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Conference 7.286::dcu

Title:DCU
Notice:1996 BoD Election results in 1004
Moderator:CPEEDY::BRADLEY
Created:Sat Feb 07 1987
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1041
Total number of notes:18759

946.0. "Mail to/from the BOD" by NPSS::NPSS::BADGER (Can DO!) Thu Aug 17 1995 09:12

    
    prompted by the minutes of the last meeting, I sent the following
    letter to the members of the BOD:
    It was nice to hear from the directors that responded, it clears up
    issues in my mind.  I'll post any responce I get back.
    ------------------------
    
    
From:	NPSS::BADGER "OK, Let's do it!  16-Aug-1995 1334" 16-AUG-1995 13:56:26.92
To:	@BOD
CC:	BADGER
Subj:	name change?  in the works

Greetings BOD,
Given that minutes of meetings, nearly two months old, is the only way we can
guess the direction of the credit union, I find it alarming that major shifts
can occur in the credit union with no polling or feedback of members.
While the board is elected to represent the members, those elected should 
attempt to judge what the members would like.  Within hours, you can 
send information to a large percent of members.
I would like to charge you with attempting to find a way for open, honest,
TIMELY communications.  I realize this is an expanded view of the plank
you might have campaigned on.

Of particular concern in June 26th's meeting minutes [made available today]
are two items, 1. a possible name change for DCU, which probably ties into
2: expanded membership field.

I realize Digital has reduce, maybe in half, and that resources/memberships
in DCU are reduced.  I do not believe that it is in our best interest to 
solicit large and varied fields to join with us.  One of the benefits of
being in a pool with other Digital employees [past, present] is a reduced
default ratio on loans.  And a fellowship.
Yes, perhaps DCU will have to reduce in size to match Digital's reduction.
This could upset someone's kingdom and empire building, but it would enable
DCU to retain it's original charter.

We should focus on being leaner and meaner.  Someone, anyone should investigate
why the branch [at LKG] has four tellers on some days and no lines, while
other days it can have a line around the lobby with only one teller in the
branch.  It appears as though someone is incapable of planning.
Had it ever occurred that a little sign at the branch directing people to the
ATM in the same building would be a good idea.  A lot of people are unawhere
that there is an ATM in LKG.  As a matter of fact, the ATM should be near
the branch!

We should focus on gaining more Digital employees as members of the credit
union.  If you can't even attract Digital employees, what makes you believe
you can attract employees at another organization?

We are still NOT competitive.  My kids can still purchase a $500 CD at
most banks, while they can't afford a DCU CD.  WHY?  Who is addressing this
problem?  Lets focus on why we can't turn all the employees in the GMA
into complete DCU members.

In summary,

- more timely communications needed,
- test some far out ideas before implementing
- Don't expand our field of membership
- Don't change the name!
- work/plan on gaining more share of Digital Employees as owners.



regards,

ed badger
[if you choose to respond to me, please indicate if it can be posting in
the notesfile, this is a current topic of discussion]
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name
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946.1from Dave GarrodNPSS::NPSS::BADGERCan DO!Thu Aug 17 1995 09:12132
From:	US1RMC::"[email protected]" 16-AUG-1995 23:42:21.89
To:	npss::badger
CC:	[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Subj:	Re: name change? in the works

Ed,

Regarding your mail message.

As far as timely communication is concerned I agree it would be better for
board minutes to be posted sooner. They were certainly particularly late
this month. The reason is that the person who prepares them is in the
midst of handing off the task to another individual in the DCU administration
and that caused a delay. In any case the earliest they will ever get posted
is about a week after the board meeting in which the minutes are approved.
So in general you should expect a 5 week delay. I will try and ensure
in the future that they don't get delayed beyond this. It would not be
practicable for the board to approve the minutes outside of a board meeting.
Very often we make corrections to the minutes at the subsequent board
meeting before approving them as an accurate record.

Re:

>Of particular concern in June 26th's meeting minutes [made available today]
>are two items, 1. a possible name change for DCU, which probably ties into
>2: expanded membership field.

