One of the polite requests made in the SECU 2022 Annual Meeting Resolution was for the SECU Board to simply explain its goals in seeking a merger with Local Government Federal Credit Union (LGFCU). (see the 3/22/2023 post for text).
As many of you know, the partnership between the two credit unions goes
back over 40 years and was created to provide access to local credit
union services for North Carolina municipal and county employees. The
partnership benefited both credit unions, by enabling SECU to eventually
reach every county in North Carolina through a cost sharing agreement. A cooperative partnership focused on the best interests of the people of North Carolina, over any "corporate ambitions" of either credit union.
Both credit unions subscribed to the idea that "Members Come First"!
And, what a success that ideal has proved to be, with LGFCU now serving
400,000 members with total assets of $4 billion.
The answer from the SECU Board about the merger proposal was: "SECU never made a "formal" offer to merge with LGFCU."
Mr. Dwayne Naylor, the newly appointed CEO of LGFCU said the following about the merger proposal:
Mr. Naylor: Sorry I was not at the SECU Annual Meeting [25:26]..."because
before the Resolution passed, I would have argued to have removed #2
because there was no factual evidence of that being true. I'm trying to
stay away from the word lie."
CEO Naylor's memory of these events appears to be "at best selective" (to quote Mr. Naylor, "I'm trying to stay away from the word lie."). One of the many reasons contributing to the 2022 SECU Member Resolution was Mr. Naylor's (at the time an EVP at LGFCU) frantic calls to past and present credit union professionals (including at least six "on the record" CEOs), expressing his outrage at the proposed merger offer and disdain for the leadership at SECU.
The electronic, telephonic, and paper trail of those conversations is a mile wide and deep - stretching from Asheville to the coast. Unfortunately for Mr. Naylor - and perhaps fortunately for the rest of us; he has a long history and reputation for discussing his angst over crucial situations with almost everyone he knows. The "informal" merger proposal was no exception.
Mr. Naylor's friends would like to believe that he is "covering up" (again, "...trying to stay away from the word lie".) in order to protect LGFCU and its members from SECU. Mr. Naylor's critics believe he is lying because he wanted the CEO position too much; and now that he has the position, he is willing to throw LGFCU members ["no more branches"] "under the bus" to fulfill his own personal ambitions. Whatever the truth, it's time for Dwayne Naylor to tell it - the consequences to literally millions of North Carolinians are immense.
The appropriate time to tell the truth is at the LGFCU Annual Meeting on Friday, March 24, 2023, live-streamed at 12:30 p.m. You can now [magically!] find that information on the main page of the LGFCU website [link...LGFCU].
Hint: It would be better to address this question head-on, than to be grilled and embarrassed publicly.
... is this beginning to feel like an episode of "As The World Turns" or "Days Of Our Lives", or is it just me?
Here's what the new CEO LGFCU Dwayne Naylor said about the 2022 SECU Member Resolution, at the SECU Advisory Board Fireside Chat Meetings in November 2022. Check it out [link on NCSECU You Tube, Fireside Event -Full - 25:26]:
OMG, praying that he has the brains and balls to "do the right thing".
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DeleteBirdhouses taken away, taxes taken away, great employees taken away to sit/work from home, mortgages taken away, fas taken away, collections taken away Oops they are back. Now Lgcu is taken away, what is next to go away? Members here aren't happy not being able to be helped or having to wait on someone they don't know for an appointment. Something we used to always take care of. That's what happens when you have no dog in the fight or care about history of something. My SVP has been around many years and she is really worried because there is no voice for the branches that can be trusted. Not even someone at the big kids table that ever worked in a branch with a voice to speak up.
ReplyDeleteIn Seven months, on a beautiful day in October- there will be voices of SECU Member Owners. Don't lose hope, our branches have never let us down and we won't let you down.
DeleteI am willing to believe at first some did speak up and we're quickly pushed aside and replaced or went a head and took an early retirement.
