By Ray Birch
WASHINGTON—Unlike just about every other career path, credit unions “get in the blood” of people. Sons and daughters—even grandchildren—follow their parents and grandparents into the “movement.” Brothers, sisters and others follow suit, twisting the people-helping-people motto into people-helping-relatives. But why?
Geoff Bacino, whose own family roots run deep in credit unions—with his father Ted Bacino, then himself, and now his daughter all working in the industry—believes the answer is a good feeling about the work being done and just getting comfortable within a movement that takes care people.
“To be honest with you, I really never did consider working outside credit unions once I started,” said Bacino, a former NCUA board member and now head of Bacino and Associates, which among other things manages several credit union associations. “There were opportunities. But I've never really looked at getting out of the space. I've had headhunters calling me about jobs that were outside the space, and they just never appealed to me. Many of us can cite a lot of people who have been in this industry their entire lives, and never left. The reality is, there is a comfort factor with working within the credit union movement.”
Bacino’s remarks are the first in a series of CUToday.info stories that look at why credit unions have become a family business for so many credit union employees over the years.
Bacino beieves the attraction and retention the industry boasts also come from the fact there are many and very different opportunities available.
“For example, at my firm now, we do a lot of consulting work, but we also run three trade associations, we run an internal audit group...,” noted Bacino. “If you had asked me 15 years ago would I be running trade associations, I would have said no. But I kind of fell into it by staying in credit unions.”
About the ‘Movement’
Bacino believes the allure has something to do with what is often referred to not as an industry, but as a “movement.”
“But it's always been more than a movement—something that is kind of near and dear to people's hearts, more than just a business,” he said. “I joke that it sometimes becomes a family business. Look at (credit union pioneer) Louise and (retired CU CEO) Bill Herring…I think it's because people get comfortable in it and they actually like it. If you like the job you're doing, it's easy to talk to your family members and even your kids into going into credit unions. Especially if they see that you like it.”
In addition to Bill Herring, his sister, Catherine Herring, was also a credit union CEO and, in what may be the greatest example ever in credit unions of keeping it in the family, their two Cincinnati-area credit unions merged in 2015.
Bacino pointed to how his father, Ted, influenced his career path. Ted served in senior roles at NCUA, at the Illinois CU League, and at Provident CU and Patelco CU in California.
“For me, for example, when my dad was at NCUA, I had no idea what NCUA was. I remember he told me he was going there and he's like a federal regulator, or something. I was in college and I was like, ‘OK regulate’,” Bacino said.
Geoff Bacino and his daughter, Marissa
A Graduation Story
After graduating from Indiana University in 1984, Bacino, with guidance from his dad, went to work at Callahan & Associates in Washington.
“My dad went to went to NCUA with (former Chairman) Ed Callahan, and then when Ed formed Callahan & Associates I was the first full-time hire. Credit unions got it my blood then,” Bacino recalled.
Now, after graduating from West Virginia University in 2014, Bacino’s daughter, Marissa, has gone to work as a compliance officer with Navy Federal Financial Group.
“When my daughter graduated law school she called me one day and asked if I knew anybody at Navy Federal. I told her I knew the CEO and she said she was going to be applying for a job there,” Bacino said. “I thought that was great. As I said, your brothers, your sisters, your kids see what you do, that you like what you do, and that leads them going into the same business.”
Bacino believes family roots do not run nearly as deep in the banking industry, adding he never considered working on that side of the financial world.
“My dad used to joke that a bank is a four-letter word,” Bacino recalled.
Getting ‘Anchored’
Bacino stressed that people can become “really anchored” in credit unions.
“And a big reason, there are plenty of different things to do, plenty of jobs with different responsibilities. Running a credit union is nothing like working in a trade association. Working in trade sociation is nothing like working for one of the credit union vendors. Working for one of the vendors is nothing like being on the board of NCUA, or even on the board of a credit union. There are just so many different types of things you can do,” he said. “I mean, if your father owns a manufacturing plant, then you know you're going to be running a manufacturing plant one day. In the Henry Ford family, you know you’re going to be making cars. But in credit unions you can do all kinds of things.”
Another Type of Commitment
Bacino wishes more credit unions had the same kind of “family commitment” to each other that many their staff have displayed over the years, as that would benefit the movement.
“I guess what I would like to see is more collaboration between credit unions, a bit of that pay it forward mentality that says I might not be getting anything out of this collaboration now but the industry as a whole benefits, and that helps everybody,” said Bacino. “I would hope that CEOs and boards understand the value of paying it forward—of helping everybody out. But there is also that element of competition to address.”
Have a family connection in credit unions or a unique story to tell? Share it with CUToday.info by emailing Frank J. Diekmann at Frank@CUToday.info.