What's Happening?

In the rapidly evolving financial landscape, credit union executives are facing a dual challenge: navigating the complexities of modern leadership while strategically integrating artificial intelligence into their operations. Dan Beard, known as "The Team Mechanic" and founder of The Digital Custodian, specializes in helping leaders transform these challenges into capacity.Dan’s work focuses on mo

Jennifer Esperanza, Ph.D., VP of Organizational Strategy, Coopera ConsultingIn the early 1980s, two social scientists, George Kelling and James Wilson proposed a theory arguing connections between a physically neglected environment with its susceptibility towards increased crime.  Named the “Broken Windows Theory”, Kelling and Wilson posited that,“If a window in a building is broken and remains un

Kris Kovacs - FORUM52 Founding PartnerIn sports, commentators often talk about a coach’s “coaching tree.” It’s the legacy of leaders developed under a great coach who go on to become successful leaders themselves.The greatest coaches are not remembered only for winning games. They are remembered for building leaders.Few examples are more famous than Bill Parcells. His coaching tree includes names

A Guide By:  Kirk KordeleskiMost new credit union CEOs think their first year is about learning the organization.The best CEOs understand it is actually about establishing momentum.Long before strategic plans are finalized or major initiatives are announced, organizations begin adapting to a leader’s pace, standards, decision-making style, and sense of urgency. Whether intentional or not, the habi

Sarah Lietz - FORUM52 Founding PartnerMost executives can look back and identify a few moments that fundamentally changed the way they lead. Sometimes it was a mentor who challenged them. Sometimes it was a difficult season that forced growth. Sometimes it was simply being exposed to a new idea or perspective at exactly the right time.What is interesting is that those moments rarely happen by acci

Kelly Henry at FutureThink - Coaching GuideMost executives don’t struggle because they lack ideas. They struggle because their organizations have become too good at repeating familiar patterns. Meetings drift toward the same assumptions, innovation efforts stall in endless discussion, and teams default to incremental thinking when the market is demanding reinvention.Stop Default Thinking: An Innov

Jeffrey Staw - April 22, 2026 - Curated Thoughts of the 2026 Financial Brand ForumI came back from Financial Brand Forum 2026 with a full notebook, a head full of ideas, and one story I keep telling anyone who will listen - more on that in a moment. obvious The Forum ran April 14th–16th at the Aria in Las Vegas.  If you couldn't make it this year, I want to give you something more useful than a hi

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEFORUM52 Announces Alloya Corporate Federal Credit Union as Pivotal Platform SponsorStrategic partnership supports expanded leadership training and collaboration for credit union leaders nationwideRaleigh, N.C. & Naperville, Ill. (April 21, 2026) – FORUM52 today announced that Alloya Corporate Federal Credit Union has committed to serve as the Platform Sponsor of the FORUM52 le

Jeffery Staw has shared a new whitepaper titled:  Digital Dollars, Real Decisions: A Credit Union Executive's Guide to StablecoinsTraditional money movement is hitting an inflection point. While legacy wire transfers take days and cost hundreds in fees, stablecoins allow members to move funds globally in minutes for pennies.  With over $25 trillion already transacting annually, this isn't a "crypt

Artificial intelligence is changing how credit unions think about growth, innovation, and technology execution. But a new concept is beginning to generate real momentum among forward-looking institutions: Vibe Coding.FORUM52, with our friends from CU 2.0, recently hosted a Vibe Coding Information Session for Credit Unions, featuring industry innovators discussing how generative AI is being used to

Coopera Consulting has shared a new whitepaper titled:  Developing the Right Roadmap and Mindset: Serving Emerging Market Segments, presents a five-step strategy for credit unions to engage growing diverse communities—including Hispanic, Asian, disability, and LGBTQ+ consumers. Check it out here:  https://forum52.com/media_center/file/bc5d825d-e485-47e9-8971-fa3290d63a76

We’re excited to announce that Julie Esser’s Circle is now open on Forum52.Julie works closely with emerging fintech companies to help them design, refine, and deliver solutions that truly serve credit unions. Her work sits at the intersection of innovation and practicality—helping translate new technology into tools that actually work in the credit union ecosystem.Inside her Circle, Julie has alr

Big news: Forum52 just formed its Advisory Council. Five industry leaders helping guide what comes next. pic.twitter.com/pGbhBvaZJA— Forum52 (@ForumFiftyTwo) March 5, 2026

Great reminder from Scott Sager at @COCreditUnion published in @CUInsight Use cooperation as a competitive advantage!https://t.co/NOx3S9vTjX— Forum52 (@ForumFiftyTwo) February 2, 2026

Testing our integration to news on Forum52 community.— Forum52 (@ForumFiftyTwo) January 7, 2026