DeleteSECU has always been run by gatekeepers. The gatekeepers were not there to keep the workers down or make their lives miserable. The gatekeepers were in place, so that only those employees who fit the credit union mold stayed. The first thing that any new employee noticed, was their meager pay. Very meager. Less than what a beginning public school teacher would make. So those young men and women who got into finance simply to become rich didn’t even bother applying. This was a brilliant and cost effective method of bringing in the right kind of credit union talent. These new employees saw the low pay as a badge of honor, and a sacrifice they were willing to make in order to know that each and every day they went to work, it was for the right reasons. The basic module program was another genius example of gatekeeping. New employees had 24 months to pass all of the required basic modules. If an employee did not meet this standard, they would be let go. Once the modules were passed however you would be promoted up a step and you would then be eligible for merit raises. The cream rose to the top. Those of us who were hungry for a pay raise and a promotion tried to pass them all as quickly as we could. The employees who were lazy or simply only wanted to collect a pay check for 24 months and not be promoted were weeded out. They were paid fairly for their work, they had PTO, benefits, and a 401(k), but they weren’t eligible for merit raises.
DeleteCont.
DeleteWhen I was hired, I was told that even though I was starting out as a teller, that I could one day, possibly, maybe, become the CEO of the company because we only promoted and hired from within. I remember feeling honored to be a part of a corporation that valued its employees hard work above a flashy resume. You put in your time, you did the right thing, and things would work well for you. The new ethos of the credit union, i.e. removing the basic module program and hiring from outside erodes the very core of what the credit union is. The employees of the credit union are not blindly loyal to the credit union. We are loyal to our members and the ideals upon which we were founded. While these outside hires may be genius wunderkinds who excel at the very tops of their fields, they know nothing of the sacrifices and the toil of the men and women that came before them, nor have they themselves sacrificed anything to deserve to be a part of the second largest credit union in the nation. The credit union is built on this type of grit. If you remove the grit, the sand never becomes a pearl.
Cont.
DeleteI have no way to understand the hearts or minds of the new ‘powers that be’ but I can assume that they came into our organization and thought that we were simply a bunch of backcountry hicks. Hicks that were not making as much money as the industry standard. Hicks that had never bothered to make a LinkedIn account. Hicks who didn’t advertise every last single good deed they happened to do on social media, because how else would anyone know that they had done them? Hicks who didn’t even practice risk based lending. Well let me explain how wrong and insulting this assumption is. We made less than the industry standard because our jobs were secure, and they were not based on quotas or sales goals, they were based simply on our unwavering integrity, and the mantra of Do the Right Thing and Send us Your Momma. We never bothered with LinkedIn accounts because we had “The Common Bond” an internal newsletter that linked us all together and showed what wonderful things our peers were accomplishing. We didn’t need social media because “The Common Bond” showed US what we were doing, and that was enough, we didn’t need the public to know, because we know that charity is not about self promotion, but about devotion. We didn’t ever think about risked based lending because we know how to take the measure of a person by how they shake our hands or enter our offices. That’s because the only three digit number we need to make a lending decision is our IQ. I don’t know how many times humble, good, honest people walked into my office ashamed of their credit scores, like it was some incarnation of the Scarlet Letter or like an Albatross around their necks, a cross to bear. I was able to sit them down and look them straight in their eyes and tell them that in this room, their credit score didn’t matter. The credit union doesn’t care if you have an 850 beacon or a 450 beacon, you get the same rate. We are not dumb hicks who are behind the times, we are above the times. This is the difference between fashion and style, and the credit union has always had impeccable style.
I want to be able to look those members in the eyes again. To be honest with you, if I can’t, I’ll quit. I won’t be the only one, because I won’t be ok with making less than the industry standard to compromise my integrity. I won’t be ok with promotions going to outside hires who have no idea what makes the credit union special. I won’t be ok with working a boring data entry job where I have zero leeway into how I lend. I won’t be ok with working for a company who uses risk based lending for my own financial needs because even as an employee I can still get a better interest rate from Truliant. Let that sink in. My income is not so great that I’ll put up with any abuse just to maintain my lifestyle. I hope the board and the ‘powers that be’ put an end to this nonsense or they’ll witness a mass exodus of talent. The majority of the banking world may be full of money hungry automatons that are satisfied with reading off a script and not using their wits, but that's not my credit union. We've been trained since day one to use our brains, make our own decisions, and to Do the Right Thing. The 'powers that be' may think that we are all staring off into the distance looking at the rabbits with our backs turned, but they are severely mistaken. They are going to have to look us in the eyes when they do what they are doing.
