January 2009 - Enterprise Magazine

January 2009
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Enterprise
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Enterprise is published by
Roberta Staley
Cent ral 1 Credit Union.
Art Director/
Production Manager
Michae l N. Sina nan
Circulation Manager
Stephen Crandall
CENTRAL 1 CREDI T UNlON
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Chairperson
Dan Burns
Contributing Writers
Vice-Chairperson
Yo landa Brooks
Jack Sm it
Amanda Euringe r
Richard Al len
Al ison Gi llmor
Richa rd Littlemore
Lloyd Craig
Diane Luckow
Elain Duva ll
Alisda ir Smith
Terry Enns
Lau rie Stephens
Fred Gorbet
David Swick
Sean Jackson
Scott Kennedy
Maria Tallarico
Catherine McCreary
Contributing Artists
Ross Montgo mery
LucyAnne Botha m
Phil Moore
Zoe Bridgeman
Evaan Kheraj
Dave Sitaram
Lorne Myhra
Ian McCausland
Fred Wagner
Tallu lah Photogra phy
Jack Whittake r
Luisa Rina
Andrew Zbihlyj
The opinions expressed in articles in
Enterprise are
Enterprise
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or Centra l 1 Credit Union. In addit ion, the inclusion
of an advertise m ent does not imply an endo rsemen t
Enterprise or Cent ral l
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or misleading ad vertis ing. Enterprise reserves t he
right to refuse any advertisement. Both Enterprise
of t he product or service by
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Ente rprise
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2009
Volum e 69, Number 1
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ISS N
0319 - 8626
"You might have a beautiful propert y, but
you might have a crack - house across the
street or a burned-out, boarded-up house
next door."
Gordon Kirkwood, CEO, Enteg ra Credit Uni on.
Faith Healer
14 Entegra Credit Union C'.tO Gordon Kirkwood
of Man it oba brought a gasping instit ution
To place an advertising feature
in Enterprise. contact Roberta Staley:
604 730 6359
back from the brink.
Alison Gillmor
or rsta ley@centra ll.co m.
Revolutionary
For subscriptions, contact Stephen Cranda ll :
604 730 6358
or subscript ions@centrall .com.
Subscription rates (in CON dollars):
$29.95/year (Ca nada): $34.95/year (usA):
$39.95/year (Overseas).
Cover phot o by Ian McCausland
32 Briti sh Columbi a's Dr. Ana Mari a Pe re do
is still t rying to change th e world.
Richard Littlemore
REGIONS
GLOBAL
Calm After the Storms
18 Desjardins Group is helping beleaguered
Haiti overcome enormous financial and
OBSERVATORY
PERSON OF INTEREST
10 Detail Man
Ranard Mackenzie, i9, started hi s own
educational challenges.
Savings Credit Union in Ontario.
Roberta Staley
Lights, Action, Credit Union!
28 Ontario's actors and Sri Lankan immigrants
Simplus software is helping lenders analyze
Laurie Stephens
Diane Luckow
24 Six credit unions show why they come by
don't let the bear market get you down.
DEPARTMENTS
DIALOGUE
the profitability of every account.
High Impact
top , set realistic New Year's resolutions and
12 Simplus as Pie
now have a credit union to call their own.
ATLANTIC
38 Embrace your curves, work your way to the
business with a microloan from Alterna
Roberta Staley
ONTARIO
COFFEE BREAK
6 Editorial
8 Small Talk
46 Marketing Maven
Liquid crystal display (LCD) TV screens
are a hip way to communicate your
their bragging rights honestly.
marketing messages.
David Swick
Diane Luckow
JANUARY 20 0 9 • ENTERPRISE
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Small Talk
Simply the Best
susta in able livelihoods for Canadian farmers by
First, there was The Greatest Canadian contest,
helping develop biofuel and other va lue-added
which saw Saskatchewan's 'father of medicare,'
agricu lture co-ops.
Tommy Douglas, voted as the country's most
PEOPLE
New VP at Westminster Savings
The co-op was created under the auspices
Maury Kask is the new vice-president of marketing
admired individual in hi story. Now you can help
of the Agriculture Co-operative Development
at $1.67-billion Westminster Savings Credit Union
choose The Greatest Canadian Co-operator.
Initiative, a program financially supported
in New Westminster, British Columbia. Kask brings
To celebrate the Canadian Co-operative
by Agriculture and Agrifood Canada and
a wealth of experience to the credit union, having
Association's (CCA) 10oth anniversary, the
co-managed by the Canadian Co-operative
worked in the entertainment, transportation and
Ottawa-based organization is creat ing a
Association and le Conseil Canadien de la
tourism and information technology sectors in
virtua l Canadian Co-operative Hall of Fame
Cooperation.
Canada, the United States and Europe.
have contributed significantly to the co-op
Rich L
New VP ilt Vinci
movement in this country. The website wi ll be
Canadians, regardle ss of their age, plan to
Dr. Catherine Aczel Boivie has been appointed
launch ed in June at CCA's 2009 Congress, where
leave on average about 28 percent of their
senior vice-president of information technology at
the inaugural Greatest Canadian Co-operator
financial assets to charitable and non-profit
$14-billion Vancouver City Savings Credit Union
wi ll be unveiled. Cooperators as well as the
organ izations, according to a poll by Investors
and CEO of its IT subsidiary lnventure Solutions.
general public wi ll be able to visit the website
Group, a national financial consulting company.
Previously, Boivie was senior vice-president of IT
this year to nominate an individual who has
Among Canadians 55 and older, 49 percent said
at Pacific Blue Cross and, before that, the British
made a signi fica nt historical contribution .
they would donate from one-tenth to one-half
Columbia Automobile Association.
to honour past and present cooperators who
of their wea lth , saying they are motivated by a
Boivie, who has a PhD in computer science
Largest Co-op Start-up
desire to make the world a better place, help out
from the University of Toronto, is the founding
Canada's first ethanol co-op, Integrated Grain
the less fortunate and support their community.
chair of the Chief Information Officers Association
Processors Co-operative , officially opened its
Famil y members wil l still receive the bulk of
of Canada and the recipient of the 2008 CIO
doors last month. The plant, which wi ll produce
an inheritance. Estimates of intergenerational
Leadership Award from the Canadian Advanced
150-million litres annually, has created 35 jobs in
wealt h transfers over the next 20 years are
Technology Alliance. She is also on the board of
the heart of what was once Ontario's tobacco
estimated to be as high as $1 trillion .
YWCA of Vancouver, the BCIT Foundation, Th e
belt. It is part of a national initiative to create
Information and Communications Technology
Council and CGA-Canada.
"Right now I think the wisest strategy is
to diversify among your mattresses."
l
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8
ENTERPRISE· JANUARY 2009
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NOT RAN ARD MACKENZIE'S favourite
topic - it's in the past and things are so much better now. Immigrating
to Canada from Jamaica to live with his mother, only to end up a ward
of the Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies, is a memory he
prefers not to dwell upon.
Mackenzie was living with his grandmother in Saint Catherine
Parish, Jamaica, when his mother asked him to come live with her in
Toronto. It was a culture shock as profound as his first-25 C winter
day. Mackenzie, who was 12 at the time, spoke only a Jamaican patois
- a mix of Spanish, African dialects and Irish, British and American
idioms - and had to master English, which he was, thanl<.fully, able
to grasp quickly. It was the Canadian lifestyle that Mackenzie found
so dramatically different. Jamaican society is electric with dancing,
music, spirituality and spicy food, in comparison to Canada's more
conservative WASP heritage.
Fitting into his new family was also challenging. "We just couldn't
get along," Mackenzie says of the relationship between him and his
mom, who was also trying to raise five Canadian-born children. By his
teens, Mackenzie was under the care of Children's Aid. Still, despite
distressing ups and downs, says Mackenzie, at no time did h e regret
moving to Canada.
By the age of 16, Mackenzie had moved out of the Children's Aid
group home and was employed at a Lexus dealership, working in the
detail shop where cars are cleaned and polished. Later, he worked with
a friend who owned his own car detailing business. Here, Mackenzie
learned the more complex details of running a business. He also went
to night school to further learn the minutiae of entrepreneurship .
By then, Mackenzie was a member of Ontario's $1.8-billion Alterna
Savings Credit Union and had just started a new business: Bizzy
Boy Auto Detailers. He approachedAlterna Savings' microloans
department with a business plan to expand his fledgling business.
Mackenzie needed to buy a truck and a water tank to properly service
his bigger clients, which included dealerships like Toyota and Lexus as
well as car collision companies.
Alterna Savings was impressed with Mackenzie and gave the
19-year-old - one of the youngest members ever to participate in its
microloan program - $s,ooo this past spring. Mackenzie was able to
pay back $2,ooo of the loan almost immediately. "If I hadn't gotten
the loan," he says, "I'd probably be back at a dealership, working for
$15anhour."
Mackenzie's business now takes him all over the Greater Toronto
Area; the addition of a water tank allows him to service not only
corporate but individual clients. If a businessperson in downtown
Toronto wants his or her car washed during the day, Mackenzie's selfcontained mobile unit enables him to wash, vacuum and polish the
vehicle - using eco-friendly products - in about an hour.
For now, Mackenzie is happy working five days a week and paying
off his business loan. Weekends, he says, are reserved for fam ily.
Mackenzie has reconnected with his mother and sometimes helps
her out with household bills. He has also stepped into the role of big
brother, taking his siblings out to movies or places lil<e Toronto's
popular Centre Island, with its amusement park, train ride, animal
farm, gardens and picnic spots.
Mackenzie may have given up many things to come to Canada but,
with his youthful determination and temerity, he has gained many
other things, including Alterna Savings' respect and support. !!
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HOME TO CANADIANS
OBSERVATORY ··· DIALOGUE
Simplus as pie
Credit unions are singing the praises of the software program
Simplus, which allows them to make pricing decisions based on
he omolete financial relationship with members.
By Diane Luckow
IN 2 0 0 5 , a study of 11 British Columbia credit unions
revealed that seven percent of residential mortgages were
unprofitably priced, representing hundreds of thousands of
dollars in lost profits.
In contrast, for the past two years at Sunshine Coast Credit
Union in Sechelt, BC, no mortgages have been unprofitably
priced and loan and mortgage delinquency is just one-half of
one percent, with margins holding steady.
Rick Cooney, chief credit officer at Sunshine Coast, says that
wasn't always the case. "We were experiencing a decreasing
margin, as every single credit union was," Cooney says.
