Survey Says…
One of the most important metrics I carried into adulthood was to be sure to find a job or career that I liked. I wanted to enjoy my work. As I was growing up, a lot of adults around me just worked to live and mainly complained about their workday. I didn't see a lot of joy in that, which gave me motivation to put the time into working toward a career that I knew I would enjoy.
Now, as a leader, it is of utmost importance to me that my team also enjoys what they’re doing. Of course we need productivity and satisfied clients/credit unions, but I want my bench to be filled with people who want to be with us.
With that backdrop, I take our internal team surveys very seriously. I make sure that they are completely anonymous and that we ask the right questions. Such as, Do you feel comfortable being your authentic self at work? or important questions about the world of remote work, Do you feel that your team collaborates effectively? Such an important question. Or, one of the questions I ask myself regularly as a leader is: How do our people really feel about working here? It’s not something I can guess at or assume. I need to hear it directly from my team.
For me, being accountable to my team is just as important as having a clear vision for where we’re going. If I’m not checking in and listening to the people I depend on to take us where I want to go, I am doing so to their detriment and to the detriment of the entire organization.
That’s why I take our team surveys seriously. They offer me and my leadership teams a clear reflection of where we’re succeeding and where we still have work to do in order to create the workplace we want to create.
This year’s results for both MCUL and CUSG’s team surveys gave me a lot to be proud of. On the numbers side, the progress is real: overall team satisfaction at CUSG jumped from 84% in 2024 to 96% in 2025, while MCUL’s grew from 92% to 100%! Also, when we asked our team if they felt they could be their authentic self at work, what joy I felt to learn that 97% of them said Yes.
I don’t take those numbers for granted nor do I take the credit. They’re the product of the great people we have in leadership roles throughout both organizations who are making intentional choices about how best to support our teams. They set out to create spaces where team members can not only grow but feel comfortable being their authentic selves while doing so — and they’re succeeding! And while I’m happy with the strides we’ve made, the surveys also help us see where we can do better, like strengthening cross-team alignment and making sure recognition is more visible and clearly communicated.
For me, all of this points back to something I’ve been talking about a lot lately: the importance of growing our movement from the inside. I firmly believe that when we invest in our own people, we become more adaptable, better at reaching new members and more likely to keep the people who care deeply about what we do.
In fact, our engagement surveys showed that the retention rate at CUSG has grown significantly over the last year, from 91% to 96%, while MCUL’s remains at 99%. That’s meaningful, and to me, says the work we’ve put into building a strong culture is paying off. Not only do people want to work with us, they stay with us!
Later this month, CUSG is introducing a new initiative, the Leadership Forum, and it’s designed to help credit unions strengthen leadership from the inside out. It’s a monthly, instructor-led virtual series that gives credit union leaders at every level practical tools and strategies they can put to use right away.
I’ve seen how much talent we have in this movement, and I’ve also seen first-hand how beneficial it can be for an organization to focus on growing that talent. The Leadership Forum is an opportunity for credit unions to do just that.
We’re kicking these off on Aug. 21 with a session on everyday leadership — but check out our Leadership Forum site and reach out to your League Rep. for more information!
Thanks for reading.
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