Let me deal with 2) first. As you can see from the minutes we are most
definitely putting in place the processes to allow other groups of people to
join DCU. The reason for this is diversification and spreading of risk. You
can be
assured that before any Secect Employee Group (SEP) will be admitted to
membership careful evalation will take place of the benefits/risks.

As for 1). This is merely a discussion topic at present to be looked at in
the context of long range planning. Certainly no decision has been made
to go down the path of changing the name. But it is only responsible that
we look at it as one possible option for the long term.

Re:

>One of the benefits of
>being in a pool with other Digital employees [past, present] is a reduced
>default ratio on loans.

You can be assured that we will not go after groups that would greatly
increase our excellent default rate.

An interesting fact is that our current membership is made up of about
1/3 current DEC employees, 1/3 ex DEC employees and 1/3 family of the
first two groups. So as you can see about 1/2 of our membership already
does not have a current direct tie to DEC.

Re:

>Someone, anyone should investigate
>why the branch [at LKG] has four tellers on some days and no lines, while
>other days it can have a line around the lobby with only one teller in the
>branch.

Next time this happens I suggest you ask the branch manager directly.
Maybe there is a good reason, maybe not. I'm sure she would be open to
suggestions.

Re:

>A lot of people are unawhere
>that there is an ATM in LKG.  As a matter of fact, the ATM should be near
>the branch!

There is copiuos literature telling people where ATMs are. Also the recent
direct
mail has emphasized the convenience of ATMs.

Re:

>We should focus on gaining more Digital employees as members of the credit
>union.  If you can't even attract Digital employees, what makes you believe
>you can attract employees at another organization?

We are very intent on getting more Digital Employees to be members. In fact
it is a major focus of the DCU at the moment to attract new members and
encourage existing members to utilize the services more. I feel we are
heading in the right direction here. The facts also bare this out. In June we
actually
had an INCREASE in the number of members. This is the first month that has
happened in years. Turning this ship doesn't happen overnight. But I hope you
agree with me that we have definitely got it sailing in a different direction
from
the previous era of "Relationship Banking" and focus on making "profit" out
of members.

Re:

>We are still NOT competitive.  My kids can still purchase a $500 CD at
>most banks, while they can't afford a DCU CD.  WHY?  Who is addressing this
>problem?

At this very moment my understanding is that management is working on
a program to attract kids and younger members. The details are not set yet
but I'm sure this is the sort of thing that will be addressed. With any
institution you are going to find some things that can be beaten elsewhere.
Our goal is to make it so that the ENTIRE package is better than anywhere.
This of course means that individual pieces may not be.

Re:

>   Lets focus on why we can't turn all the employees in the GMA
>into complete DCU members.

As I said this is in progress.

Re:

>[if you choose to respond to me, please indicate if it can be posting in
>the notesfile, this is a current topic of discussion]

Yes you are welcome to share this.

Dave


% ====== Internet headers and postmarks (see DECWRL::GATEWAY.DOC) ======
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% Date: Wed, 16 Aug 1995 23:20:58 -0400
% From: [email protected]
% Message-Id: <[email protected]>
% To: npss::badger
% Cc: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
% Subject: Re: name change? in the works
946.2from Chris GillettNPSS::NPSS::BADGERCan DO!Thu Aug 17 1995 09:13337
From:	US1RMC::"[email protected]" 17-AUG-1995 01:08:43.51
To:	npss::badger
CC:	[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], cadsys::ritchie
Subj:	Re: name change? in the works

Hi Ed:

You may post this note, in full and unedited in the DCU conference if you
would like, under the proviso that you first post the entire text of your
note and make this one of the replies to your comments.  It's important 
that the readers see your comments as well as mine.

I wrote this late at night, so I apologize apriori for any misspellings,
grammatical weirdness, etc.  All the usual disclaimers apply:  these 
are my opinions as an individual DCu Director.  I speak for myself, and
not for the entire Board or DCU management.  

You wrote:
> Given that minutes of meetings, nearly two months old, is the only way
> we can guess the direction of the credit union, I find it alarming that
> major shifts can occur in the credit union with no polling or feedback
> of members.

One does not have to guess at the direction of the credit union.  I
think it's fairly clear by DCU's actions what the direction is. 
However, if people are concerned about the direction, then *please*
contact members of the Board (like you have) and express those concerns
so that we may respond.