Sunshine Coast branch lenders were often renewing mortgages
and offering the same discounts as in the past, without
considering a member's complete banking relationship. Then,
in 2005, Sunshine Coast, which currently has three branches,
14,117 members and about $304 million in assets, began to
pilot a new software program called Simplus.
A relationship-pricing tool, Simplus lets lenders analyze
the profitability of every account and answer "what if?" as the
lender plays with different product prices during negotiations
with a member over loans, mortgages and other services.
At the click of a button, the software presents the member's
entire relationship, outlining the extent of their banking
products, credit cards and wealth management services. "It
gives a whole view of a customer relationship so that credit
unions can make pricing decisions based on the entire
re lationship," says Todd Winship, whose company, Primisym,
created the software. For example, lenders can easily see what
will happen to the overall profitability of a member relationship
if they change a price, offer a different interest rate or increase
12
ENTERP RIS E
JANUARY 2009
\
a fee while reducing an interest rate.
The system also has a risk-analysis and decision-making
interface. A green light indicates a good deal, an amber light
indicates a warning to give the deal further thought and a red
light indicates that lender should sharpen his or her pencil to
avoid an unprofitable situation. "It's a way to communicate the
corporate benchmarks down to the front line," says Winship.
Westminster Savings Credit Union, with 11 branches
throughout BC's Lower Mainland and assets of $i.5 billion, has
been piloting the system in its commercial branches for the past
four years. "We use it extensively," says Judith Lougheed, assistant
vice-president, commercial services. "It's a very powerful tool for
account managers when they go to negotiate pricing," Lougheed
says. "It's also a good tool for us to understand where our spreads
are and to set guidelines for account managers in terms of what
they should be trying to achieve."
Westminster Savings uses Sim plus as a forecasting tool as
well to determine how much it might make on a transaction
over time. "Often, customers come away with a better deal than
in the past because we're not adding on a cushion," she says,
noting that the system is now rolling out in all of the credit
union's retail branches.
Simplus is a tool for the times, says Winship . "You're
not going to get the growth you've seen in the past," he says.
"Customer retention and making sure you retain your profitable
customers will be very important.
"Profitability is a bad word in some credit unions," he adds,
"but maintaining a strong profitable corporation ensures
the credit unions will be in the communities they serve for a
long time." ~
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UST PAST THE BRIDGE
,1
./
,j
that spans Winnipeg's
sprawling CPR rail yards,
a sign on the roof of an
automotive shop announces, "Welcome
to the North End: People Before Profit." A
neighbourhood that's faced decades of
change with resourcefulness and resilience,
Winnipeg's North End has always taken
a stubborn pride in its underdog identity.
When Gordon Kirkwood became CEO of
Entegra Credit Union in 1998, he needed
to find a way to balance people and profit,
to serve his North End members - who
are often dealing with tough economic
realities - while rescuing an institution that
Manitoba's Deposit Guarantee Corporation
had deemed unsalvageable. Kirkwood
took a failing credit union, with holdings
of $77 million, and turned it into a growing
$302-million enterprise. Entegra's assets
have doubled in the past five years and
tripled in the past seven. Since 2000, three
new branches and a head office have opened
to serve Entegra's expanding membership.
The facts and figures are remarkable , but
Kirkwood rarely lists statistics when he's
describing Entegra's recovery. He'd rather
speak about people: "What I have a knack
for, I think, is picking the right people. I was
able to put the right people in the right place.
They run the company as if it's their own, as
if every dollar they spend is their own money,
every dollar they earn for the credit union is
their own money." According to Kirkwood, a
born-and-bred Manitoban, the credit union's
financial crisis in the 1990s led the board
and management to face some fundamental
questions: "We had to ask, 'Who are we?
And who should we be?' We wanted to be an
old-school credit union, where members are
names, people, relationships, not numbers
you tick off." The 49-year-old Kirkwood has
steered Entegra into the black by honouring
history, facing the future and knowing his
neighbourhood.
Back in the late 19th century, Winnipeg's
vibrant North End was home to thousands of
Jews, Ukrainians and Poles recently arrived
from Eastern Europe. The 1919 General
Strike, which set the North End's immigrant
working classes against the south end's
WASP ascendancy, was organized in its halls
and union shops. In the 1950s and '6os, post-
war affluence, combined with characteristic
immigrant faith in h ard work and education,
meant that second- and third-generation
North Enders often did well economically
- and often moved away. (Prominent North
End alums include Let's Make a Deal host
Monty Hall and The Guess Who's Burton
Cummings.) Today it's an area in transition,
with some new immigrant populations Filipino and Southeast Asian communities
have put down roots here - and one of
the highest urban concentrations of First
Nations people in Canada. It's a place of
contrasts, where pockets of quiet prosperity
rub up against some pretty rough edges.
The history of Entegra parallels the rich
history of its community. Founded in the
heart of the North End in 1960 as the Holy
Spirit Parish Credit Union Society, the
organization originally served the Polish
Catholic parishioners of the Holy Ghost
Church, starting out modestly in the parish
basement on Selkirk Avenue. The credit
union became an open-bond corporation
in 1972 and changed its name to Entegra
Credit Union in 2003. By the late 1990s, the
original Selkirk branch, now housed next
to the church in a high-ceilinged 1960s
building, was stranded in a dodgy part of
town. Some of that storied North End past
hung on - Gunn's Bakery, home of the
best bagels in Winnipeg, was just up the
street - but the area had been ravaged by
addiction, violence and desperate poverty,
evidenced by blind-faced vacant houses and
lots choked with weeds.
Kirkwood, an outgoing and upbeat guy,
slows clown a little when he talks about
the difficult decisions concerning the
Selldrk branch, which finally closed last
December. "We tried really hard. It hurts,"
admits Kirkwood. "Everybody else had
left the area many years ago. We promised
members we would keep it open as long
as the membership supported it and it
was financially viable. But the branch had
shrunk every year for the past six years. It
was losing money." Part of the problem was
the changing neighbourhood. "It was a $54
million branch, but only about $10 million
of those deposits came from people who
lived in the immediate area and, of those
$10 million, nine were owned by members
with an average age of 81," be says, spreading
his hands in rueful acknowledgment of the
shifting demographics. "Their kids just don't
live there."
The Selldrk situation shows how tricky
it can be balancing ethical obligations
to members, employees and the larger
community. "We owe a certain kind of
work environment to our employees and
to our members," Kirkwood says. "Many
of the members had left the area because
they didn't feel safe. We had a very difficult
time recruiting staff." The branch kept its
entrance locked and used a buzzer system
to let in regulars. Opening hours were
restricted so staff members could leave
the building during the safety of rush hour.
Kirkwood estimates that 97 percent of the
business coming through the door involved
non-members cashing welfare and GST
cheques. He understands the implications
of pulling out of an area where many
low-income residents rely on fringe financial
services such as pawn shops, payday lenders
and cheque-cashing stores. "The sad thing
is that these people deserve a financial
institution. They need financial services,"
Kirkwood emphasizes. "The unfortunate
thing is that we weren't large enough to take
a loss on this anymore. We had to answer
to the members. Part of our responsibility
is financial stability." This was a wrenching
decision for management, Kirkwood
says, and especially the board. To ease the
transition for members, a bus picks up
clients still living at the Polish Manor seniors'
residence on Selkirk Avenue and shuttles
them to the nearby Disraeli branch.
PJ ven though the Selldrk branch
'1:. has closed down, the credit union
.=:Ill remains committed to the North End.
r
The Jefferson branch, which opened in 2001,
is located in a north Winnipeg area called
The Maples, a multi-ethnic community where
many ofEntegra's members had moved. "We
did our research," Kirkwood confirms. "We
looked at traffic patterns. We sat on street
corners to watch foot traffic. We tried to
figure out the flows of people and cars: where
are they going, why are they going and when?"
Betraying his passion for nitty-gritty details,
Kirkwood describes how the management
team, which includes CFO Brent Turman
and COO Brian Charles, obtained data from
JANUARY 2009 · ENTERPRISE
15
Statistics Canada and "analyzed the heck
out of it, almost to a fault." Eventually they
picked a location near a Bank of Montreal.
"And obviously there was no money being put
into this bank. I mean, we sent someone in to
open an account and it took them two weeks,"
Kirkwood remembers. The team soon found
out that the BMO branch was closing and
would be mothballed before their new branch
was up and ready. "So we decided we were
going to open up a branch in a construction
trailer," Kirkwood states matter-of-factly. "We
had to be there while people were looking for
somewhere to go." Of course, it took some
time to convince Deposit Guarantee staff
that a credit union with wheels was a good
idea, but Kirkwood managed to address
their security concerns. "Then we put in a
washroom and a couple of wickets and a desk
and we opened for business. We gTew so fast
we had to open up a second trailer. Within an
eight-month period that was an $8 million
branch - as two construction trailers!" he
says, laughing at the chutzpah.
"We did some things maybe because we
were green," Kirkwoo d continues. "My CFO
was never a CFO before I hired him , my COO
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[email protected]
16
ENTERPRISE· JANUARY 2009
was never a COO before I hired him and I was
never a CEO until I came here." What could
have been a liability for these three men
became an advantage. As Kirkwood says, "We
didn't know there were restrictions so we just
did it as we went along." This can-do attitude,
which suits the North End's unsinkable spirit,
has become part of the Entegra creed. "We
have a saying here: Fight for your member.
If it doesn't fit into the usual model, try to
figure out how we can make it work."
side of several credit unions before coming
to Entegra as CFO in 1997.
When Kirkwood agreed to take on the
CEO job at Entegra, his work experience from ground floor to management - was an
asset. So was his natural optimism. "People
were telling me that it's sinking, it's going
to go down," Kirkwood relates. "And I said,
you know what? If it doesn't work, no one's
going to fault me. If it does work, I'm going
to look really good." Because Winnipeg is
a bargain-hunting ldnd of place, Kirkwood
irkwood has spent his entire profess- acknowledges, where folks drive across
ional life in the credit union system.
town to save a dime on a can of soup,
He started at age 17, ripping the
the turnaround required some number
carbon paper out ofT5s, before being
crunching. "Pretty much everything is ratepromoted to teller when he was still
driven," he says . "We offered some of the best
finishing high school. Later he studied at
mortgage and deposit rates just to mal<e sure
night while working full time. From 1980 to
we were in the game." But if good numbers
1988 he worked for Credit Union Central of
were a start, they needed to be backed up by
Manitoba, converting rural credit unions to
good service. When Kirkwood took charge in
new banking technologies. He met his wife
1998, his biggest concern was staffing. "We
Tannis, another credit union lifer, when she
had staff fights going on behind the counter
was worldng at the credit union in Portage
while members were waiting to be served,"
la Prairie. Settling in Winnipeg, Kirkwood
recalls Kirkwood, shaldng his head. "The
moved up through the ranks on the finance
very first thing we had to do was get the
right people." Sometimes that meant an
unorthodox approach to hiring: a member
who was turned down for a loan request was
offered a job instead because the managers
were impressed by her sunny outlook. "What
I've learned over the years is don't hire
people because they know how to do things.
