Banking & Finance

Changing environment

By Kristy J. O'Hara

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Rick Foley
President and CEO, Delta Community Credit Union

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About five years ago, Rick Foley recognized that Delta Community Credit Union needed to change.

At the time, the organization had very centralized authority, and people felt like they could-n’t do much on their own.

“I just knew that for our future, that couldn’t be the case,” says Foley, the company’s president and CEO.

He knew that if he wanted the organization to grow, he needed people to feel like they mattered and that they weren’t just doing a job. As a result, he’s spent the last five years fostering a better culture, and his 530 employees can tell the difference — and so can customers. He says that the key to creating a great culture in your organization is to look beyond the money.

“Money lasts 10 minutes, and then you’re looking for the next check. So you’ve got to do more than money,” he says.

Smart Business spoke with Foley about how to create a culture where employees feel valued.

Appreciate your people. Your staff is what makes or breaks you. The management team is just a catalyst to get them to do that.

First, you have to be willing to and actually communicate with people on an ongoing basis. It can’t be sporadic.

You have to do it on an ongoing basis, and you let people know you respect what they’re doing and respect them enough to give them information that, directly or indirectly, they can use in how they handle their own business. You have to have a philosophy yourself that you appreciate what your staff does.

You can’t just ride on top of somebody and steamroll them, because it won’t last long. They’re not doing it for themselves, they’re doing it for you and the organization; you have to appreciate that. When people know they’re appreciated, they’ll do a better job for you. Then you need to surround yourself with people who will also convey that attitude to the staff that what they do is appreciated.

Hire good leaders. I have a HIT program — honesty, integrity and trust — and you have to hit on all three cylinders. I look for people that have that and display that, not only in their business dealings but in their personal lives, because if you live it, you don’t have to show it. It just becomes automatic.

Look for people who display that atmosphere, and that atmosphere just spreads out to the whole employee group.

When I’m talking with somebody in a detailed conversation, no matter what somebody says, you can read their face. You can read their eyes and know whether or not they’re sincere or if they’re just using words.