Minutes of meetings are released as soon as the Board approves them. 
Approval of minutes for the previous month is always the first order of
business at the current month's meeting.  There are almost always
corrections required.  Our recording secretary does a marvelous job of
documenting the meetings, but a lot happens and sometimes things get
noted incorrectly and need to be revised.  When the Board has approved
the minutes, they are drafted for release, redacted as necessary (like
when the Board is acting on personnel matters, matters of
attorney/client privilege, or acting on matters where the privacy of a
particular member must be protected).  After that, they are released. 
It does take time, and we have taken steps to streamline the process. 

You wrote:
> I would like to charge you with attempting to find a way for open,
> honest, TIMELY communications.  I realize this is an expanded view
> of the plank you might have campaigned on.

Charged?  We've been working to improve communications with the
membership at all levels within the credit union.  A prime example of
this was the Chairman's letter.  This letter, sent to all members,
described in detail the direction that many on the Board wanted to point
DCU.  Another example are the feedback "How are we doing?" cards in the
branches.  The feedback from these cards goes directly to the CEO, is
collected and tabulated, and fed back directly to all employees and
members of the Board.  It helps management to know what things are
important to the membership, and it helps the Board better understand
membership sentiment.  All comments are fed back - the good, the bad,
and the ugly.  If somebody comments about a particular employee,
everyone at DCU sees it whether it's a good comment or a bad comment. 
This program, instigated by our new CEO, has obvious quality improvement
and communication benefits. 

Additionally, DCU has an electronic presence on the World Wide Web.
The URL is http://www.dcu.com .  While this program is still in its
infancy, I believe it will expand in the future and be an additional
source of information for members.  Right now you can obtain information
about DCU's rates and current programs, and you can send email to DCU
management. 

Note too that the entire Board of Directors is available electronically 
(I'm certain that somewhere somebody has posted a list of addresses).  
Write to us, give us your comments, criticisms etc.  We are listening. 
I would point out though that the majority of us cannot read DCU notes
or participate actively.  Please send us email.

Finally, note that comments from individual Director's have been
appearing in DCU's newsletters.  While space is restricted there, we've
been able to talk about our vision for DCU.

You wrote:
> Of particular conern in June 26th's meeting minutes [made available
> today] are two items, 1. a possible name change for DCU, which probably
> ties into 2: expanded membership field.
>
> I realize Digital has reduce [sic], maybe in half, and that
> resources/memberships in DCU are reduced.  I do not believe it is in our
> best interest to solicit large and varied fields to join with us.  One
> of the benefits of being in a pool with other Digital employees [past,
> present] is a reduced default ratio on loans.  And a fellowship.
> Yes, perhaps DCU will have to reduce in size to match Digital's
> reduction.  This could upset someone's kingdom and empire building, but
> it would enable DCU to retain it's original charter.

I fear that you are making some serious leaps to unfounded conclusions
here, Ed.  First, let me address the comment about soliciting large and
varied fields to join with us.

DCU has been expanding its field of membership by a process call SEG
Expansion.  SEG is an abbreviation for Select Employee Group and is a
term that the NCUA uses to describe a group of employees operating under
a common bond.  All the employees who work for Digital would be
considered the "Digital employees SEG."  

Our initial expansions have been small, and are consistent with the
direction that our sponsor has been going.  An excellent example is the
recent SEG expansion in which we have taken into our field
of membership the employees of Quantum in areas where Quantum was
acquiring facilities from Digital, and taking Digital employees into the
Quantum employee base.  DCU had and continues to maintain a presence in
these facilities and we do business with employees of Quantum who were
already members of DCU, or who want to join.  This makes good sense to
me.  First, we were already there serving many people.  Second, Quantum
has a relationship with the sponsor via their purchase.  

Note that SEG expansion is a highly regulated undertaking which requires
approval from the National Credit Union Administration.  With many
credit unions engaged in Field of Membership (FOM) disputes, NCUA is
somewhat reluctant to allow any credit union to take in large and
unrelated groups.  Further, it is not the intention of DCU to take on
large groups at this time, and to the best of my knowledge is not part
of our overall strategic plan.