Hire people with the right attitude and the
right personality and you can always teach
them how to do things," explains Kirkwood.
Moira Sarahs, manager of deposit and
product services at Entegrn's Disraeli branch,
concurs: "Gordon's looking for friendly,
outgoing, personable people. Members are
our business. We remember them, we know
what's going on in their lives."
This detailed attention to members'
needs shapes Entegra policy. For example,
Kirkwood loves state-of-the-art equipment
- after he attended a 2002 technology
convention in Las Vegas, EntegTa became
the first financial institution in the city to use
video-screen advertising and displays but he
also recognizes the value of old-fashioned
human interaction. Bucking the trend to
pull tellers out, he's actually put more in.
"We have an older demogTaphic," explains
Kirkwood, "and seniors want to talk to
somebody. They want to ask questions."
momentum. The latest branch, which opened
also reduces operating costs and boosts
Entegra employees can provide service in
on Gateway Road in the northeast section of
employee morale. ("We're.very cheerful here,"
seven languages. "We try to employ people
the city last December, also benefitted from
confirms Sarahs. "Always fresh air to breath,
who can speak Punjab, Tagalog, Polish,
. Kirkwood's habits of "looldng, watching,
all that light and vitamin D. ")The Disraeli
Ukrainian and Portuguese. One of the big
learning." Kirkwood and his team examined
branch, which was built to LEED standards,
growth areas in Winnipeg is immigration.
uses geothermal heating and cooling,
population density, traffic flow and the
Certainly people will be more comfortable
location of undeveloped pockets that could
low-voe paints and finishes and recycled
talldng in their own mother tongues, especially
materials for desks, cabinets and carpet tiles.
mean future growth. "We feel good about our
with finances."
choice because a Tim Hortons has gone in
Every office has a window. Low-flow toilets
It's hard to generalize about the North
and a Co-op Gas Bar, and those guys do their
promote water conservation and sensors
End, and one of Kirkwood's strengths is his
homework. Coffee, gas and money," laughs
shut off power in unoccupied rooms. Entegra
attention to specifics. Take his response to a
Kirkwood. "We can't all be wrong."
also boasts "the fastest ATMs in town," which
mortgage meltdown in the 1990s. "Between
cycle through a withdrawal in 21 seconds,
1997 and 2000, real estate values plummeted
bsessed as he is with location,
as opposed to the average 52 seconds. This
in the inner city," recalls Kirkwood. "You
location, location, Kirkwood is
not only shaves precious time off individual
might have a beautiful property, but yo u
also concerned with design, from Entegra's
transactions, which makes members happy,
might have a crack-house across the street
open, airy, light-filled buildings right down
it substantially reduces cumulative idle time
or a burned-out, boarded-up house next
to the tellers' wickets. (During construction
in the drive-through.
door. We went through a period in 1994
at Disraeli, Kirkwood had mock-up
Kirkwood is happy to talk about the new
and 1995 when houses were appraised at
buildings and all their bells and whistles,
wickets built so tellers could use them and
$80,000, and then their mortgages went
recommend improvements for the final
but he learned a lesson from running an
sideways and they were lucky to get $30,000." product.) Management worked closely
$8-million branch in two side-by-side
Many properties went into foreclosure,
with Prairie Architect, a firm that is also an
construction trailers: what really matters is
often at a fraction of their appraisal price.
Entegra member, to create eco-conscious
the personnel inside . "I'm so proud of the
"It got to the point that some we just let go to
people," Kirkwood says, when he's listing the
workspaces in the Disraeli and Jefferson
branches. Not only is green architecture the
tax sale," says Kirkwood. "They weren't even
factors behind Entegra's financial success. "I
worth the cost to demolish them."
right thing to do, according to Kirkwood, it
think we're onto something." !
Damage control involved taking a close
look at the neighbourhood. "There are some
beautiful blocks in the area where there was
some demand and there were other places
where there were gang colours next door and
prostitutes out front. So we went street by
street," Kirkwood recalls. "I had our credit
manager at the time roam around the area
with a realtor and we looked at every single
house and put a value on it. We wanted to
1nake sure we had money set aside in case the
mortgages blew up."
Knowing the neighbourhood was also
crucial when it came to choices for new
branch locations. Entegra has opened three
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JANUARY 2009 • ENTERPRISE
17
REGION
•
20
ENTERPRISE · JANUARY 2009
espite the
environmental
havoc,
Developpement
international
Desjardins
(DID), a 35-yearold subsidiary
of $150-billion
Desjardins
Group,
carried on with plans this past November
to roll out a new initiative called RuralUrban Interconnectivity to Help Fight
Poverty, a software platform facilitating
electronic fund transfers among caisses
populaires. A biometric security system
using members' thumbprints also made its
debut at several caisses, complementing
the interconnectivity innovation, says Real
Deschesnes, the chef de mission of DID in
Haiti. Deschesnes spoke to Enterprise from
the offices of the Federation des Caisses
Populaires Haitiennes - Le Levier, the first
Haitian national federation of financial
cooperatives, which is headquartered in
Port-au-Prince's charming district of Petion-
Ville . Le Levier (The Lever) was launched
in June 2007, the result of a six-year
collaboration between DID, the Conseil
National des Cooperatives and the Banque
de la Republique de !'Haiti. Its creation was
a response to the collapse nearly a decade
ago of the Haitian credit cooperative sector
from a pyramid-like scheme.
The country's first caisse was established
in 1945. The caisses populaires established
in the following decades were independent
and did not work together until the
federation was established in 2007. Le
Levier oversees 52 caisses populaires with
assets of $40 million and 217,000 members,
says Deschesnes. Fourteen caisses are the
founders and owners of Le Levier. The other
caisses receive goods and services from the
federation. In total, Haiti has 178 caisses
populaires with about 340,000 members. By
being part of Le Levier, caisses populaires
can not only link together but modernize
and expand by offering such services
as chequing accounts, fund transfers
and an informational website, as well as
undergoing long-distance computerized
inspections, Deschesnes says. "Individually,
caisses populaires can't do this," he
explains. "We modernize the caisses
populaires and they feel they are on the
same field as the big players."
The interconnectivity network will also
cut back on fraud, Deschesnes adds. Some
people don't repay their debts and will go to
another caisse, open an account and apply
for a new loan. "Now, the caisses populaires
can talk to one another."
The network is a three-year, $9.1-million
project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, which was created by the
billionaire Microsoft founder and his wife
to improve healthcare and reduce extreme
poverty around the world. The funds are
being shared with two other DID-managed
interconnectivity network initiatives at
financial cooperatives in West Africa
and Vietnam.
The scheme is part of a larger
DID-organized project called Support for
Cooperatives Savings and Credit in Haiti
(ACOOPEC), of which Deschesnes is the
project director. DID's entire budget for
ACOOPECH is $13 .7 million for the period
2005 to 2015.
JANUARY 2009 ·ENTE RP RISE
21
Haiti's financial system, generally, offers
only basic services. Debit cards are not
accepted and only one bank chain in Portau-Prince has ATM service. Due to constant
electrical blackouts, these ATMs are rarely
operational. But a rudimentary financial
system is only one small part of Haiti's
unfortunate and often tragic past. Haiti's
political and economic systems are rife
with corruption. Worse, the people have
endured decades of brutal dictatorship,
most infamously under Francois 'Papa
Doc' Duvalier and his son, jean-Claude
'Baby Doc' Duvalier. Papa Doc created the
notorious TontonMacoutes death squads
in 1959. These machete-wielding butchers
propped up Papa Doc's regime by keeping
the populace terrorized, murdering with
impunity anyone who opposed the regime.
Baby Doc succeeded his father in 1971,
continuing to utilize the Tanton Macoutes.
He was finally ousted in 1986 by military
and domestic pressures .
DID arrived in Haiti in 1995, nine
years after the fall of Baby Doc Duvalier.
It has been a tumultuous 14-year period
characterized by devastating weather, such
as Hurricane Jeanne, which killed 3,000 in
2004; political turmoil, including armed
protests, a coup attempt, and the overthrow
and kidnapping, allegedly by foreign military,
of former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide;
civilian kidnappings; gang slayings; and food
riots by a starving populace.
The most recent domino of storms
caused enormous losses for thousands of
caisse members . Many lost their livelihood;
plantations and retail businesses were
washed away in the massive flooding, which
affected communities across Haiti. As a
result, many members cannot repay their
loans, says Deschesnes, adding that loan
losses total nearly $640,000. "Our customers
won't be able to pay and it's ridiculous
to pursue them. The hurricane has made
them destitute. " In the near future, says
Deschesnes, these members will be given
access to credit to rebuild their lives.
It is generally accepted that microfinance
organizations (MFOs) establish disastermanagement funds to help clients cope
with emergencies. Post-disaster loans are
considered a form of 'disaster insurance' for
reconstruction or asset replacement.
22
ENTERPRISE • JANUARY 2009
Particularly destructive storms in Haiti
seem to fo llow a four-year trend, continues
Deschesnes, referring to Hurricane Jeanne
in 2004 and the quartet of squalls in
2008. Creating an emergency fund to help
members is something that could be easily
established in the future as the federation's
caisses populaires are well capitalized,
says the bespectacled 56-year-old, whose
two-year stint in Haiti as DID's chef de
mission finished last month.
aisses populaires are an
important component
to development in Haiti,
where the average gross
national income per capita
is US$480 , according to
2006 statistics from the
World Health Organization (WHO). The
poor, who are often not welcome at banks,
which cater to the wealthy, can go to a caisse,
open a savings account and obtain loans
and credit for things like furniture and
vehicles, as well as business loans for retail
and agriculture endeavours.
The average member loan is 52,000
gourds (the national currency), equivalent to
$2,ooo. The interest rate is set at 21 percent,
a low amount in comparison to Haitian
moneylenders, who charge from 45 to 50
percent. The money generated from the
interest rate, says Deschesnes, helps support
the development of Le Levier. "It costs a lot of
money to put a network on the road."
