ONTARIO, Calif.—Tony Boutelle is CEO of CU Direct, which provides a host of lending solutions to credit unions, including its network of more than 1,100 auto dealers.
Below, Mr. Boutelle shares his thoughts on leadership and management as part of CUToday.info’s ‘The Corner.’
CUToday.info: What intangible of leadership is most difficult to convey or prepare for?
Boutelle: Two areas come to mind: One, When you are around customers or team members, you can never turn your leadership role off. So you need to be careful what you say and how you say it, because people take your opinions seriously, even if you are trying to keep things light. Two, even the most hands-on leader can't be in all decisions at all times – trust and allowing others to try and possibly fail or succeed is crucial.
CUToday.info: Are you a fan of a management book or books? If not, why not. If so, which have resonated with you and why?
Boutelle: I am not a big fan of business books, but I have read many of them over the years. It is hard to come up with a lot of “ah-ha’s” in business when most business is about using good common sense.
However, I do think reading a good business book a year reminds you of those common sense business principles that all started with Dale Carnegie and that we need to be reminded of. I am a big fan of biography books, such as Warren Buffet, Ben Franklin, and Steve Jobs. You can learn a lot about how to approach business from successful leaders.
CUToday.info: Innovation: four syllables getting all the attention. Deservedly so? If so, can you really drive innovation? Or is it coming at the cost of implementation and delivery?
Boutelle: I just attended the CUES Innovation program at MIT, and one concept that made sense to me was that you need to over-budget your resources by 10% to give your team time away from implementation and delivery. Once you give them the time, then you can encourage the culture, and it is amazing how people get creative – they will make you a better organization.
CUToday.info: If you could go back and talk to You On The First Day On The Job, what advice do you share?
Boutelle: The biggest thing that holds us all back is that we think too small… Think BIG and EXECUTE.
CUToday.info: My Keeps-Me-Up-At-Night concern is? Why? And My-Let’s-Me-Sleep-At-Night optimism is?
Boutelle: I think if Steve Jobs were alive today he would have already reinvented financial services. It is a commodity business and it is ready to be “Netflixed.” From a lending perspective, peer-to-peer lending is not a big threat to credit unions yet, but it is finally gaining acceptance in the U.S. and is growing.