I don't believe that SEG expansion, in general, will have a negative
impact on DCU in terms of loan default percentages.  Additional members,
be they from SEG expansion or from within-FOM, bring additional money to
DCU that we can turn into loans, and additional demands for loans.  Our
default rate is absolutely fantastic - in fact I've heard arguments that
it's too low (the argument is that we're being too restrictive with our
credit granting...I tend to reject this argument).  Taking on additional
members is good for the business - it allows us to do more for our
members and to help more members with financial needs.  Like our
sponsor, DCU has seen a shrinking membership base.  That trend is
starting to turn, due to a number of factors including SEG expansion,
but also due to current Digital employees and families joining.  We're 
not seeking to grow for the sake of getting bigger, but rather with an 
objective of being able to do more.

I think your remarks about upsetting kingdoms and empires is unfounded. 
First, just because we are doing some SEG expansion does not mean that
we are backing away from our commitment to the overwhelmingly large
percentage of our membership:  current and former employees of Digital
Equipment Corporation and its subsidiaries.  In fact, DCU just recently
completed a membership drive, with cooperation from Digital, during
which we had a presence in Digital facilities and talked directly with
current members about their needs and with potential new members about
the benefits of membership with DCU.  Further, we have been able to
relax our eligibility requirements so that people within a member's
extended family are eligible for membership. 

Second, when the Board was hiring our new CEO we were very careful to
steer away from the empire-building, fast-tracking, spotlight-seeking
candidates and focused more on "stick to the knitting" candidates.  We
were interested in a CEO who would grow or stabilize the credit union in
a responsible manner, who was accepting of the majority board position
on a number of issues (pricing strategies, the role of members, etc),
who would empower DCU employees and management to improve service. 
Finally, we wanted somebody who was interested in working at DCU for the
sake of improving the credit union.  We didn't want a Mister Fixit or
somebody who was seeking the national spotlight within the credit union
industry.  

We found that CEO in Carlo Cestra.   I had the privilege of chairing the
search committee, and in that role I spent many hours talking with
Carlo.  Based on those discussions, and based on his track record with
AT&T Employees Credit Union, I am positive that this is someone who is
most happy when he is at the office, working with his staff, and
employing his substantial skills and creative energies to improving DCU.
Carlo spent over a decade at AT&T in an industry where CEO turnover is
much higher.  He is not someone who wants to build an empire, or
establish a kingdom.  Carlo's vision is "OFI - Only Financial
Institution" where a member is so satisfied with DCU that DCU is the
only financial institution that individual needs or uses.  The Board
shares that view, the management team shares that view, the employees
share that view.  And it is a vision I hope we see someday at DCU.

You wrote:
> We should focus on being leaner and meaner.  Someone, anyone should
> investigate why the branch [at LKG] has four tellers on some days
> and no line, while other days it can have a line around the lobby
> with only one teller in the branch.  It appears as though someone
> is incapable of planning.  

Ed, problems you've seen at LKG are clearly operational issues and should
be addressed to DCU's management.  There are a number of ways to do 
that - writing to the Board is one way, filling out a "How are we doing?"
card in another way.  We do listen, and we do convey member concerns to
management both in our informal conversations with management and during
Board meetings.   A third way to convey issues like this is to use the
Web page and send mail to DCU management.

It's important for the Board to remain the strategic direction-setting
body within DCU and for the Board not to become 7 wanna-be CEOs barging
all over DCU trying to give orders.  The management team and CEO are
professional credit unionists, and we compensate them for their
expertise.  The only time the Board should be diving in to operational
issues is in rare circumstances - like when we made significant changes
to DCU's pricing based on what the membership was saying.

We have a fantastic management team that was largely hand-selected by the
Board
of Directors after the old management team left.  We have a gifted CEO, hired
by this Board who believes in our direction.  They will listen if you send
comments to them and let them know what's happening.  

With all that said, DCU is striving to become leaner and meaner.  During
the past year the F&I committee has been holding management's feet to
the fire about DCU's expense ratio.  This will continue into next year's
budget.  We care very deeply about reducing expenses, doing more with
less, as long as we can do that without sacrificing quality of service
to our members.  We are positive to budget so far on the expense side
this year, and I hope that this favorable trend continues.