Some SECU FAMILY STRONG speaking there, with my utmost respect for you & your words, Thank you! This attitude is what it will take to upright our Giant Ship. He thought he could come in with his interlopers, throw around #TEAM SECU...and get everyone sailing his way. No one told him he was messing with Family! Never will we sell out SECU! 7000 strong! Over 2 million Members who will fight for their credit union. Our problem is with one CEO and 6 Board of Directors...the rest we can handle. Do your math, who wins?
DeleteWell Said!
DeleteAbsolutely wonderfully said! You have put into words what so many of us are feeling! Even if SECU survives WE are still losing OUR credit union!
DeleteIt's getting awfully Lonely at the Top.
DeleteIn Jimmy's eyes you lack the "emotional intelligence" and not above the line! Perhaps you should read from his 4 favorite books.
DeleteVery well said. Spoke the truth and what every current and former SECU employee feels about their Credit Union
DeleteNarcissistic thinking…I promise you Gym Haze. Nobody here at secu thinks you are brilliant nor cares to read the books you recommend(that you probably don’t read yourself) The days of haze are numbers. Stay strong SECU! We will get through this!
DeleteAll of this!! I hope there will be a way for us to rise up and reclaim our beloved SECU before it’s too late. I am no longer interested in keeping an open mind. We have been shown who our BOD, CEO, and Executive team really are and we need to believe them! They are NOT here for any of us and they are definitely NOT here for our members anymore. Reckoning day cannot get here soon enough!
DeleteWell said!
DeleteKnown Dewayne for over 20 years. Think he has the brains, but never has the cojones under pressure. Wouldn't bet the farm on him on friday. Its never been in his DNA.
ReplyDeleteAnother failing CEO pretty well sums that up
DeleteI bet he will put a nice spin on the questions.
DeleteTwo things that bring defeat: Giving up & having the attitude of, I'm staying out of this...let some one else fight the battle. Understand we none want to lose our positions or worse-our jobs. But don't think over 2 million + can be served by less than 100 employees & digital and that's probably a big stretch. I am thinking it is pretty lonely at the top right now considering all the email silence. But this morning I am thanking them for the flex time, gives me this opportunity to catch up on my reading. A final thought before I get into my Harvard study. We are no longer working under past Admin we trusted with our lives. Trying our best to get the BOD's attention, Our Members, our families, our futures are worth the risk. Stay SECU Strong
DeleteAmen! Quitting or staying out of it does no good! We must get these people out of here and then we can get back to enjoying our jobs again!
DeleteTalk about March Madness! Since no local teams are left...this is a hot ticket!
ReplyDeleteKerry - one of your long time friends here. Come through for us and all the staff at LGFCU. We're counting on you.
ReplyDeleteLast chance Dwayne - don't let Haze run you, it's going to end badly. Honesty isn't the best policy, it's the only policy. Come clean. Your members deserve it. Four hundred thousand of them are depending on you to tell them the truth. No title is worth your soul.
ReplyDeleteDwayne, worked with you in the trenches at SECU long ago. Stand in there or get the hell out of Dodge! Be a man, walk the walk.
ReplyDeleteDo the LGFCU Board a favor and quit, if you can' be an honest leader.
ReplyDeleteDwayne, we are rooting for you! I know it looks like we aren’t on your side, but we indirectly are! Just come clean and do what’s right! You’ll be more remembered that way vs the latter. Do you really want to be Gym Haze? You are a much better man than that.
ReplyDeleteSix CEOs ready to prove you lied...this is also an IQ test, no balls and no brains evidently.
