NEW YORK—New PSCU CEO Chuck Fagan re-introduced himself to the CUSO’s member-owner credit unions here, pledging the company will remain true to its DNA and that the company will be a “great listener.”
Fagan, who called the last month “humbling” as a result of all the people who have contacted him to express good wishes, noted he was a client of PSCU for 10 years while at Virginia Credit Union, and then an employee for 16 before leaving for CUES.
He said PSCU is a place where the “DNA gets in your blood,” which he credited to the company’s founder, Dave Serlo.
“At CUES I was able to get an outsider’s perspective on how PSCU can leverage that scale for the benefit of our membership,” said Fagan. “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for me to come full circle.”
Fagan’s comments came during his first week on the job, but said the immediate opportunities and challenges begin with payments.
“But there is a balance there in deciding how current we should be,” said Fagan. “Should credit unions be bleeding edge, leading edge, fast follower? And I think that PSCU can play a role in how current we are. Security is another discussion that comes up. And I don’t go into many planning sessions without mergers coming up as a strategy, whether it’s being approached or approaching others. I think we’ve seen the initial wave of healthy mergers. It’s an extension of our cooperative core.”
Speed to market remains the challenge, said Fagan, noting there is no better example than Apple Pay, a solution on which PSCU moved quickly.
Looking forward, Fagan said, “I’ve got a lot to learn. The business has moved significantly over the past two years. It had to. The one thing I do want to emphasize coming back in is we were built on service, and we are a service organization. We can have great technology, but our focus is on great service to the member and your tie to the member. At PSCU we are an extension of your staff and business model. We’ve got to be flexible and understand when unexpected things happen. I think we’ll be able to move PSCU in the direction you tell us. We’re going to be great listeners.”