hall

Impactful REACHtalks, REACH Deep breakout sessions, and Exhibit Hall dialogues and networking took place on Wednesday during the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues’ REACH 2023 conference, challenging credit union leaders to try something new at their organizations!

(View and download event photos from the REACH 2023 Photo Galleries)

Credit union professionals gained new insights in operations, innovation, new technologies, and more as they continue to serve their members going into late 2023 and 2024.

Bundles of educational opportunities were in reach for attendees during REACH Deep breakout sessions and other discussions on noteworthy and relevant topics for today’s modern credit union leader — as well as high-impact REACHtalks (quick discussions on unique issues and topics), including:

‘REACH Deep’ Sessions
REACH Deep sessions included:

• Betting on Uncertainty: The U.S. and California Economies and Credit Unions — 2024 and Beyond: The economic outlook has conflicting signals for credit unions and their members today. Economist Robert Eyler provided a forecast of the U.S. economy, with headwinds and tailwinds. He started with global issues, moving to how state economies may be affected by continued interest rate volatility and somewhat resilient labor markets toward 2025 and beyond — including insights on the upcoming presidential election in 2024, geopolitical issues, local labor markets, future interest rates, and credit union member implications.
• The Partnership Advantage: Nymbus CEO John Janclaes discussed the shift to online banking coupled with the resources of big banks, and how this has left credit unions and community banks vulnerable. On average, more than 900 community financial institution locations close every year. To remain relevant and continue serving members, credit unions must change how they do business. Depending on transactional relationships with vendors no longer suffices. Industry players need partners with whom they can form an interdependent relationship and create a thriving ecosystem — one that can overcome the challenges of today’s banking landscape.
• AI-Driven Resilience — Member-Focused Lending for Credit Unions in Any Economic Climate: Zest AI CEO Mike de Vere discussed how credit unions are lent-out and looking for smarter lending processes so they can keep lending to members when they face financial hardship. What does it take to ensure you’re there for your members when hard times hit? And what do you want for members when the economy is prosperous? Attendees reviewed data from members on what they want from their credit unions during economic recessions and gained insights from decisions made during past harsh financial climates.
• The Hybrid Balancing Act — Developing a Unique Strategy for Your Credit Union Workplace: Momentum President and Director of Client Strategy Mark Alguard discussed how it’s important to stay focused on the promised benefits of working in an office as more credit unions center on a hybrid workplace strategy. These include facilitating collaboration, sparking creativity and innovation, growing careers, and empowering employees to deliver on the credit union mission. Attendees took a deep dive into the data and explored what has changed over the past year in hybrid workplace strategy and how they can create a great workplace that delivers on promises.
• What Matters Now — Insights from TruStage’s 2022 Multicultural and Multigenerational Financial Needs and Behaviors Study: TruStage Senior Manager of Multicultural Business Strategy Edgar Hernandez discussed how developing a successful multi-cultural business strategy can be challenging for credit union leaders. A deep understanding of their membership and communities through a multicultural and mutigenerational lens can help. Through an exploration of TruStage’s 2022 What Matters Now research report, attendees gained data insights and action steps to help them understand the motivations, struggles, hopes and dreams of people across race, ethnicity and generation.
• How to Activate Your Data — Regardless of Asset Size: THRIVE Strategic Services CEO Anne Legg and First City CU CEO Nav Khanna discussed how collecting data isn’t the issue for credit unions, but activating it is. For a majority of credit unions, data feels completely overwhelming. Common questions are: Where is it? How do you access it? How can you improve members’ lives? Do you need new tools? Do you have the right people? Attendees learned how to tackle everyday obstacles keeping credit unions from activating data, providing them with actionable takeaways.
• Impact Unleashed — Credit Unions’ Success Stories: A panel with Erin Estelle (Valley Strong CU), Azul Sanchez (Comunidad Latina FCU), and Rebecca Delmundo (SAFE CU). Award-winning panelists shared their remarkable social impact projects, a unique opportunity for insights into how credit unions are making a real difference in the lives of individuals and communities.
• Implications of GPT and other Large Language Models for Banks and Credit Unions: Strategic Resource Management Vice President of Advisory Services Connor Heaton dove deep into the implications of advanced large language models (LLMs) for banks and credit unions, including the history of artificial intelligence, what LLMs are and why they matter, emerging use cases for financial institutions, risks, and the future of work. Attendees learned to understand transformative potential, recognize risks and challenges, understand enhancements, explore potential impact, and establish robust policies.
• Credit Union Growth Strategy — Creating a Strategic Member-Centric Model to Win the Moments that Matter: Co-op Solutions Senior Vice President of Marketing Carrie Stapp discussed discovering how daily engagement, embedded convenience, and financial guidance lead to member centricity. Attendees gained a behavioral science view into consumers’ payment preferences and financial attitudes, and they learned to understand the unique opportunity credit unions have to capture long-term value through payments.
• Voices of Opportunities and Challenges with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI): Humanidei CEO Jill Nowacki, Teresa Freeborn (author), Anjoli Walker (BCU), and Creighton Blackwell (Coastal CU) discussed efforts to expand diversity. Measured improvement in representation by race and gender at the highest level of leadership has not matched the effort and activity put forward. DEI practitioners dug deep into the opportunities and challenges that persist with expanding DEI through credit unions.

‘REACHtalks’Sessions
REACHtalk sessions included:

• Focused On Growth: Using Analytics to Increase Member Satisfaction — Check Printing Solutions
• Generation Branch: Support Younger Members with Great In-Person Experiences — Momentum
• Executive Benefits: Retaining Your Up and Comers — Gallagher Executive Benefits
• The Personal Financial Journey of Women Credit Union Leaders — TruStage
• Real-Life Fintech Innovations that are Fulfilling Underserved Communities Today — FTSI
• Gen Z: An Opportunity for Credit Unions — Elan Credit Card
• What if There Were a Way? How Small-Dollar Loans are Your Credit Union’s Secret Sauce — Alloya Corporate FCU
• The C3 Approach: Connecting Consumer Channels to Fight Account Takeover Fraud — Fiserv
• Hiring Staff Versus Outsourcing — Origence
• Medicare: Your Untapped Revenue Source — Center for Senior Benefits

Stay Engaged During REACH
Attendees and League staff will be sharing photos, comments, and memories through X (@CANVleagues) and LinkedIn (#CUatREACH).

REACH is one of the credit union industry’s premier annual events, attracting leaders and system partners from across California, Nevada and the United States. This year it’s held from October 22 – 26 at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV!