Forget Members… Send a Credit Union Employee Survey!

In any field, it’s easy to get so focused on one thing that you lose sight of everything else. And, in with credit unions, that one thing is usually our members.

And a lot of different things go into that member experience:

The branch design, cleanliness, and amenities
The products, services, rates, terms, etc.
The digital offerings, such as mobile apps and online banking

And of course, the friendliness and competency of employees is important as well. But even friendly, competent employees can undermine a good member experience. And if those great employees are unhappy or frustrated, they may not stick around long enough to maintain your high member experience standards!

Your Employees Influence Member Experience

At LiveSurvey, we extoll the virtues of surveying your members to ensure they’re getting the experience they want. After all, happy members are loyal members. And loyal members help you grow your credit union (and make it even better)!

And although there are many factors to member experience, there’s one that people often overlook:

Attitude.

Attitude is infectious. If you walk into a bar or restaurant where the staff all gets along and looks like they’re having fun, you’ll have more fun, too. Or if you watch a play or concert where the audience is unhappy, it will color your perception of the venue.

The same is true at your credit union. Member experience hinges largely on the attitudes of the people who create that experience:

Your employees.

If they’re happy, they’ll smile. If they feel comfortable with their job, they’ll be friendly and helpful. If they feel well trained and empowered, they’ll help your members with odd, difficult, or tedious requests.

And if they’re unhappy? If they don’t feel comfortable or empowered? Well, they probably won’t go out of their way for anyone—they’ll be too busy worrying about their own problems, and they won’t have the time or energy to help others.

Don’t Forget to Survey Your Employees!

Remember to survey your employees about their experience at your credit union! You should know precisely if and when you have an employee issue on your hands. Solving it early will speak volumes to your staff about how you value them and the culture at your credit union.

It will also improve the member experience by providing a content, fulfilled, and competent staff for your members to interact with and rely on.

If you want some ideas about how you can survey your employees, try these:

New employee training survey. Survey your new employees about their training process. Do they have any lingering questions? Concerns? Do they have an interest in a particular task or area?

Try interviewing at different intervals. 30-, 60-, and 90-day intervals can give you a better view of your training efficacy and trajectory than can a single survey.

Employee satisfaction survey. This hits the same points as above, but it also gives you insight into how your long-term employees feel. You may want to check in with them at least yearly.

Just as with your members, checking in with your employees periodically lets them know that you care, that you’re listening, and that you have their best interests at heart. It also suggests that you’re ready to hear how you can create a better work environment or situation for them.

Employee suggestion survey. You never know who’s going to have the next great idea. It’s worth asking your team if they have any ideas about how to better serve your members…

You may get some kooky replies, but just as likely, you might get some real gems that impact the way you do things in the future!