ReplyDeleteIf I were in his shoes, knowing I had confided in 6 Respected CEOs & others I had history with and they had proof I wasn't being forthcoming with the truth...that alone would be more than I could handle. Pleading the 5th won't work. To whom much is given, much is required.
DeleteI vote for Mark Caverley. Forget the truth...correct the error. LGFCU Board made the wrong choice...ask Maurice Smith.
ReplyDeleteSending sympathies from SECU, we know exactly how you feel.
DeleteThe truth always matters.
DeleteI'll bet for Naylor its the cannabis and the hemp.
ReplyDeleteAgree on Caverley, he gets it. Staff will fully support him...I know him, worked with him.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment on Caverly, never spoken to him personally. But have had many LGFCU members who left VMs and received return phone calls from him on the issue were complimentary of his response to their concerns.
DeleteHave these guys forgotten the words Reputation and Dignity? So sick of seeing careers wasted by selling out for their own personal gain. A life's work wasted.
ReplyDeleteNo respect for one who won't speak the truth. Especially one whose decisions are hurting the financial live's of our City and County Police Officers. I know this is just one of the group's affected, but they protect us every day wearing a bullet proof vest. Send them to the bank's anyway.
ReplyDeleteDwayne, please tell what really happened. We all know Gym Haze had it in for LGFCU from the beginning. He stated LGFCU didn't pay enough for what they received from SECU and would have a conversation with LGFCU. This was never about LGFCU needing to pay for their own software license apart from SECU (for a new core system that is years away). Help us oust Gym to save LGFCU, better serve our members, and to protect the staff!
ReplyDeleteYes save yourself! No way should this have moved forward without the consent of the LGFCU membership and you DON'T have IT....no matter how backed into the corner you felt. Not so sure why you allowed yourself to feel pressured by someone with a prior failed credit union in his history anyway. Not so sure some in NCUA will not take issue with LGFCU's lack of transparency and honesty in it's dealing with your Member Owners.
DeleteMr Naylor, sounds like your day of reckoning is upon you. Hope you sleep well tonite. And if you don't, consider yourself being given one last chance to tell the truth. Your LGFCU Members looking at losing the services of their local branches and favorite Loan Officers haven't slept well for sometime. I hope you see the faces of all the North Carolina City and County employees & their families statewide in your dreams. You know those who didn't attend your Summits to dream of Digital Services. North Carolinians are not going to forget this and no matter how hard you try, you won't be able to either. Where there is smoke there is always fire, but take solace in the Truth will stand when the world is on fire. Please, Do the Right Thing for yourself and LGFCU Members.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant, staying away from the word lie is = to staying away from the word truth. No in betweens, it's either one or the other.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the next two days Mr. Hayes, after that the radar will be back on you. You might want to pay attention to how Mr. Naylor sweats tomorrow. Next week you have to face our true Leaders of SECU face to face. Our SVP's and VP's who were mentored, trained and equipped to handle most any situation for the sake of SECU and our Members. No Harvard Mentorship Training needed folks. All those Non-Sellouts who have been taking care of the Members in spite of You & Your Executive Team. Don't mistake their composure as weakness, they know right from wrong, they have spent years earning their right to sit at the table. And they are coming to meet with you knowing their SECU Family has their back.
ReplyDeletePerfectly said! Can’t wait for next week!!
DeleteShould be interesting to see how the "monitors" that are assigned to each table at the meeting next week try to handle the narrative ..think they're in for a surprise.
DeleteMonitors?? That sounds very 1984
DeleteYou will know them, remember you earned that seat- make them so uncomfortable they leave.
DeleteWhat is the monitor stuff? What meeting?
DeleteI think it should be said that these "monitors" were voluntold and did not volunteer.
DeleteWe are gonna have table coaches to keep the conversation on point and productive!!
DeleteI'd like to think we're better than "make them so uncomfortable they leave." No one's going to benefit from that. Use the opportunity to help educate people new to credit unions, not run them off.
DeleteYes keep it professional- they go low, we go high
DeleteYes they will benefit.
DeleteDon't blame the table monitors, they had no say so in this.