You wrote:
> We should focus on gaining more Digital employees as members of the
> credit union.  If you can't even attract Digital employees, what makes
> you believe you can attract employees at another organization?

I refer you back to my earlier comments about our membership drive and
our recent moves to make it easier for family members to join DCU.  I
think these steps demonstrate clearly that we (a) value our current
members, many of whom are Digital employees and their families, and (b)
we want more Digital employees to join.

You wrote:
> We are still NOT competitive.  My kids can still purchase a $500 CD at
> most banks, while they can't afford a DCU CD.  WHY? Who is addressing
> this problem?  Lets focus on why we can't turn all the employees in the
> GMA into complete DCU members.

Ed, management is currently working on plans designed specifically to
encourage children of members to join DCU and participate actively. 
Management recognizes that kids today are the homeowners of 20 years
from now, and we are taking steps to foster that relationship.  Stay
tuned for more details.

I would disagree with your assesment of our competitiveness.  There are
always opportunities for DCU, and both management and Board continue to
look for them.  On the other hand, we've done a lot as a team over the
past year to make DCU more competitive:

     (1) Eliminated checking account fees
     (2) Reduced the cost of accessing DCU via "foreign" ATMs
     (3) Eliminated fees for using your DCU debit card
     (4) Eliminated annual fees on DCU Visa Cards.

According to the Federal Reserve, banks took in $15.3 billion in service
charges last year, up 134% since 1984.  According to one study, the
average consumer pays $162 a year in bank charges.  Consumer backlash
against these practices is increasing, as is regulator's scrutiny of
these practices.  DCU is out there ahead of the competition eliminating
fees that we see an inhibitors to business.  And I think we're ahead of 
the credit union industry in paring "non-business-related revenue" (fees
which might someday be taxed if Congress eliminates the tax-exempt
status from credit unions).

     (5) More competitive rates on savings and CDs.

DCU made a series of rate adjustments early this year to reflect changing
economic conditions, and we continue to monitor our rates for
opportunities.  Here are a few numbers to consider:

Savings:
  		 	National Average		DCU Rate Hotline
		       	    6/21/95			   8/16/95

Money Market Accts	    2.87%   			   4.02%
Six Month CDs		    4.97%			   5.6%
One Year CDs		    5.25%			   6.05%
Five Year CDs		    5.73%			   6.40% (60 month)


Credit Cards:
			Bank Rate Monitor		DCU Rate Hotline
			Nat'l Average 6/21/95		   8/16/95

Standard Card		     18.17%			   11.9% or 13.9%*
"Gold Card"		     17.06%			   11.9% or 13.9%*

* 11.9% DCU rate applies to balances > $2,500
  13.9% DCU rate applies to balances < $2,500


Mortgage Rates:		
			HSH Associates			DCU Rate Hotline
			Nat'l Average 6/16/95		   8/16/95

30 Year Fixed:		     7.82%			7.125% - 8.875%

15 Year Fixed		     7.36%			7.25% - 8.625%

One Year Adjustable	     5.98%			5.50% - 7.875%

Mortgage rate ranges for DCU are low and high rates based on progam 
selected and number of points paid.

I took this information from DCU's rate information while writing this,
and believe it to be accurate.  Contact DCU at 1-800-328-8797 to get the
numbers for yourself.

It's clear that we have more work to do, but I think that we are
competitive now, and that DCU management and Board is more aware now of
our need to be competitive than ever before.

You wrote:
> In summary,
> 
> - more timely communications needed,
> - test some far out ideas before implementing
> - Don't expand our field of membership
> - Don't change the name!
> - work/plan on gaining more share of Digital Employees as owners.

Now that you've made it nearly to the end of this rather lengthy
response, I hope that some things that were perhaps unclear are
clarified for you.  I hope that this email addresses your concerns. 
Please let me know if it hasn't.  I'm not sure about your comments
concerning testing "far out ideas."  Presently, I'm not aware of any
"far out" ideas under consideration.  

Thanks for the note and concerns, Ed!  Always a pleasure to hear from you.

