The Crossroads Credit Union held its 11th annual meeting on April 16 at the Wadena Legion Hall and reported on “yet another strong financial performance.”
The informational message from Walter Ostoforoff, board chair, and Jeff Bisschop, CEO, was focused on members.
“While everything we do centres on helping our members thrive financially, we wouldn’t be here to serve them if we weren’t strong and stable ourselves. We’re pleased to say that Crossroads met all its internal and regulatory targets again in 2018.”
Vital to that strength and stability, along with strong member relationships, are the Crossroads employees.
“We’d like to acknowledge their work in 2018,” said the information. “Each year we ask more of them and they continue to deliver. They face constant changes as we evolve to meet growing regulatory expectations, deliver new products and serve members in new ways. Thriving in this industry means working efficiently and it can be a delicate balancing act to do that without sacrificing member service. We know that it’s not easy, but our employees help make it look like it is.”
Crossroads saw significant growth in 2018, including welcoming several new members due to the closure of the TD Bank in Preeceville.
That growth can be seen in several important 2018 targets and results. The 2018 loan growth target was 3 per cent, with an actual result of 3.66 per cent loan growth. The asset growth (deposits and liabilities) target was 3.11 per cent, with a result of 7.75 per cent. The mutual fund growth target was 15 per cent, the result was 20.86 per cent. The net financial margin target was 2.6 per cent, with a result of 3.14 per cent.
An innovative Management by Committee approach continues to pay dividends. The committee includes: Jeff Bisschop, chief executive officer; Cindy Balaberda, manager of corporate services; Rhonda Fullawka, manager of finance and risk; and Wendy Peterson, manager of retail services.
A capital plan guides the Crossroads approach to managing capital, ensuring regulatory standards are met or exceeded. The plan forecasts capital strength and outlines how to maintain that strength over time. Minimum capital levels are set well above regulatory minimums to meet the needs at Crossroads even in times of significant loss or unplanned growth.
Crossroads has paid out over $5.2 million in patronage payments since 1998. In recent years, stricter regulations have led to a modified approach. For the last couple of years, profits have been allocated to retained earnings to allow Crossroads to meet financial targets and build capital.
2018 marked the beginning of a three-year plan to pay out member equity accounts. The board is reviewing the Member Patronage Program in 2019 to ensure it provides value to members as a whole while allowing the credit union to maintain capital.
In 2018, in keeping with its commitment to community involvement, Crossroads donated more than $18,500 to local organizations and projects, and distributed another $34,500 through its Community Investment Fund (CIF.) Hundreds of members voted to choose which projects received major funding.
Wadena School of Dance was a 2018 CIF recipient and entertained the members at the annual meeting with a group tap dance. On behalf of the School, Angela Fielding thanked Crossroads Credit Union for its donation to the community of Wadena and the Wadena School of dance.
In 2018 Crossroads staff volunteered more than 1,975 hours of their time to projects and community initiatives that were important to them.
Each year, Crossroads helps deserving high school graduates pursue post-secondary education with $2,500 in scholarships. The winners of these scholarships in 2018 were: Dustin Flanders, Paityn Zuravloff, Shayna Dubas, Stephanie Johnson and Tyler Antoniuk. An additional $1,000 scholarship was awarded to Regan Mikush, a student currently attending a post-secondary institution.
In 2019, the focus will be on preparing the Crossroads team for the future. A new training and development plan will be introduced, with a focus on coaching and advice skills. There will be a cultural assessment. A major focus in 2019 will be on ensuring the work environment supports employees and allows the team to operate “as a well-oiled machine.”
Three directors were elected at the meeting to serve three-year terms on the board. In the central district, Betty Tomilin and Kerry Trask were elected by acclamation, while Ivan Peterson was elected in the northern district. The western district did not have any retiring terms.