DeleteOpportunity to help educate people new to Credit Unions? Modules, Audit Manual and about 5 years Frontline Member Service should accomplish that
DeleteEducate people new to credit unions- just exactly how many veteran employees have you ran off? and you're now worrying over new ones? Does the Board know these numbers? This sounds serious. We're getting used to answering members who ask us, where's everybody at in our individual branch? but this sounds like a statewide issue. however it does explain all that available MSS overtime, it would be much easier to just say the whole month of April instead of taking a day or two out for good measure.sounds like you need to return power to the ones who ran things efficiently. Give you a hint SVP, they already cleaned up Admin's collection mess.
DeleteSVPs and VPs; we must be strong next week. It’s time Hayes gets push back from us
ReplyDeleteYes!!
DeleteShould we unify in a color scheme or # credit union strong arm bands!!
DeleteIs this issue not newsworthy? I would think that 400,000 LGFCU members losing all branch access would be on the news. Especially after 40 years of them having a branch to use in every single county, down to NONE. There are probably plenty of LGFCU members that are still unaware of the changes. They eithier threw away the letter that was sent because they thought it was junk mail, or they don't even use the online services. Maybe if it was a news story it would cause enough of an uproar amoung LGFCU members to make a difference. WRAL should be at that meeting tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteYes, a lot of LGFCU members still have no idea of what is happening and will happen on 2024.
DeleteMost don't have a clue as to what is taking place. No fault of the members. Most LGFCU members think they are SECU members because of they way SECU has served them for years. No way you can pull this off Naylor and if you continue forward- you will fail at your member's expense and your credit union reputation. Bottom line CIVIC is already a failure..when members have been told their loan applications slipped through the cracks. Guess that digital don't work so well. Good luck tomorrow, you're gonna need it.
DeleteThings are about to get messy, sounds like Little Jimmy better buckle up
ReplyDeleteHe was in over his head from the very beginning...we have many SVPs across our state who are & have been leading Districts the size of Andrews FCU without a missed step. Another one of those Hayes Mistakes, always taking and never listening. You either got it or you don't. Tried and true SECU SVPs have it... so walk into those meetings next week knowing WE are proud of you...maybe even use a little swagger because you have held us together the past 17 months.
DeleteI remember years ago sitting across the desk from a certain gentleman who asked me to tell him which was more important the worker bee or the queen bee and why? I also remember him asking me what I would do if I ever was asked to do something here at the credit union that I didn’t believe in or that I felt was wrong. I think my response was that I would pack my box and find somewhere else to work. I wonder where I put that box?
ReplyDeleteDon't pack your box - You are not the one who needs to leave SECU. It didn't take seasoned employees long to see Haze's management style was "Divide and Conquer", normally used by the weakest and most ineffective of leaders. He thought he had us with #TeamSECU...wrong again! And quite frankly, " You (Haze) think you are a Tech Scientist, that don't impress me much." Our Board needs to realize he will never be able to regain the respect of this great organization, and those strong 5 BODs need to take control of the situation. Right now truth is being spoken on this Blog and within the Walls...for the sake of our SECU Membership...it is time to Act.
DeleteAmen! All the veterans need to stay at SECU until haze is overthrown
DeleteAnd Executive Team, we don't need any more of the "we want you to find your passion, whether it's at SECU or somewhere else." Don't need to open a door for us, that door opened many, many years ago. We are exactly where we want to be. Should have been clear before, but We can make it abundantly clear. We found our Passion serving Our SECU Members with humbleness and servant's hearts...no accolades needed. And we are not faint of heart. No apologies either.