Regards,

   Chris Gillett
   [email protected]



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% Date: Thu, 17 Aug 1995 00:43:28 -0400
% From: [email protected]
% Message-Id: <[email protected]>
% To: npss::badger
% Cc: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], cadsys::ritchi
% Subject: Re: name change? in the works
946.3un-unamed directorNPSS::NPSS::BADGERCan DO!Thu Aug 17 1995 09:144
    I received a third responce from a junior director that did not
    give me permission to post.  The director reminded me of the
    make-up of the bod  employees of DEC vs Non-employees.  3-4.
    
946.4rep from Elaine RitchieNPSS::NPSS::BADGERCan DO!Thu Aug 17 1995 13:3054
From:	CADSYS::RITCHIE "Elaine Kokernak Ritchie, 225-4199, HLO2-2 Pole E11  17-Aug-1995 1123 -0400" 17-AUG-1995 11:25:12.40
To:	NPSS::BADGER
CC:	RITCHIE
Subj:	RE: name change?  in the works

Hi, Ed -

Gee, go off-site for the day, and the notes file gets active!  Thanks for your
mail.  It seems that in my absence, several of the directors have already
responded to your mail.  I'd like to comment on just a few things.  These are my
feelings as an individual director, and not necessarily of the Board as a whole.

Communication is important, and I agree that DCU can be doing better.  We will
certainly be discussing this during the Strategic Planning Conference next
month, including a plan for publishing the goals we come up with.

>> We are still NOT competitive.  My kids can still purchase a $500 CD at most
>> banks, while they can't afford a DCU CD.  WHY?  Who is addressing this 
>> problem?  Lets focus on why we can't turn all the employees in the GMA into
>> complete DCU members.

I beg to differ with this.  I think DCU is tops in almost every area.  I did
say "almost", and those are things that are being worked on.  The one, single,
driving goal at DCU is to make this credit union so attractive that you will 
use it for _ALL_ your business.

One excellent way to point out things which are keeping you from moving your
business to DCU is the "How are we doing?" surveys that are in each branch, and
also on-line through the DCU Web page (http://www.dcu.com/).  The very first
question asks what DCU must do to be your first choice for financial services.
This is the place to put short direct messages to DCU.  In your example, you
could say "Minimum balances for CD's of $1000 are too high.  If the minimum were
$500, I could move my children's CD's to DCU."  I've actually filled one of
these out myself.

There is also a place to say what you think DCU is doing well.

The board sees copies of these survey responses.  To be honest, many are
completed by members who already use DCU exclusively, and are very happy.  This
is good to know, but comments like yours are what will help us make DCU better
still.

DCU is addressing many of your concerns.  I think you'll agree that a lot of
improvements have been made in the past few months.  And, since communication
is a two-way street, it is good to receive your input.  I encourage anyone who
has a reason to not be happy with DCU to do what you have done: contact the
Information Center, ask at your branch, fill out a survey, send e-mail to DCU,
or contact some of the Board members.

Thanks for your continued involvement.

Elaine

p.s. you can post this in the notes file.
946.5ROWLET::AINSLEYLess than 150kts is TOO slow!Tue Sep 26 1995 09:19259
From:	US2RMC::"[email protected]" 25-SEP-1995 12:03:27.71
To:	rowlet::ainsley
CC:	npss::badger
Subj:	Please post this in the appropriate note.


Hi Bob,

Could you please post this response to Ed Badger in the DCU notes
conference?  In speaking with Elaine Ritchie at our recent planning
conference, it came out that my response to Ed had not been posted
with other Directors' responses.  I didn't get any indication of a trans-
mission failure to Ed so I don't know what may have gone wrong.

Thanks,
Phil


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Subj:	RE: name change? in the works
Date:	95-08-26 21:17:24 EDT
From:	Gransewicz
To:	[email protected]


>Greetings BOD,

   Greetings to you Ed.

>Given that minutes of meetings, nearly two months old, is the only way we
can
>guess the direction of the credit union, I find it alarming that major
shifts
>can occur in the credit union with no polling or feedback of members.

   I disagree that you, or any one else, need to "guess the direction of
   the credit union".  If you have a question or concern, all Directors
   are reachable via e-mail.

