SECU: Consider This: Chapter 3 - The Kleenex Dilemma?

  SECU is different!

The Kleenex Dilemma? You might ask: "What is the (t)issue?

We took a look in Chapter 2 [link] at the questions of whether a bank and credit union are different, whether the idea of a "non-profit bank" is a logical non sequitur, and whether or not there are truly uniquely different things, people, and ideas in the world. Believe most would agree that there is very strong evidence that the answer is a resounding "Yes" to each of those questions.

So why don't most SECU members and many SECU employees realize that SECU is a credit union and that a credit union is entirely different from a bank in terms of law, legal structure, tax status, membership limits, and business purpose? Why? Ready for this? Because the word "bank" is the grammatical "industry standard"! What do you mean by that? 

Since you asked (you did ask, didn't you?), what is going on with the word "bank" has a linguistic name (or "marketing" name if you prefer!); it's called "genericide" (Now don't panic, we're not wading into Middle East politics, that's an argument over "genocide" not genericide, so relax!). 

Genericide is what occurs when a brand name for a specific product or business becomes the general ("generic") name for the entire product/business category. The long-time example is the paper tissue product category. Kleenex was the first "brand" in the category, but over time everybody began to refer to all paper tissues as "kleenexes". Competitors could call their paper tissue products whatever their marketeers came up with, but the public would - despite the inane "We Are's" and SuperBowl ads - still ask for a box of kleenexes. Other examples of brand names which have taken on a generic meaning are: Aspirin, Thermos, Escalator, Plexiglas, and Rollerblade

More modern examples  are "Google" which has morphed into a generic name for an internet search - "hold on, let me "google" that". And, "I-phone" too has come close to dominating the "cellphone" category and no telling where we are headed with "Swiftie". 

Okay, okay, but what is "The Kleenex Dilemma" for SECU as a credit union? Like it or not, try as you might, when an SECU member is asked: "Where do you "bank"?, the member will invaribly say "At the credit union!"  See the problem? The word "bank" owns the financial institution category in the mind of the public - and that probably is not going to change any time soon.

So,what has SECU done about the kleenex problem? Well - prior to the last two years - the SECU Board, the SECU staff, and a large group of "We get it" SECU members set out on a mission to demonstrate to all of North Carolina that the Credit Union was not a bank - that SECU was in fact uniquely different by law, legal structure, tax status, membership limits, and business purpose.

😎 The Mission: To prove that SECU was truly a uniquely different animal than a bank - and perhaps even a unicorn!

 

... it was called the "The Esse Quam Videri Mission"... stay tuned.

 

   

SECU: Consider This: Chapter 2 - The Difference Is Real!

    SECU is different!

Alright so we're off to a slow start; hope you'll hang in there a bit.

If we can agree that a credit union is uniquely different from a bank, then there may be some ground for us to discuss why SECU should not be operated as a bank. But we need to agree (or not!) first that "There is a Difference", okay? 

If SECU is just some sort of weird, "non-profit bank", then who cares? "If it looks like a duck (bank!), walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it just might be a duck." So, is SECU uniquely different or not? 

Lets' look at the three questions from Chapter 1 [link]. First, hope we can all agree that, much like a unicorn, there is no such animal as a "non-profit bank" - that's just a silly idea!.

Banks are organized for a purpose - to buy and sell money at a profit. The owners/investors in a bank expect to receive a return/dividend/gain/profit from their investment. Like any other for-profit enterprise, banking is a business; it's not a hobby, nor some sort of "Save the Whales" idealistic venture. Success in banking is defined by "the bottom line" - how much profit the bank makes for its investor/owners. Banking is a hard-nosed, sophisticated, analytical,"take no prisoners " business. 

There is no question that the original concept/structure of a credit union was decidedly different from that of a bank. How do you know that's true? Because the founders of credit unions clearly stated a different set of rules, principles and purposes when designing this new, non-profit financial cooperative. Legislators agreed there was a difference, enacting a separate, distinct set of laws. Tax officials also recognized the difference granting tax exemptions at both the state and federal level; membership was limited, not open to the general public. Everyone knew there was a difference, in the beginning.

That question about whether anything is unique is a little more complex and comes with a problem - a root, core problem for SECU. Yes, there are unique things in life, like snowflakes as a reader noted. In fact, if you really look closely, everything in life is unique isn't it - including you! [Think about that sentence one more time before you move on.]

But, we have a tendency of viewing the world in terms of groups, categories, by common characteristics. We even have developed the bad habit of grouping and profiling people - by race, by gender, by nationality, by religion, by political opinion, by "social status", ... and these days by "tiers" at SECU. In real life, we most often think in terms of snow, rather than snowflakes, don't we. 

So, brief recap: 1) Are there unique things in life? - yes; 2) Are credit unions banks ? - not as originally created; 3) Is there any such thing as a "non-profit bank"? - no, not unless you believe in unicorns. 

😎 Alright, blah, blah, blah what's the point? Most of the SECU membership, many SECU employees, and all of the "Legacy 8 Board members" don't understand the differences between a bank and a credit union.  That's creating a lot of problems now, with many more coming in the future. That's not a good thing for members, employees, and the future health of SECU - the potential squandering of a valuable asset for North Carolina out of ignorance?

If we're not all on the same page when talking about SECU as a credit union, we may be talking over, under, and around each other. Talking about different concepts and principles - never able to agree, because we understand the phrase "credit union" differently. 

Want an easy example of how people can misunderstand a word? Take a look at the "I Love Football" pic above. Did you read that as "American football" or soccer? Makes a world of difference doesn't it! Not exactly the same games are they? Neither are banks and credit unions... 

But the problem is greater than you think...

... its called "The Kleenex Dilemma". But that's for tomorrow...