DeleteYes!!! Hate to inform you all...but these performances Executive Team WebEx 's were being played out TO as one so eloquently put it in a prior comment SECU's Cream who worked for years to earn those positions. Our Eyes and Ears were on you, we listened to every word and saw every action...but our minds were lazer focused on two things: Members First and those we lead who helped us get there. It never occurred to you we make our living reading people, consider your book read. We know the who did and who didn't, we know who didn't have the backbone to say NO to a bad idea that took OUR organization down the wrong road. We figured out which Legacy employee suffered because he tried to ensure we stayed on track with the "moral compass" which was so tried and true. We know which EVP destroyed our branches with MLO specialization in a down housing market and Economy, then left. Think on that. We listened when you requested we sign into Indeed..bad idea, we see your Team Building long weekends, we see our new Culture Officer jetting from one state to another for the sake of SECU, not sure what that's all about..so far just awards for herself and irrelevant committee seats. We see the one who spent years promoting our employee's education but was perfectly fine to strip hard earned Licenses, Designations and Certifications from those same employees for the sake of saving money, you'll probably have to hire another Consultant to explain that.one. We'll talk later about how all these major changes under The Haze leadership has benefited the bottom line, Our Members and Our Staff.
DeleteDon't understand! Just checked LGFCU FB page, not one announcement of an Annual Meeting of the Membership tomorrow***but many of Shred Events, times and locations. I understand you would like to shred everything about this situation. Your only solution is to tell the whole story tomorrow.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.lgfcu.org/annual-meeting-livestream
ReplyDeleteI think it is a proven fact - or it will be proven tomorrow, this Catastrophe started with one bad hiring decision by SECU, a huge ego, a few sell-outs in it for their own gain or power hungry or both and some interlopers. Challenging you to correct your mistake SECU BOD and next time will you please follow the Promote from Within Plan. At least we aren't buying a pig in a poke. This could have all been prevented Mr Ayers. Our Members are suffering already with this economy, if we care about the people of North Carolina...it's time to move forward. Dock this ship and get back to serving our Members, we owe them!
ReplyDeleteOne word of caution Mr Naylor, been seeing all the job postings for CIVIC/LGFCU, you better staff up cause I can see all the Complaints from CFPB and BBB coming your way now... But you are probably planning on letting Artificial Intelligence handle those...it's not the same.
ReplyDeleteOne member, one vote - 400K members vs 1 bad CEO and 9 Board Members. Time to take hold of our organization as owners and put in management that will listen, build trust and take the proper actions to best serve members not personal agendas. Don’t pass on the chance to be heard!
DeleteA prime example of what can happen when a few with no conscience control the narrative or lack there of. Dishonest all the way around!
DeleteHard to watch when you have a picture of all the faces of our LGFCU members in our community flashing before you...like lambs being led to slaughter. No doubt about it this LGFCU/CIVIC Administration will fail.
This could not be happening at a worse time.. with SO many people untrusting of their financial institutions and those company’s futures… we’re looking at you Board of Directors, time to act. You know the solution. Do it.
ReplyDeleteIf any SECU Board of Director is reading these posts, you might want to think about applying the brakes (to YOUR choice of CEO and his Admin) and putting it in Park. No one wants to see this played out on WRAL. Right now SECU's branch staff in all NC counties are on duty, protecting their members from the dirty stuff. But we just had a time change that allows for more DayLIGHT and we know what happens when dirty things come to the light. If for no other reason, protect your own reputation in this great State.
DeleteJust a dinner with my wife talking about our days. Mentioned this blog and some of the comments. She told me when I first met you I could tell you liked your job and felt good about it. She said listening to you, I want to work at SECU. Now that has all changed, she’s sees that I don’t feel good about our direction or what we are doing to the membership.
ReplyDeleteHey VP’s! to send a silent, non action message next week, just no one clap when Hayes is introduced to the podium. No worry about repercussions…. You didn’t do anything lol
ReplyDeleteI’m down lol
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DeleteI'm sure the "table coach" will be looking around taking names.
DeleteDone!
DeleteI’m game for This
DeleteNo chat option for online LGFCU members, so members online cannot chat with questions (Mr. Smith allowed this years prior) the words Mr. Naylor spoke. He misspoke on several points: Staff there is burnt out, and many are searching for better opportunities; he is hiring but look at the career site as not what he mentioned. 100 Membership Development Officers to replace >3500 branch staff? Not scalable nor capable of serving 400,000 members. Just seems to be sideway lip service. Members need to rethink and take more control.
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