   As elected Directors, it is our responsibility to determine the future
   direction of DCU.  We are constantly evaluating DCU's priorities and
   direction with our goal being a better credit union for ALL members.
   We use member feedback (such as yours), formal surveys, response cards,
   as well as the information we receive concerning industry trends.  But
   as Carlo is so fond of saying, the best judgement is in how many
   members use DCU!  And one of our primary goals is to increase that
   number.

>While the board is elected to represent the members, those elected should 
>attempt to judge what the members would like.  Within hours, you can 
>send information to a large percent of members.

   I do not believe the last sentence is neither accurate, nor a prudent
   thing to do.  In the future, this capability may exist, without
interfering
   with a member at work but right now it is not possible.  

>I would like to charge you with attempting to find a way for open, honest,
>TIMELY communications.  I realize this is an expanded view of the plank
>you might have campaigned on.

   I assume you are referring to the lastest posting on minutes with you
   statements on timeliness.  If that is correct then I would like to detail
   the process for you so that you can see that they were timely.

		June Board Meeting June 26, 1995
		Minutes Approved   July 24, 1995  (July Board Meeting)
		Minutes Sent       Aug. 15, 1995
		Minutes Posted     Aug. 16, 1995

   In the BEST situation, it may be 6-7 weeks before minutes are posted
   because Board meetings occur once a month and there may be 4-5 weeks
   between meetings.  After they are approved, they must then be amended
   and typed up in their final approved form.  Then Dave will get them
   and send them to Bob for posting.  It would be safe to assume that there
   will be times when people have their real jobs to attend to, vacations,
   etc. and the connections will not always be made with the optimal speed.
   I do not see the times above to be out of the realm of timeliness given
   what must occur.

>Of particular concern in June 26th's meeting minutes [made available today]
>are two items, 1. a possible name change for DCU, which probably ties into
>2: expanded membership field.
>
>I realize Digital has reduce, maybe in half, and that resources/memberships
>in DCU are reduced.  I do not believe that it is in our best interest to 
>solicit large and varied fields to join with us.  One of the benefits of
>being in a pool with other Digital employees [past, present] is a reduced
>default ratio on loans.  And a fellowship.
>Yes, perhaps DCU will have to reduce in size to match Digital's reduction.
>This could upset someone's kingdom and empire building, but it would enable
>DCU to retain it's original charter.

   We have, for several years, expanded the field of membership where it
   made sense for DCU and its members.  These have for the most part been
   small groups, or "new" companies as a result of a sale of a portion of
   Digital's business (ie. Quantum).

   Any major addition would require NCUA approval as well as extensive
   evaluation by DCU to make sure it makes sense for everybody concerned.
   Our current membership can be roughly divided into 3 general categories;
   current Digital employees, former Digital employees, and family members.
   Currently each category is about the same.  Our charter is to serve our
   membership, whoever they may be.  Even as a large number of people
   found themselves with a different employer, our default rates remained
   low.  The low default rate has more to do with the people than the
   employer.

   You propose we consider a "leaner and meaner" DCU?  If membership
   continues to decline (which it is NOT for the first time in many years,
   could we be doing something RIGHT?) DCU could conceivably not be able
   to offer certain products and services.  I am sure you would agree, that
   would NOT be to everyones advantage.  There are many advantages to size
   and with many banks getting larger and larger, we must be ready and able
   to compete with them, as well as other credit unions.

   "Leaner and meaner" is OK if you're referring to cost containment and
   aggressive competition for members business, but it is not an advantage
   when it comes to the number of members we should have.  There is strength
   in numbers as well as an advantage in diversifying our membership makeup.
   Number one rule of business and investment, never put all your eggs in
   one basket.

>We should focus on being leaner and meaner.  Someone, anyone should
investigate
>why the branch [at LKG] has four tellers on some days and no lines, while
>other days it can have a line around the lobby with only one teller in the
>branch.  It appears as though someone is incapable of planning.

   Since you are there, why don't you simply ask?  What days were these?
   What time of the day?  There may be good answers to your questions.
   If you're not satisfied with the answers, then submit a written complaint
   to DCU via a response card so that the situation can be evaluated.  Those
   response cards go to Carlo, as well as senior management and the Board.

