Last week I was fortunate enough to listen to a wonderful presentation on social media and technology by Mr. Robert Rutkowski. During the presentation, Mr. Rutkowski stressed the importance of social media in the world today, for both personal and business purposes. I have to admit, I agree with Mr. Rutkowski – however I didn’t realize just how much until I recently lost access to my Facebook account. It has been almost two weeks now and I feel incredibly disconnected from the world without access to Facebook. While this may seem a little silly to some, I can assure you that there is nothing silly about the benefit credit unions can receive by effectively using social media tools.
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With the Chicago Bears journey to Dallas cut short in a crushing defeat at the hands of the Green Bay Packers, it appears as though my Sunday afternoons have been set free. Now I can start completing all of the little projects that have been on my “to-do” list since the start of fall. I figure I better get a move on it since pitchers and catchers report in just a few short months.
Here are a couple quick website compliance reminders that you may want to add to your “to-do” list:
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Well, I would be lying if I said the start to the new compliance year has been easy. It has clearly been a challenge staying ahead of all the requirements and implementation timelines of Risk Based Pricing Notices, New Privacy Notices, MDIA, and the fiduciary duties of Federal credit union boards, to mention a few… and it’s only January 20th. Well, take a deep breath and enjoy the short ride (that is unless you are scratching your head wondering what I am talking about above). It looks like February is clear sailing and the start of March comes in like a lamb as far as compliance is concerned.
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I often like to compare compliance to having a driveway in the middle of an Iowa winter. The snow falls from the sky and you have to get bundled up and spend your afternoon shoveling out, only to wake up the next day and find that the wind has covered it with snow yet again. Sometimes you probably think “forget shoveling, I am just going to pretend it isn’t there.” That’s all fine and dandy until you get stuck, or the city slaps you with a fine for snow covered sidewalks.
So keep up on your compliance shoveling, but more importantly keep your eye on the forecasts. And if you get buried, give us a call; we have plenty of options to help plow you out.
Here is something to add to your compliance forecast:
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While most everyone looks forward to the New Year as an opportunity for a fresh start and a chance to start something new, we must also remember that the New Year will also bring new regulations (I know, probably not exactly what you had in mind as a fresh start). Over the past month, I have had numerous credit unions asking me if I could just give them a summary of all of the upcoming regulatory changes. Typically, they are already overwhelmed with all of the existing regulatory changes and are afraid that they are not aware of what is up coming.
I normally don’t like to include bland lists and facts in my blog…but I think this would be the one opportunity where it seems appropriate. As everyone is winding down 2010, here is a chance for you to double check to see if you are ready for the beginning of 2011!
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With so many credit card changes taking place this year, we have found some credit unions who forgot to update their online credit card application disclosure. When you update your disclosure to reflect the new model form, it is a good idea to also check that the location of the disclosure is compliant. So, here is a quick reminder about your options when providing the application disclosure electronically.
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Various blogs and media outlets are prophesying an end to the era of free checking (see e.g. here and here). In fact, some banks have already eliminated free checking from their product offerings, as discussed here. In light of the hoopla over the demise of free checking, credit unions are in an excellent position to both differentiate themselves from banks, and add greater value to consumers, by offering and advertising free checking.
When may a credit union advertise a checking account as free?
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