Jocelyn Saint-jean, director general
of Federation des Caisses Populaires
Haitiennes - Le Levier, adds that the interest
rate decreases as the loan is repaid. "In
reality, the rate is around 18 percent," SaintJean says.
A key element to the democratic running
of a financial cooperative is , of course,
good governance. With this in mind, DID
consultants in Haiti give courses to board
members, while some directors are sent to
Quebec for more in-depth training. DID has
also made a concerted effort to have women
represented at the board level; 45 percent
of board members at14 caisses are women,
says Deschesnes. This is a laudable statistic
in Haiti; for cultural and traditional reasons,
very few women are in positions of power,
politically or economically, Deschesnes says .
This ratio is also more in sync with Haiti's
other reality: women run the maj ority of
households. In places such as Gonaive, for
example, the ratio is 4:1 female- to maleheaded households.
Nearly four hours north of Port-au-Prince,
along potholed roads jack-hammered by
hurricane rains and flooding, sits the pretty
butter-yellow office of Caisse Cooperative
d'Epargne et de Credit de la Petit Riviere de
l'Artibonite (COPECPRA), located in the city
of Petit Riviere de l'Artibonite .
The 11-year-old caisse's director
general, Ovilmar Mercy, says that becoming
computerized through the interconnectivity
system would not only speed service for
members but make work easier for staff,
who do everything by hand. Hunting for
errors, for example, is a time-consuming
and painstaking process, says Mercy. The
caisse has 7,500 members, most of whom
are small businesspeople. Mercy anticipates
that more people will join the caisse once
the interconnectivity system is up and
running, especially since it is the only
financial institution in the city of 40,000.
Many people in Petit Riviere de l'Artibonite
conduct their finances at banks in Portau-Prince due to slow service at the caisse,
he admits. "It takes 20 minutes for one
transaction. "
Another project that Le Levier launched
this past fall originated two years ago as a
pilot project in response to the country's
illiteracy rate of 50 percent. DID and CRC
Sogema, a Canadian consulting firm
specializing in the implementation of largescale, international cooperation projects ,
entered into a $5-million contract with
the Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), Canada's foreign aid arm,
to increase school attendance as well as
improve the quality of education. The $5
million will pay for a project consultant and
one national and five regional coordinators
over a four-year period, says Deschesnes.
Only 50 percent of Haitian children attend
primary school, dropping to 20 percent
attendance in secondary school, according
fo 2006 statistics from The United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF). There are about
15,200 primary schools in Haiti. About 90
percent are private and run by communities,
NGOs or religious organizations.
n unfortunate phenomenon
exists in Haiti: classrooms
host a wide range of ages
in each grade. Children
attend classes for a few
months at a time but are
often forced to drop out because parents are
too poor to afford books and related school
expenses. Public school in Haiti is free not so the Creole and French books used for
instruction, uniforms or shoes. When their
parents are able to cobble together more
money, the children resume classes but in
the same grade, sometimes year after year.
An illiterate population has negative
implications for any society. Some caisses
members' illiteracy is so profound that they
have learned neither numbers nor letters
and cannot comprehend the concept of a
personal identification number (PIN), says
Roland Antoine Tia be, operations adviser
to the Rural-Urban Interconnectivity to
Help Fight Poverty. This is why Le Levier
initiated the biometric security system
using members' thumbprints instead of
signatures or PINs.
With the support of Haiti's education
ministry, DID has initiated a system whereby
a loan is given to a group of parents for
school necessities. The loans will be "risky,"
says Deschesnes. "The loans are not given
out on the basis of capitalization." To malce
the loans more secure, they are given to a
group of parents. This way, the "parents are
responsible together."
Thirty-five caisses populaires, serving
members whose children attend a total of 500
schools, will be offering the loans, Deschesnes
continues. "It's a need for sure and it should
be sustainable. We are very enthusiastic about
this program. The main objective is to help
the children go to the school."
However, Ovilmar Mercy of COPECPRA
expressed some misgivings. The interest rate
is high due to the loan risk, says Mercy, and
many parents simply don't understand the
concept of credit and loan repayment. During
the pilot program, he says, the default rate on
the loans was about 10 percent.
Williane Jedeon ca dostin is principal at
the nearby Evangelique Bethanie elementary
school, attended by 600 students dressed
as brightly as tropical birds in green sldrts
or shorts, sunny yellow gingham shirts and
blouses and, for the girls, matching hair
ribbons. So far, says Jedeon ca dostin, who
has a silver bell on her desk for signalling
recess and lunch breaks, the impact of the
school loan program is not evident. Even
most of those parents whose crops were lost
in the hurricanes managed to scrape together
enough money to send their children to
school, she says.
But the fact that parents don'tneed loans
for their youngsters right now doesn't mean
that they won't next year, or the year after
that. The more support that is available to
the people of this poverty-stricken nation,
the more likely Haiti will move towards
security and development. And the role that
DID plays in providing financial help for the
poor and education for children should not
be underestimated. The caisses populaires
system empowers Haitians on several levels.
Despite being illiterate, they are able to save
money and carry on a business, however small
it may be. As a caisse member they also have a
say in who represents them at the board level,
a demonstration of the basics of democracy
itself and a message that oppression and
violence needn't be a way of life. E
JANUARY 2009 ·ENTERPRISE
23
GI{)_._
ATLANTIC
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Cl.
By David Swick
Every year, Nova Scotia's Valley Credit Union dusts off an old clunker and enters it in the local demolition derby to help raise money for the Lions Club.
THE BEST WAY TO JUDGE if
someone cares is to look, not at what they
say, but at what they do. This is true, too, for
organizations. Sure, credit unions talk a good
game - but how many follow through with
time, money and caring?
In this Enterprise survey (unscientific,
we admit) - all of them. Six credit unions
in Atlantic Canada were randomly selected
and each one asked this question: besides
financial services, how do you support your
community?
There are many ways to make the world a
better place and a surprising array popp ed
up here . Hundreds of thousands of dollars
are being donated to support yo ung people,
the homeless and the sick. Staff volunteer
thousands of hours every year to dozens of
organizations. Children are being taught to
avoid money problems. Awards have been
24
ENTERPRISE · JANUARY 20.08
created to honour citize ns who fight the
good fight .
At the core of all of these is the cooperative
philosophy. Representatives of every credit
union talked about this, how they are
motivated by a shared belief: life is about
taking care of each other.
Valley Credit Union,
Waterville, Nova Scotia
You might not expect a car adorned with
the credit union name to twist and turn, smash
and bash other cars. Say "hello" to the Credit
Union Crusher. Every year, $107-million Valley
Credit Union dusts off an old clunker, festoons
it with decals and paint and steers it into a rock
'em, sock 'em demolition derby. Yes, marketing
officer Catharine Herber admits, this is an
unorthodox way to help a Lions Club raise
money. But then Valley considers itself to be
"an avant-garde credit union," Herber says.
Valley has other unexpected ways of
reaching out to the community. A troop of
Brownies may be invited into a branch after
hours to examine actual forged cheques - and
be locked in the vault. Financial literacy for
school kids is one of Valley's priorities, and
this serious information is best mixed with fun .
Kids in Grade 6 are taught how to budget. Older
students are taught how to avoid "the credit
card millstone."
Eight branches are dotted throughout
the beautiful Annapolis Valley. In all of its
community initiatives, Herber says, Valley
seeks to build relationships with people and
organizations. "Writing the cheque," she says,
"is the easy part. "
Valley is thinking both locally and globally.
It has hosted people.from Ghana who learned
how to set up a credit union at home. It then
I\
~I
sent Valley staffers to Ghana to help support
the nascent office.
Also, the credit union is a long-time
supporter of the local hospital and sponsors
an annual golf tournament. This year's
tournament will suppo rt the Special Olympics.
The credit union is donating $8,ooo _a year
for five years to the Special Olympics, plus
athletes' uniforms. "They are the forgotten
charity," Herber says, "and we are all about
the underdog."
Valley's latest effort: a Buy Local program.
And all of this work "is about making our
community a better place, a special place. This
proves it's not about the asset size, it's about
putting the sweat into it," Herber says.
Advance Savings Credit Union,
Moncton, New Brunswick
Any organization that needs volunteers
or financial support in the Moncton area can
ask for help with just a click. Advance Savings
Credit Union is using the Internet to better
serve its members and everyone else living in
the community. Anyone can fill out an online
form asking for credit union staff members
to volunteer; another form can be filled out to
request financial support. And this is not an
empty offer. In 2008, Advance Savings staff
donated more than 2,500 hours to more than
45 local charities and groups and the credit
union donated more than $25,000.
Advance Savings has also created the
Community Champion Award, presented
annually to a volunteer. Last year's inaugural
winner was Monique Gough, who began an
organization to help people living on the
street, Blankets for Metro Moncton Homeless.
Fighting hunger and homelessness making sure everyone has enough to eat and a
safe, warm place to sleep - are missions this
$?5-million credit union regularly supports.
Every year, too, the credit union supports
The Gift of Christmas. All six branches are
decorated and the public is invited to put
toys, food and donations under a Christmas
tree. All contributions are then handed to
the Salvation Army and other groups to
distribute . Each branch is also matched with a
school, and provides sports jerseys, breakfast
programs, a literacy program and more.
Advance Savings' Jennifer Marr,
community promotions officer, says her
organization tries hard to serve people as
best it can, no matter who they are and no
matter how young. On Earth Day, credit union
management visited six local schools to plant
aspen trees.
Metro Credit Union,
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
A major part of the community-building
efforts of $160-million Metro Credit Union
in Charlottetown goes into one organization:
a camp for physically and intellectually
challenged teenagers and young adults. Metro
is now in the fourth of a five-year commitment
to Camp Gencheff, a deal that will net the
facility a whopping $100,000. Half is being
donated by the credit union and the other half
raised by credit union staff.
Raising more than $800 a month - every
month for five years - means a lot of staff
fundraising. Barbecues, chocolate bar sales
and good old-fashioned bake sales are offered
to members. A monthly 50-50 draw is held
among staff. Donated treasures were gathered
for a gigantic yard sale and a raffle was held
for stained glass lamps and mirrors made by a
staff member.
Support for Camp Gencheff involves more
than money. Every year more than half of
employees volunteer for an annual spring
cleanup (many spouses and kids come, too).
This deep connection to the camp has led,
Metro's marketing and communications
officer Doug Bridges says, to "a renewed sense
of camaraderie among the staff."
Metro also budgets $75,000 a year for other
charities. These include Junior Achievement of
PEI, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Queen
Elizabeth Hospital Foundation and $7,500 for
high school bursaries. Staff members volunteer
with a variety of other organizations too their annual volunteer hours are close to 700.