>Had it ever occurred that a little sign at the branch directing people to
the
>ATM in the same building would be a good idea.  A lot of people are unawhere
>that there is an ATM in LKG.  As a matter of fact, the ATM should be near
>the branch!

   Good idea.  Did you suggest it to the people behind the window?  What was
   their response?

   As for the ATM location, isn't the door where the ATM is located
considered
   the after hours entry to the building?  Members can use the ATM after
hours
   since the guard desk is always manned.  If it were only near the branch,
then
   access would eliminated.  If space permits, an ATM near the branch may be
   a possibility.  But right now there are many places without one ATM and
   we're trying to get ATMs installed in these locations.

>We should focus on gaining more Digital employees as members of the credit
>union.  If you can't even attract Digital employees, what makes you believe
>you can attract employees at another organization?

   I agree and we are actively doing this.  We've had membership drives and
   will continue to try and increase membership of Digital employees as well
   as eligible family members.  But why not increase membership in other ways
   if it makes sense to do it?  And I would STRONGLY DISAGREE that we can't
   attract Digital employees to be members.  We have made many changes and
   improvements that have resulted in an INCREASE in membership for the first
   time in as long as I can remember.  And believe me, there are more changes
   and improvements in the pipeline.  Of course some members may find some
   new products or services extremely helpful, while others might have a
   different opinion (such as the check card, which has been a success by all
   measurements).  With over 66,000 members, that is to be expected.  One
shoe
   does not fit all.  

>We are still NOT competitive.  My kids can still purchase a $500 CD at
>most banks, while they can't afford a DCU CD.  WHY?  Who is addressing this
>problem?  Lets focus on why we can't turn all the employees in the GMA
>into complete DCU members.

   The availability of $500 CDs is a gauge of competitiveness?  I could tell
   you that we are competitive because we attracted millions of dollars in
CDs
   earlier this year.  Or that we are competitive because nearly 1,000
members
   took out close to $11,000,000 in car loans during the June promotion.
   I am not sure that if we polled the membership, that your definition of
   competitiveness would be the one they would choose.

   On the "kids front", look for changes down the road.  Carlo is a very
strong
   believer in this area and people are currently working on it.  Since this
   area has been a concern of yours over the years, I would ask that you help
   us out by putting your thoughts down on paper and sending them in for
   consideration.


>In summary,
>
>- more timely communications needed,
>- test some far out ideas before implementing
>- Don't expand our field of membership
>- Don't change the name!
>- work/plan on gaining more share of Digital Employees as owners.

   In summary,

   I believe we are timely communicating Board Minutes,
   We are not implementing "some far out ideas",
   Expanding our field of membership is prudent and inevitable,
   No name change is underway,
   We are constantly working/planning on increasing Digital employee
participation.

>regards,
>
>ed badger
>[if you choose to respond to me, please indicate if it can be posting in
>the notesfile, this is a current topic of discussion]

   Yes Ed, please do post this and thanks for asking AHEAD of time on this
   one.  Since you value open and honest communication, I'd like to say that
   I didn't think it was fair of you to engage in a private mail discussion
   and then ask for public posting, or post your summarization of "sit on
it". 
   I would like to add the last few lines in my last message to you which I
believe
   more accurately summarizes my position concerning your message:

         "Reasonable expectations and needs can be worked and negotiated
where
          everybody will benefit.  But the key word here is reasonable.  BOTH
          parties must be willing to be reasonable.  We're working on the DCU
          side.  You need to work on your side."

   If I may, I'd also like to "charge you" with something.  Could you please
write
   up your feedback on all of the changes we have made over the last year and
let
   us know what you think of them?  You haven't mentioned all the fees we
have
   eliminated, 4 free ATM per month, new delivery/communication vehicles,
etc.

   Regards,
   Phil

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946.6DCU, Trying hard to keep up with youALOE1::RITCHIEElaine Kokernak Ritchie, 225-4199Tue Oct 03 1995 15:5611
Hi, Ed -

If you notice the DCU Web page, you can now purchase a CD for your kids for
$500.  

For the rest of you, the other categories have gotten much simpler.  Instead of
$50K and $90K, you can now buy a jumbo CD for $25K.

Stay tuned for other pleasant surprises.

Elaine