Need A CIVIC's Lesson? Two Opportunities...

  ... to learn more.

As noted yesterday [link], Local Government/CIVIC FCU is still a topic of high interest among SECU members.  The move of LGFCU to the new "CIVIC" name and "independence" in June, 2025  remains a major legacy of the "new/new" culture at SECU.** 

The flight by CIVIC from the 40-year partnership with SECU was a complex, difficult task. Everyone is hoping for success; @ 400,000 CIVIC members in North Carolina have got their fingers crossed.

✅  Chip Filson is a long-term credit union advocate, having served as a state/NCUA regulator, data guru on CUs, and as an insightful commenter/blogger on all things cooperative.  Filson's blog: "Just a Member" featured one take on CIVIC yesterday. Worth a read [link]! 

✅  The second opportunity to learn more about CIVIC is to sign on to its two scheduled "Local Connect" online meetings with top brass at the Credit Union:

"Fall virtual meetings: Tuesday, October 14 and Thursday, November 6. All virtual meetings are from 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m."

[Local in-person meetings are available too! Sign up here: [link]

"What to expect
The Civic leadership team will share valuable updates about recent challenges and solutions, digital how-to tips, and other information about moving forward together. Most important, you can ask questions about what matters most to you." 

 

😎 What an innovative idea to allow member-owners to participate and ask questions! 

 

   ** ... that old "new/new" nose-grower - "the no formal proposal proposal" - is now playing out!

 

 

SECU Annual Meeting Questions Submitted...

   Say What?

✅ As you will recall, the SECU Board announced this new restriction on member questions in 2024: 

"Rule 5. Up to one hour will be set aside during the meeting for a question-and-answer session. Members must submit any questions in advance of the meeting. To permit as many members to ask questions as possible, we ask that you limit yourself to one question or topic. Members will be requested to provide us their name and city of residence." 

Last year at the 2024 Annual Meeting, our CEO read out questions and her answers for about an hour.

😎 Suggested a couple of days ago [link] that if any members wished to have a question submitted indirectly on their behalf, to send them on for consideration! Here's a summary:

❌ Good bit of "snark opinions/questions" of all stripes... thought "delete" was best direction on these.

❌ There were many internal questions concerning pay, benefits, unfairness, communications, etc. Really couldn't sort through all that which, for the most part, is "normal" in all organizations. Best left for the HR types.

❌ CIVIC (and the prior CEO!) remain hot topics! Sorry, time to get over it; that train has left the station! 

❌ A flurry of complaints about quality of service ranging from lack of branch staffing, call center wait times, loan denials, failure to correct specific errors or to return calls, etc. Always hard to determine whether these situations were "one-offs" or systemic. Generally the CEO will report on major progress or lapses in service - so lets wait on the official report first. (A systemic problem which goes unfixed is like an active cancer which goes untreated - it doesn't go away).

✔ Questions which were aggregated and submitted asked for information on: 1) the costs new core technology and implementation date, 2) whether SECU is moving to "open membership" 3) details and purpose of new Board bylaw changes, and 4) a definition of commercial lending, in-state only ?

Will be interesting to hear the answers! 

 

 Annual Meeting is October 14, 2025 [link]