Bridges says Metro's dedication to
Charlottetown an d area is a reflection of
management and staff's desire to help. "You
give something back."
McAdam Credit Union,
McAdam, New Brunswick
When members of the McAdam Warriors
high school girls basketball team talce the court
in their purple and gold uniforms, they have
$7-million McAdam Credit Union to thank. The
credit union only has four full-time staff, but
they are dedicated and feisty. New basketball
uniforms are just one shiny example.
McAdam is a village of 1,600 souls in rural
southwestern New Brunswick, near the Maine
border, and the credit union is one of the oldest,
most respected organizations in this neck of the
woods. It was founded in 1939, when members
paid 25 cents a week in dues, and has long been
relied upon to support the community.
Staff members volunteer for the parentschool committee, sit on the board of
directors helping children with autism and
on the board looking to restore the old train
station. They help produce the July 1 and
Santa Claus parades and every Christmas act
as Santa's helpers, donating and distributing
presents. The credit union offers prizes to high
school students who excel at math and other
endeavours and a bursary to a student going on
to university.
As well, a partnership with the local high
school allows one student who is aiming for
a career in the financial sector to spend 150
hours over the school year working in McAdam.
The student picks up valuable experience, a
reference and a full course credit.
Members of McAdam are "ve1y loyal," says
administrative assistant, marketing Tammy
Boon. And staff feels the same way about
members. Speaking for her co-workers, Boon
says, "this is not just about a job, it is part of
who I am."
Codroy Valley Credit Union,
Doyles, Newfoundland and Labrador
When the annual Race to the Sea, a
120-kilometre relay road race in southwestern
Newfoundland lacked a sponsor, $36-million
Codroy Valley Credit Union took up the torch.
The race pits teams of runners against one
another, racing from lighthouse to lighthouse
to lighthouse along the scenic coast. The race
fosters local pride, attracts tourists and aims
to bring awareness to the region's economic
development. Letting it die would have hurt the
whole area and the credit union was not about
to let that happen.
"It's the co-op way," says Codroy Valley
general manager Corey Munden. "We can't
lose sight of the principles we are built on, the
cooperative principles. One is giving back to
the community. We have a good team here who
embrace itand live it."
Staff volunteering is encouraged by credit
union policy. "We consider it work time if one of
our staff is at a community event," Munden said.
"The philosophy is that, rather than donate
funds, we will donate time." A new award has
J ANUARY 2009 • ENTERPRISE
25
GIO
1:1
ATLANTIC
been created for the staff member who puts
the most time and energy into volunteering.
Another award was created for whichever of the
four branches does the most volunteering.
Munden leads by example in contributing to
his community. He is a Port-Arne-Basques town
councillor, also sits on the school board and was
president of the local Chamber of Commerce.
This year Codroy Valley is looking at offering
more education seminars, including Internet
for seniors, investment training sessions and
online banl<lng. Anyone can attend, not only
credit union members.
CodroyValley's school savings program
is going strong, too, raising the financial
awareness oflocal l<lds. Every Wednesday a
member from each branch goes to local schools
to collect that week's savings. The credit union
has deep roots along this coast; supporting
the community is a way of life. The thinking is
simple and profound. "Where anything is going
on," Munden says, "we are there. "
Credit Union Atlantic,
Halifax, Nova Scotia
The largest credit union in our survey,
$260-million Credit Union Atlantic, usually
Need to issue
prefers to get involved with community
organizations that need both money and
volunteers. Every year it budgets from $50,000
to $55,000 in donations and sponsorships and
raises more money besides.
Last year, for example, Atlantic supp orted
a mental health fundraiser by raising more
than $80,000 - an astounding total for a single
event. But then, local businesspeople were
asked to donate to see Atlantic CEO Jamie
Baillie perform onstage as Elton John.
One ongoing commitment is an annual golf
tournament in support of Junior Achievement
of Nova Scotia. Staff members organize prizes,
gather up auction gifts and are involved
in registration. Over the past five years the
tournament has raised more than $100,000.
This credit union reached outside of its
Halifax base to donate $z5,ooo to the Coady
Institute in Antigonish, NS. The institute has a
capital campaign aimed at increasing its ability
to foster development in southern countries
and is named for Rev. Moses Cody, one of
the founders of the cooperative movement in
Canada. "Coady has a lot of meaning for us, "
says Terry Moore, director, marketing and
communications.
"That was us getting back to our roots."
Other groups that Atlantic supports
include the studio series at Neptune Theatre
and the Marguerite Centre, which helps
women with addictions. And Atlantic is the
m ain b acker of the Credit Union Atlantic Lung
Run, an annu al Lung Association event which
puts money towards education programs
as well Camp Treasure Chest for kids with
breathing problems. Asthma is a serious
problem in Nova Scotia and the credit un ion
is doing something about it. Close to 20 staff
members vo lunteer and some also run the
five-ki lometre race.
Each of the credit union's seven branches
is also allowed some discretionary money, for
more localized concerns. Most of this cash
goes to sports uniforms for kids .
By committing hard work, thoughtfu lness
and money, these six credit unions are
helping to build their communities. They are
mal<lng their village, town, or city a better
place to Jive. Th eir efforts are proof that
mere talk is n ot enough, and money alone is
not the answer. Something more is needed,
something all of these organizations possess.
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ONTARIO
LIGHTS,
ACTIO
CREDIT
UNION
By Laurie Stephens
28
ENTERPRISE · JANU A RY 200 9
YOU'RE AN ACTOR andyou've
just finished filming your first pilot for a new
television show. You don't !mow whether it
will be picked up, but you're optimistic more
work will be coming your way soon. And more
importantly, you have some cash, so you decide
to invest in real estate and take out a mortgage
on a new home.
So you visit a bank. And then another, and
another. The message from each is the same,
"actors need not apply."
Welcome to the world of performing
arts. No weekly pay stub, no credit score, no
mortgage, no way.
After years of discrimination, the
entertainment industry has finally had enough.
In true entrepreneurial spirit, it is taking
matters into its own hands and starting up
a new enterprise: Creative Arts Savings and
Credit Union, which opened for business this
month. Toronto-area members of the actors
union, ACTRA, as well as members of other
creative arts guilds and associations, are
eligible to join.
Brian Topp, executive director of the Toronto
chapter of ACTRA and a key catalyst for the
new enterprise, says Creative Arts Savings is an
organization that understands its members
and their unique needs. "When you walk into
a credit union and say, 'I'm a performer,' it's
the start of the conversation, not the end of it,"
says Topp, formerly a senior executive at Credit
Union Central of Canada. "That's what we have
been seeking to create here."
Creative Arts Savings is one of two new
Ontario credit unions to make its debut in
times more accustomed to mergers and
acquisitions in the Canadian credit union
landscape. The other is Margosa Credit Union,
an institution that opened this fall on the
eastern edge of Toronto to better serve a large
Sri Lankan community.
Only one other credit union has opened in
Ontario in the past 20 years, Italian Canadian
Savings and Credit Union, which was given a
charter in 2000. All other activity in the Ontario
system over the past 15 to 20 years has been
consolidation, which has helped stabilize the
system and its ability to weather uncertain
economic times.
But both of the new credit unions have
compelling value propositions in that they are
taking advantage of opportunities in underserviced markets. However, their respective
service models are decidedly different.
Margosa is going the traditional bricks
For Creative Arts Savings, the process has
and mortar route, with a long-term vision of
been even longer. Topp says ACTRA members
opening more branches in the Scarborough
have been advocating for a decade for the
establishment of a credit union like AFTRAregion of Toronto where the Sri Lankan
community is clustered.
SAG Federal Credit Union that has served their
Stanley Arnold, a retired banker who is
American counterparts for the last 40 years.
serving as volunteer president and CEO for
"Many of our members work in the United
the credit union until the enterprise is well
States and are members of the American credit
union and they came back asking, 'Why can't
established, says the community is full of
they do that here?' "says Topp.
educated and skilled entrepreneurs who face
Shortly after he joined ACTRA in the fall
language and cultural barriers when trying to
do business in a bank. He estimates the local
of 2001, Topp surveyed the Ontario credit
Sri Lankan population at 155,000.
union system and found little interest from
"Now they can come in and speak to
existing credit unions to serve as a partner
our tellers who are proficient in English,
for a new branch that would be dedicated to
Sinhalese and Tamil, so we're serving the
the performance industry. So the project was
shelved until 2005, when Canadian actor Peter
community in a big way," says Arnold, a
41-year veteran of the financial services
Keleghan started to agitate for a credit union.
industry in Sri Lanka and Canada.
In 2006, an ACTRA committee was struck
Creative Arts Savings, on the other
to once again investigate the possibilities.
Consultants were hired to look at the economics
hand, has a more mobile demographic
of a start-up and to craft a strategic plan - a
with members scattered throughout the
Greater Toronto Area. A branch network
plan that got the green light from ACTRA to
further pursue the project in late 2006.
was economically unfeasible, especially for
The next phase saw the development of a
start-up. So, the founders came up with a
business plan, the roll-out of a survey of 1,600
novel solution for the system: a virtual credit
union. The service model is unique in Canada. ACTRA members and the hiring of a CEO
- Steve Mumford, a long-time credit union
Administrative offices are located atACTRA
Toronto's headquarters, a five-minute wall<
executive who had nursed Rochdale Credit
from the city's downtown core at Yonge and
Union in southwestern Ontario back to health
Bloor. Members will use ATM networks like
after it was placed under administration in the
the INTERAC associations to deposit and
early 1990s.
On June 2, Creative Arts Savings was granted
withdraw cash. Telephone banking and
its charter and set out to raise the required $2.5
the Internet will provide connections to
accounts. When a member's needs extend to
million in capital, a goal that was achieved this
loans, financial investment advice and other
past November.
The member survey and the hiring of
financial services, the Creative Arts Savings
team will meet with them to conduct business . Mumford have been key to the establishment
of Creative Arts Savings. The survey conducted
"We're back to house visits by doctors," says
revealed that Creative Arts Savings had a
Topp. "We'll bring the credit union to them. "
For both credit unions, the road to launch
"dream demographic," says Topp. Potential
was a long one.
membership numbers alone were impressive:
10,000 members of ACTRA and another 10,000
argosa's founders began planning
members of other performing arts guilds and
for a new credit union in the fall
associations in Ontario who could be eligible
of 2004. They hired a Mississaugato join the credit union.
based consulting firm that specializes in the
But most compelling was the survey's
credit union sector to develop a business plan
conclusion that a new credit union would be a
that was ultimately approved by the Financial
great interest to younger employees in the early
Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO)
stages of their entertainment careers. Along
with
a high entrepreneurial mentality, these
on Sept. 12, 2007. The credit union then
proceeded to sign up 600 new members, raise
workers are also mobile and , most importantly,
$1.8 million - $JOO,ooo more than required
are more willing than the average consumer
by FSCO - and open its doors for business
to switch their allegiance to another financial
institution. Among the survey findings: 46
this past September.
