DALLAS–One of the few people to ever serve as a league president before becoming a credit union CEO, John Lederer, says that among that he has learned during his career is it’s important in all the planning to also anticipate what “can go right.”
The long-time leader of the $1.3-billion Credit Union of Texas is retiring effective Sept. 30, 2017, and shared his perspective on lessons learned and more with CUToday.info, below.
Lederer joined Credit Union of Texas in February 1996 as its general counsel, was appointed as interim CEO in January 2006, and named permanently to the post in September 2007. Overall, Lederer has spent almost 40 years in the credit union industry. He joined what was then known as the Texas Credit Union League in 1978 where he held various positions, including president and CEO, before his tenure at CUTX.
CUToday.info: How did you come to be involved in credit unions?
Lederer: I was practicing law in Dallas and decided to look for an in-house legal position. I was hired by the Texas Credit Union League. Fairly quickly, I became heavily involved in legislative and regulatory matters, both state and federal.
CUToday.info: What have you learned about managing people and change during your career?
Lederer: I feel it's important to pick the right people and then stay out of their way as much as possible. More importantly is to establish a sense of trust and effectively communicate back and forth. Change is inevitable and constant. The trick is to accommodate change but not be overwhelmed by it.
CUToday.info: What have you learned about driving and maintaining growth at a credit union?
Lederer: In my experience, growth in a credit union should be consistent and controlled. The need to grow and, at the same time, maintain capital demands consistency and control. It is a difficult balancing act to control growth and maintain staff enthusiasm at the same time.
CUToday.info: If you could go back and talk to yourself at the beginning of your career, what advice do you share?
Lederer: Don't get overconfident, but avoid getting too pessimistic. As a lawyer, I was trained to anticipate what could go wrong. As a CEO, I liked to anticipate what could go right, also.
CUToday.info: You led the credit union during a time of significant challenge in the mid-2000s. What lessons did you take away from that, and do you have concerns that at some point those lessons are lost?
Lederer: It's important to keep calm when you're hit with big problems and keep everyone on the same track. You establish goals based on current conditions and adjust as they change. You have to balance the needs of the members with the needs of the credit union and its staff. The bottom line is important, but not everything. In good times, it may be hard to retain that last point.
CUToday.info: You are one of the rare people to have ever led a state CU league and a credit union. What is your view on the future of both?
Lederer: The concept of a financial coop, such as a credit union, is a good one. At the same time, technology and regulation is driving small credit unions to merge with larger ones to survive. With the number of credit unions rapidly decreasing, more league consolidation appears inevitable. Advocacy is tremendously important, and the trades need to work harder to get credit union staff more involved.