M
JANUARY 2009 · ENTERPRISE
29
... ONTARIO
percent of the 1,600 respondents surveyed
said they were likely or very likely to become
members of the new credit union and 63
percent said they would establish or transfer
their savings accounts.
On the heels of the survey, ACTRA
persuaded Mumford to leave Rochdale after
22 years to join Creative Arts Savings and help
shepherd the start-up through the approval
process. Mumford was well known and
respected in Ontario government circles as
someone who had pulled Rochdale back from
the brink and turned it into a prosperous
mid-size enterprise of $70 million. As Topp
says, "We expected they would have great
confidence in him."
For Mumford, the decision to leave his
comfort zone at Rochdale and join the
start-up was made easier with the realization
that his entire career had prepared him for
the move . Before joining Rochdale in 1986 he
helped launch Canada Trust's MasterCard
credit card in the 1980s. And his work at
Rochdale demanded that he be ajack-ofall-trades and know the business from the
ground up.
But what most appealed to Mumford was
the chance to build a new credit union for an
industry that already embraces credit union
values . "They want respect, they want to be
treated fairly and they want to have a voice,"
says Mumford. "It became abundantly clear to
me I was already dealing with a credit union
demographic."
Challenges exist for both of the neophyte
credit unions, not the least of which has
been the recent upheaval in world economies
that have spooked investors and decimated
consumer confidence . But the credit unions
have more parochial concerns to worry about.
Margosa, after a 'soft launch' in September,
was still pulling together its product offerings
a month later and coping with slower-thananticipated interest. It recently hired a
general manager with experience at another
ethnic bond credit union, Lithuanian, and
is slowly spreading the word about the new
financial institution that will offer "rates more
competitive than the banks," says Arnold .
Arnold admits that one of Margosa's
biggest tests is to establish its credentials
within the business-savvy Sri Lankan
community that is used to dealing with
cooperative financial institutions back home.
"So we will be going out to little pockets
in the community and talking to them, in
meetings and at community events," he says.
"We want them to know we are going to give
back to the community."
or Creative Arts Savings, the biggest
challenge is making the virtual model
work. On the one hand, it's a workable
model because it gives the credit union the
ability to provide full service at a reasonable
cost. And because the credit union's
membership isn't centrally located, members
are used to working with ACTRA itself in this
way. "In particular, the younger demographic ,
the ones most likely to join, are the most
comfortable," says Topp.
However, with no branch network, there
is a lack of personal 'touch' that credit
unions have typically touted as one of their
advantages over the banks.
George Scott of Mississauga's Level Five
Strategic Partners Consulting Firm was
also involved with Creative Arts Savings; he
developed a marketing plan for the credit union
including a plan to market its investment shares.
Scott considers one of the critical components
F
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ENTERPRISE · JANU ARY 2009
for success to be Creative Arts Savings' new
website, which will be the main source of
contact and financial dealings with members.
Scott says the site seeks to assure members
that the credit union is very much like a bank,
offering a secure place for their money and
access to a full slate of financial products and
services. But the website also seeks to educate
consumers about how Creative Arts Savings
is different. "We wanted to give them the
sense that we have a special sensitivity to their
circumstances, and they'll feel at home here,"
says Scott.
Still, the lack of personal 'touch' with
members makes it more difficult to market the
credit union, says Scott, so the character and
functionality of the website will be absolutely
critical to building the credit union's brand. "It
won't be a conventional financial experience
for members, so the brand strength is going to
take more time to establish," he says.
Despite the fact that Margosa and Creative
Arts Savings face immediate challenges in their
infancy, both are keeping their eyes on future
opportunities and growth. Margosa has a large
Sri Lankan constituency to mine and envisions
opening more branches in the Scarborough
region - but not for at least a year, says Arnold.
"We need to concentrate on making this one
successful. "
Creative Arts Savings, too, has an eye on
expansion, albeit in a virtual way. Given that
ACTRA has members across the country, with a
large contingent in British Columbia, it makes
sense to extend tj'le charter nationally, says
Topp. "Our sisters and brothers in other ACTRA
branches across the country have made it clear
that they have an interest in being a part of
this," he says. "There are no physical barriers,
only regulatory ones."
Mumford says the regulatory process
should, in theory, be less burdensome, given
that there would be no need for bricks and
mortar in other provinces. However, current
regulations were not drafted with the idea of a
virtual credit union in mind. So, Mumford has
already put FSCO on notice that Creative Arts
Savings may once again be seeldng to break
new ground in the credit union system.
"I'm being told that our charter will have
been a walk in the park compared to us getting
approval to expand across the country, but we
are intent upon pursuing a national charter, "
says Mumford. "When the regulations allow it,
we will be poised to tal<e advantage ofit." ~
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31
JANUARY 2009 • ENTERPl,USIO
ooking into the face of the woman,
you can easily imagine the girl.
Ana Maria Peredo - Doctor Ana
Maria Peredo - still has the raven
hair, the flashing dark eyes, the
quickness of movement and mind.
But at age 44, she also has the easy
self-assurance that is befitting an
award-winning associate professor
at the University of Victoria Faculty
of Business, and
the interim
director of
the British
Columbia Institute for Co-operative Studies.
Still, seeing her now, it takes very
little effort to picture her in one of those
narrow-brimmed fedoras favoured by
pan-flute players on Granville Island in
Vancouver. It's easy to envision the casual
clothes, the cheap, dangly earrings and,
especially, the smile that rendered the
20-something Peredo, practically and
necessarily, invincible. Two decades ago,
Ana Maria Peredo needed that smile because
she was playing cat and mouse with Shining
Path terrorists in the mountain villages of her
native Peru. The Shining Path - the Sendero
Luminoso - were communist revolutionaries,
ideologues driven to madness by the conviction
that their style of social justice could only
arise out of chaos. They swept through Peru
in the 1980s, at first doing battle with corrupt
government functionaries and ultimately
targeting anyone who had the temerity to try to
make local economies function successfully.
Peredo was an improbably young academiccum-social-activist, helping to design and
implement co-op style capacity-building
efforts in small villages - aid projects that
helped the residents of poor communities help
themselves. In those days, Peredo's first task,
when she entered a new town, was to identify
the community leaders, often beginning with
the mayor. But that's what the Shining Path
did, too, and they also employed pretty, middle
class women from Lima who could more easily
infiltrate these tightly knit societies . If Peredo
found the mayor, she would arrange to give
him money from the National Agrarian Bank to
be used to finance local job creation efforts. If
the Shining Path found the mayor, they would
kill him and anyone associated with him. And
if they had found Peredo, they would have
killed her, as well.
34
ENTERPRISE · JANUARY 2009
"But I was young," she says now. "I wasn't
too afraid."
If Peredo has lost some of that fearlessness
- or maybe it was recklessness - she hasn't
lost her sense of mission. If anything, she has
become more ambitious in her effort to build
societies that are sustainable and civil. But
now, instead of building them one village at
a time, she is intent upon building a body of
knowledge that will enable others to replicate
her success. She is trying to take her brand
of social entrepreneurship from practice to
theory, so it can be understood and shared.
Although she doesn't say it in so many words,
Peredo is trying to save the world.
Peredo's path to activism began in Lima, the
city of her birth, the place where she was
raised by a single mother and the place where,
against all odds, she gained admission to
Catalan University to do an undergraduate
degree in psychology. Two images from that
time seem to explain both her concern for
the alleviation of poverty and her conviction
that culturally sensitive, community-based
entrepreneurship is the key.
First, Peredo volunteered at a mental
hospital on the outskirts of town a nd,
while her own upbringing had been far from
privileged, it was here that she first witnessed
what she calls "real conditions of poverty.
"It was a crisis place," she says. The inmates
-you could hardly call them patients - were
mostly indigenous people from the mountains,
abandoned by their families and by the state,
pushed into a critically underfunded institution.
The second image arose when Peredo got
a job working for the huge Lima newspaper
La Republica as a correspondent covering the
outlying mountain communities. Here she
saw whole villages of people abandoned by
the state, people living in the most precarious
circumstances, battling systematic and
structural problems of poverty. "But at least
they were together with their families," says
Peredo . "They had one another. There was a
culture of reciprocity and cooperation." There
was, she says, a sense of generosity and shared
purpose that was so strong that people who
didn't have enough food to sell would still
invite her to their table to share a meal.
Peredo switched her academic specialty
from psychology to anthropology and, in an
early research project, started to track aid
money that was being spent by the government
and the National Agrarian Bank. She found the
programs failing badly to reach their targets
- the poor Andean peasants. Instead, most
of that money went in subsidies to wealthy
landowners. When her report found its way to
the desk of the Agrarian bank president, he
invited Peredo - a vivacious, outspoken and
highly critical 22-year-old - to present her
findings to the board of directors.
That's how she would up travelling the
mountains with money for mayors. The bank
recognized that it ha? no capacity to deal
with small landowners - no infrastructure
to manage microcredit. So the board asked
Peredo to find a solution and she came up
with a communal credit system that would be
managed collectively - a system in which the
community leaders would take responsibility
for managing seed money for new ventures.
Her success was such that she was soon
managing programs for international aid
agencies, as well, to the point that, before her
25th birthday, she was designing the delivery of
aid to 17,000 families in the Peruvian province
of Sandia in Puno.
With success, however, comes a certain
amount of fame and Peredo' s friends
JANUARY 2009 • ENTERPRISE
35
were becoming concerned that she was an
increasingly tempting target for the nihilistic
Shining Path. In 1992, by which time the
terrorists were operating with increasing
brazenness within the city of Lima, Peredo
was convinced to flee to Canada - "for a
couple of months."
ethbridge in the winter must be a
hard Canadian landing, but Peredo
took it in stride. When it became
clear that the Peruvian situation
was not improving enough for
her to return, she enrolled in the
University of Calgary where she
resumed studies for her Masters
degree in social anthropology
and began working
part time in the
International
Centre . She was still there a couple of years
later, working as the program coordinator
for the Canadian Federation of the Americas,
when the dean of the business school
(now president of Victoria's Royal Roads
University) Allan Cahoon said something
that transformed Peredo's life: "You are quite
entrepreneurial."
It was one of those insights that seem
obvious after the fact. Peredo had been
working for years with the creativity, the energy
and the high risk-tolerance that we consider
typical of entrepreneurs and she had been
creating or inspiring economic activities or
institutions. But it was still a leap to think
about what she was doing in the context of a
management school curriculum rather than
part of an anthropological study.
But Peredo made the leap and never looked
back. In fact, she seems intent upon dragging
the whole academic community along
with her, writing prodigiously about social
entrepreneurship, about the importance of
diversity in our economies and our business
cultures. After completing her PhD, a business
degree in Environmental Management and
Entrepreneurship, Peredo moved to the
Faculty of Business at the University of Victoria,
where she has been attracting awards and
distinctions ever since.
In 2005, she earned the faculty's own
Research Excellence Award. In 2007, she was
named the Ascendant Scholar by the Western
Academy of Management. Duringthe 2007/08
academic year she was a Visiting Fellow of
36
ENTERPRISE · JANUARY 2009
the Global Poverty Research Group at the
University of Oxford. And the Canadian Bureau
for International Education awarded her its
Internationalization Leadership Award for
2008, "to recognize outstanding leadership in
the internationalization of Canadian education
and/or the international education profession."
All of this acclaim came even as Peredo swam
upstream against the current of corporate
culture. As a rule, "they don't teach co-ops in
business school," she says. They teach a bottomline business model that maximizes profits, but
also maximizes inequality. That model has had
some impressive expressions, but it is difficult
to adapt to different cultures and (we're coming
to understand) it has real wealmesses in terms
of sustainability.
"In a pluralistic society, we need diversity,"
Peredo says. "We need business models that
are embedded in the fabric of society. The
traditional model has moved far away from
society; it's lost touch. We need to push back,
to make room for models that are sustainable
and environmentally embedded in their
communities."
Although thoroughly committed to Canada
these days, Peredo still travels extensively.
She has recently taken an interest in the large
co-op communities in Emilia Romagna in
Italy and in Mondragon, in the Basque country
in Spain . Both offer examples of economic
enterprises that are managed locally and
democratically, places where, in a downturn, ·
everyone takes less money and works fewer
hours . "People say, let's adjust, but let's keep
our jobs."
It's a far cry, Peredo says, from the
corporatist model where "you fire a bunch of
people and then other people get bonuses."
It may also be a model whose time
has come. The current economic crisis overlaid on a global environmental crisis
- has business scholars the world over
reconsidering all of our systems, Peredo
says, adding it's time to look to places like
Mondragon - where the richest may not drive
Ferraris, but the poorest still have jobs, health
care and access to a good education.
It is, Peredo says, "a place where people
have a sense of 'enough.' " Jl
(~OFFEE
BREAI(
TACT
by Yolanda Brooks
Working your way into upper management starts with a strong
belief and trust in yourself. Alterna Savings Credit Union's
Kimberly Ney te lls how it is done.
~-~-~,--·-----·
....... .... ......... ........ .... ... ... ... ...... .. .... ............ ...... ..... ... ...... ...... .......... ... ...... ...... .. ...... .... .... .... ... ..... .
One rung at a time
W H EN
Y 0 U ' R E W 0 R K I N G on the
front desk, a job in the corner office can seem
like an impossible dream . But senior credit union
executive Kimberley Ney is proof that if you have
self-belief, job smarts and a real passion for what
you do, the 'impossible' can come true.
N"ey, the senior vice-president of marketing,
communications and corporate social
responsibility at Alterna Savings Credit Union in
Ontario, started out selling GICs and RSPs at the
side counter of Barrie Community Credit Union 20
years ago. It wasn't the need for status or money
that fuelled her ascendancy but her passion for
the aims and ideals of the credit union system.
"I really do believe in what I am doing," says
Ney, whose job history includes roles as a
payments clerk, teller and assistant accountant.
"When I started out I really wanted to change the
world and help empower as many people as I
could through the credit union system."
Ney's career trajectory can be emulated
by being focused and taking advantage of
opportunities as they arise, says Randall Craig,
author of Personal Balance Sheet - A Practical
Career Planning Guide. "The biggest mistake
people make is they assume someone else will
manage their career for them," says Craig. "By
taking ownership of your personal investment,
you can get to where you want to go."
Which is exactly what Ney did. After a couple
of months at Barrie Community, she approached
the branch manager about the need to raise the
non-existent profile of the organisation.
Despite the fact that her formal marketing
experience consisted only of a few high school
courses, Ney convinced her boss she could
take over the marketing duties that were being
neglected. "I said, 'this credit union is an amazing
story, someone really needs to tell it and I'd like
to take a stab at it,"' recalls Ney.
Admiring her chutzpah and raw potential, the
manager persuaded the board to create the role
of marketing and training coordinator.
Understanding what needed to be done, but
also recognizing the gaps in her knowledge,
ensured that Ney worked her way up the ranks.
There were only four or five full-time marketers
in the credit union system in Ontario at the time
and she got to know them all. She also attended
the right training courses to ensure she acquired
the ski lls needed to handle the job. (The credit
union paid for Ney's courses.)
If, like Ney, you want to kick-start your career,
be proactive . Craig suggests identifying gaps
that you could successfu lly fill, investigate formal
career paths and get hold of job descriptions.
Find out about existing training opportunities and
ask your supervisor or HR department what you
need to do to get on the right courses. Be honest
about your weaknesses and have a strategy for
overcoming them.
Being flexible also helps. After three years
at Barrie Community, Ney was offered a job at
Avestel Credit Union in Hami lton, Ont. She didn't
fancy relocating to a new city and she had the
additional complication of moving her mixedrace daughter into a community where she would
be a rare visible minority.
However, the move was essential to ensure
that she wasn't stuck making a big splash in a
small pond. "Avestel had 12 or 13 branches and it
was important for me to understand how to work
with a larger network in different communities,"
says Ney.
After a couple of years, Toronto beckoned
once again and Ney accepted the position of
marketing manager at Metro Credit Union. It was
here that she made a critical decision that gave
her the credibility she needed to move from
middle management into the higher echelons.
With encouragement from the CEO, Ney signed
up for an online executive MBA program at
Athabasca University in Alberta in 2000.
Between work, school and raising a teen,
Ney's work-life balance skewed. She worked 45
to 50 hours a week, then spent another 15 to 35
hours a week on course work. "It was a pretty
hectic time and I had to give up something so
I didn't have a social life for the first year and a
half," she recalls.
After completing the MBA, Ney became a
pivotal member of the transition team that
oversaw the merger wit h CS CO-OP in 2004. Soon
afterwards she became senior vice-president at
the newly formed Alterna Savings.
Ney worked hard to get to the top, but she
doesn't view her success as a single-handed
triumph. She cites the support of several mentors
throughout her career. A good mentor can clue
you in on the pitfalls and politics you need to
navigate to advance and they can also provide
you with invaluable leverage if you have a nontraditional background, says Ney. "There were a
number of people who took some leaps of faith
with me," she says. "They believed in me even
though on paper I probably wasn't as qualified as
other people."
An alternative is to make contacts outside
your organization by joining a professional
association or volunteer organisation, says Craig .
"These associations offer tons of volunteer roles,
they also allow you to network while providing
the opportunity to develop your professional
education."
If you're ready to convert your entry-level
job into a ste lla r career, get ready for a lot of late
nights and personal sacrifice. Also be prepared to
deal with doubters, says Ney. "There are people
who are going to question your credibility along
the way, particularly if you're lower in the food
chain," she says. "You know what you can do
and you just can't let anyone else sway your self
confidence." g
JANUARY 2009 • ENTERPRISE
39
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FASHION
by Maria Tallarico
If you're a curvy gal or stocky guy, don't hide behind baggy
clothes. You can look as professional and polished as any
skinny-minnie in well-tailored, good quality clothes.
Big Pride
Noth i n g is more
frustrating than
a zipper that won't zip or a top that's too taut.
From size 4 to 24, every figure can use clothing
to accentuate the positives and minimize the
negatives.
noticeable bumps and bulges. Pin-point the
problem area that you would most like to control
and keep that in mind when you shop for clothes.
Make your purchasing decisions based on how
well the clothes fit your least-favourite parts.
Curves Ahead
Skirting the Issue
If black and baggy is your answer to dressing
for work, think again. Black can be slimming,
but like any other fabric the cut and fabric do
matter. Wear a black top that is too tight and
it pulls and becomes sheer (same with leggings
or pantyhose). Prints and colours are perfect
under a suit for men and women of any size. For
prints, opt for something small and understated,
like polka dots (and stay away from huge prints
that can look like curtains). The most important
thing is that the sh irt fits correctly with no
buttons stretching around the bust or stomach .
And although they may feel more
comfortable , loose clothes are not slimming
in the least. Fitted, tailored pieces are more
flattering, more soph isticated and more
professional than ill-fitting, oversized pieces.
The extra fabric adds extra weight to your
frame. However, if your wardrobe is filled with
oversized shirts don't throw them out just yet:
buy a thick belt and cinch your waist, which is a
great way to give definition to your body.
Alternately, pieces that are too tight in the
arms, stomach, backside and thigh area can cause
Slacks are a standard, but a skirt can look
feminine and refined . Go for knee-length (any
shorter is unprofessional, any long er could look
frumpy) of an A-line, natural hem or a flared
hem. To keep from looking boxy, avoid square
polyester pieces with lining as they tend to be
less fluid. Stay away from bold prints as they
could be out of style next season and opt for
basic black, grey, brown or navy.
40
ENTERPRISE· JANUARY 2009
You 're Collared
There's a reason empire waist tops keep
reappearing on the fashion scene. The style is
so flattering: it accentuates the bust, raises the
waistline and conceals the mid-section . You can
buy it in basic black jersey or a colourful silk print.
V- and scoop-neck tops are also a flattering cut
for any size, just be sure to stay away from the
too-low-cut options for the office.
For the gents, look for cotton-spandex blend
turtlenecks that allow for some stretch. The top
should sit comfortably at the shoulders with no
bunching around the armpits and no tug around
the tummy. To cover the mid-section , pair it
with a single-breasted corduroy jacket in navy,
brown or black. It's professional without being
constricted to a suit.
Vests, whether they are wool or part of a suit,
can help you look slim and polished. To avoid a
bulky look, tuck your dress shirt in or opt for a
fitted white T-shirt under a wool vest.
Waist and See
For man and ladie s, trousers shou ld fit perfectly
at the waist. Avoid the dreaded muffin top with
this simple test: be sure you can fit at least
two fingers into your waistband comfortab ly.
Whether you are wearing a fitted dress shirt or
a tucked-in turtleneck, even the slimmest waist
can become a muffin top in too-tight pants.
When shopping for slacks, keep in mind it's
better to have a perfect fit at the waist and have
to hem the length then have the perfect length
and a too-tight waist.
Shopping Plu s
Tearing your hair out trying to find plus sizes?
Although the options are getting better, it can
be a challenge to find clothes that are big and
beautiful. However, cross-border shopping
options are much better for plus-size work wear.
If you don't live near the United States border,
many Canadian and American stores ship online,
including Lane Bryant, Penningtons, Addition
Elle, Old Navy and Banana Republic. ~
COFFE
B FAK
HEALTH
by Amanda Euringer
Learn to set realistic goals - instead of unattainable
resolutions - to achieve real change.
Cold Turkey
For many of us ,January heralds
New You, urges people to pick goals that push
their comfort zone: if you really want to Jose
not only the start of the New Year, but also the
beginning of a series of resolutions to try to
40 pounds, then aim for that, don't pick 10
because that is what you think you can achieve.
cull the fat off our Christmas excesses. Bleary
eyed from too many eggnogs, we view a 'to-do'
"If you have nothing to lose," Magnetti says
from Vancouver, "then chances are you are
list for the New Year while fingering another
Christmas cruller. According to Statistics
going to Jet another priority tal<e over." Tal<e
Canada, more exercise, weight loss, better
the time to imagine what it will be like when
money management and quitting smoking are
you have achieved your goal. Be specific about
the usual resolutions we tackle with gusto all
the benefits that this change will bring so you
can keep yourself motivated. Who are you when
through January, only to drop them by March.
you are managing your money better? Are you
For most of us, going cold turkey is not the meal
happier, less stressed out, do you have more
of champions; we need to make a plan based on
time to enjoy your family? "Changing our habits
slow measurable steps . Here are five key tips to
help you achieve your goals and keep you from
is hard, we need a clear picture of the benefits to
crashing the resolution roller coaster.
help us stay on track," stresses Magnetti.
Break it down into bit-sized pieces. Trying
Plan in advance. According to Health
to lose 40 pounds or quitting your pack-a-day
Canada there are five stages to change:
pre-contemplation (enjoying your crullers
cigarette habit can be daunting. Give yourself a
guilt-free); contemplation (thinking that
time-line and work backwards. Concentrate on
five pounds per month, or two less cigarettes
maybe you have had enough crullers);
a week. Being realistic about what you can
preparation (eyeing up your options for cruller
handle in the short-term will help you reach
disposal); action (feeding· the cruller to the
dog); and maintenance (keeping your hands off · your Jong-term goal.
the rest of the crullers).
Enlist help. According to Magnetti,
Choose something you feel passionate about. when people create systems to hold them
accountable, the rate of success is much
Monica Magnetti, a certified life/business
higher. "Achieving authentic change is difficult
and wellness coach and author of 30 Days to a
42
ENTERPRISE ·JANUARY 2009
and most people need help along the way. " If
you are quitting smoking, you may need a
doctor's support, as well as that of friends,
family, or even an organized group. If you
are trying to lose weight, find someone with
a similar goal and keep each other on track.
"Money is a great motivator," says Magnetti,
so joining a pre-paid gym, hiring a coach, or
paying for a diet program can help you stay on
track. Don't want to pay a professional to help
you? Magnetti suggests giving a friend $1,ooo.
"Tell them that every time you break from your
plan they can donate $ 50 of that money to their
favorite charity. After a few hundred dollars
have disappeared, you will see how motivated
you become. "
Reward yourself. It is important to take the
time to recognize when you have achieved even
a small step towards your ultimate goal. Try to
find new ways to reward yourself that do not
connect with the habit you are trying to breal<.
If you are trying to lose weight, buy yourself a
new pair of trainers; if money management
is your goal, then save up to buy yourself a
small vacation. Ultimately we set New Year's
resolutions because we want to feel better and
live longer, so take the time to enjoy the fruits
of your labours on the journey. E
The Master of
Management Co-operatives and
Credit Union Program
according to Masters
The only Master of Management Co-operatives & Credit Unions
in English from an accredited
university. A distance-learning
program designed to allow you to
study & work.
"It has been a privilege to engage in class discussions
and personal interaction with the other participants.
I will leave this program with a great feeling of hope
for our future, knowing that there are such inspiring
and wise individuals who are so committed to
co-operatives."
Lily Ng,
Class of 2007
Tom Webb, Program Manager
John Chamard, Program Co-ordinator
Master of Management - Co-operatives and Credit Unions
Dep.artment of ~anagement, Saint Mary's University
Robie Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H 3C3
[email protected]
902 496 8170 or 902 863 0678
[email protected] 902-420-5769
www.smu.ca/mmccu
Application deadline May 31 for
Fall. Orientation early August.
Information and Student Profiles:
www.smu.ca/mmccu
~
~SAINT
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u
RSITY
YS
SINCE 1802
One University. One World. Yours.
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DEAR ALI
by:Alisdair Smith
Coping with economic meltdown-don't get
caught up in the panic!
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Dear Ali:
times that neighbours look out for neighbours,
As a credit union employee, how are we
expected to react to predictions of economic
Armageddon? What do we say to members,
who are wondering if their money is safe and
if the credit union is liquid and stable? How
do we cope with our own worry over our own
investments?
pooling resources and work together for the
Dazed and Confused.
Have a conversation with your partner or
spouse about the financial situation of your
health of th e community and themselves
household. She or he may be stressed out as well
and families. Keep in mind that we are in this
and being transparent about what fears the two
together and that's what credit unions are all
of you have will clear the air and be the first step
about. We , above all other financial institutions
to working together during these tough times. If
in Canada, are the safe bet financially and for
you're single, it may help to find a confidante, a
community health in a recession.
close friend with whom you can have the same
Pay down your own consumer debt, as much
conversation and perhaps discover opportunities
as possible get rid of your credit card debt. In
to find solutions: can you car pool? Can you go
for walks together, rather than coffee or dinner
Dear DC:
fact, close out all but the most important cards
The news these days is filled with doom and gloom
you have. And start right now making decisions
out? Can you rent a single movie together, rather
as markets plummet one day, recover the next
not to spend on anything you don't ne ed. Now
than renting two individually?
and plummet more the fol lowing day. We hear
is not the time for the new big screen TV, nor
La stly, pay attention to the elders among
the phrases: recession , the Depression and credit
those 'must have' shoes, especially on credit!
us; they know what happens in a rece ssion and
crunch, then are faced with nervous colleagues
Reconsider how you spend your family time.
they may have some good advice. And they will
and members asking about safety and security. To
Would a walk on Saturday evening around the
be the first to tell you that this is part of a cycle
be frank, we are in a difficult time economically
neighbourhood be more of an opportunity to
and there will be a boom again one day. It is not
and there will be some pain and discomfort for
get connected with th e kids than going to
the end of the world, it is merely the end of an
many of us in the workplace and at home. That
dinner at McDonalds? Yes, they might sq uawk
economic cycle. And you can take that to the
said, I have some suggestions about how to cope.
the first couple of times, but they'll soon enjoy
bank, er, credit union!
It is out of economic downturn that credit
unions came into their own. It is during these
44
ENTERPRISE· JANUARY 2009
having time with you too. And a walk is a lot less
expensive than a dinner out!
!'.
Have a question for Dear Ali?
Email your confidential inquiries to [email protected].
Put our knowledge
to work for you
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It's a digital world, baby.
Giving your marketing message some oomph is as easy as L-C-D.
By Diane Luckow
IN SEVERAL 0 F North Shore Credit Union's branches
in North Vancouver, British Columbia, you'll find large plasma
screens depicting attractive videos of the great outdoors, superimposed with the financial institution's branding messages.
At Westminster Savings Credit Union in New Westminster,
you'll find large liquid crystal display (LCD) screens featuring
product information alternating with footage from live traffic
cams around BC's Lower Mainland.
Digital signage technology hasn't been around very long,
but credit unions are beginning to embrace its marketing
advantages and cost efficiencies. Even Prosperity ONE Credit
Union, with just four branches in southcentral Ontario, is
trying it out.
Westminster Savings was spending $125,000 a year on print
posters and other display materials. Now, it spends $100,000
annually to run three or four digital signs in each of 10
branches using a web-based system from Immediate Images.
"It has helped us to sell a lot more product," says Wayne
McKay, Westminster Savings's vice-president, special projects.
"Members are reminded to get travellers ' cheques or take out
term deposits before a rate drop. All managers have told us it
helps sell more products."
Catharine Downs, assistant vice-president of marketing.at
North Shore, says, "We're a video culture and I think the days
where financial institutions had racks of brochures sitting at
the door are long gone."
Digital signage at North Shore has become part of an overall
integrated communications plan that includes a limited set of
brochures and limited use of posters as part of the branches'
'dressing.' Screen messages vary depending on where they're
located in the branch: brand-related messages run near
member seating while campaign promotions, tips, tricks and
46
ENTERPRISE · JA NUARY 2009
advice runs on screens behind the teller area. ATM screens
carry short, focused product messages.
Tania Goodine, vice-president, brand with Libro Credit
Union in southwestern Ontario, says she's found big marketing
and sales advantages in the year since piloting digital signage
in several of the credit union's 15 branches. Goodine likes the
ability to customize messages for individual branches and to
deliver messages that she would never have considered putting
into print because of costs and time lags.
Digital signage, she says, "makes communications more
personal and relevant in each branch.'' What's more, Goodine
finds that the system's engaging images often encourage
members to ask staff more questions, which in turn gets staff
talking about products and services far more frequently than
happened with posters. "Definitely the staff feel a lot more
engaged in the messages being displayed and if they're more
engaged, then they're more excited about selling," she says.
Shaun Mavronicolas, a principal with BC-based 2C Visual
Communications, which provides digital signage services to
North Shore, sees great possibilities for using the medium
in credit unions but says, "the biggest problem with digital
signage is that it's being used like a billboard ad. It can be so
much more. "
Mavronicolas would like to see credit unions use some of
the technology's interactive options. For example, proximity
detectors could sense a member picking up a retirement
brochure from a nearby stand, triggering the digital technology
to initiate a screen message about retirement services.
Ideas like this aren't pie in the sky, Mavronicolas says.
They're possible and practical to use right now, offering a way
to find out what interests members and then delivering that
information. !