LEADERSHIP INSIGHT
Build judgment. Then help others build theirs.
An observation says, “Here is the issue.”
A recommendation adds, “Here is what I think we should do, here is why, and here is what we need to watch.”
If you are preparing for executive responsibility, that shift matters. Look beyond your own function, consider the consequences for others, and make your reasoning visible.
If you already lead, your responsibility extends further: help people develop that ability themselves. Ask for their thinking before offering your answer. Explore the tradeoffs. Give them room to disagree and improve the recommendation.
But be careful with “Bring me solutions, not problems.” People must feel able to raise an important concern before they know how to solve it.
A better invitation is: “Bring me what you’re seeing and your best thinking so far. We can work through what’s missing.”
IN THE KNOW
What to know and how to lead with it
REGULATORY CHANGE: EXERCISE JUDGMENT, THEN CREATE CLARITY
NCUA’s deregulation project raises a practical question for credit union leaders: when a requirement changes, what should your organization do differently?
Separate what the regulation requires, what your internal policy requires, and what remains a useful control. Those are related questions, but they are not interchangeable.
The leadership move: Explain the reasoning behind the decision. If a control stays, help your team understand the risk it addresses. If a process changes, clarify who owns the change and how you will evaluate it.
Preparing for broader responsibility? Bring a recommendation that considers the effects outside your department.
Already leading? Ask the team to assess the options before you announce your preferred answer.
FRAUD COMMUNICATION: GIVE YOUR TEAM CONFIDENCE AND BOUNDARIES
A September 2 joint statement from federal regulators and FinCEN addresses communications about potentially fraudulent activity while protecting Suspicious Activity Report confidentiality.
For leaders, this is also a question of preparation. An employee facing a worried member needs more than an instruction to “be careful.” They need clear guidance, appropriate boundaries, and someone to turn to when the conversation becomes difficult.
The leadership move: Work with your BSA and compliance team to clarify what employees can explain and when they should escalate. Practice a difficult conversation before someone has to handle it alone.
Preparing for broader responsibility? Identify where uncertainty in the process could leave an employee or member without a clear next step.
Already leading? Check whether your team understands the guidance well enough to use it under pressure.
MEMBER FINANCIAL HEALTH: LOOK BEYOND THE AVERAGES
In its May 2026 report on household finances in 2025, the Federal Reserve found that 63% of adults would cover a $400 emergency expense using cash, savings, or a credit card paid off at the next statement.
That is national context, not a measure of your membership. It raises a useful question: are your products and service processes built for members with a financial cushion, or also for those without one?
The leadership move: Compare the research with your own member feedback and financial-stress indicators. Look for a specific gap in savings support, access to small-dollar credit, or help during a hardship before proposing a solution.
Preparing for broader responsibility? Bring one member problem, evidence that it exists, and a recommendation that considers both affordability and credit union risk.
Already leading? Ask lending, operations, and finance to examine the same member need together. Agree on how you will measure whether the response actually helps.
ONE MOVE TO MAKE
Practice judgment from your side of the table.
If you are preparing for broader responsibility:
Choose one real decision and write a short recommendation:
The decision: What needs to be decided?
The implications: Who or what will be affected beyond your function?
Your recommendation: Which path do you favor, and what is its main tradeoff?
The uncertainty: What do you still need to know?
The next step: Who should do what next?
Ask someone outside your function: “What consequence am I missing?”
Revise your recommendation before the meeting.
If you already lead a team:
Choose an appropriate decision you would normally make yourself. Before giving your view, ask:
“What do you recommend, and what led you there?”
Listen for the reasoning. Ask what alternatives they considered and what would change their mind. Then agree on their authority, the next step, and a review date.
Your goal is a sound decision today and someone better prepared to make the next one.
Have a decision coming up? Use this one-page worksheet to organize your thinking before the conversation.
A FINAL NOTE
What happens after someone brings you a problem?
Your response teaches people what to bring you next time.
Curiosity invites more information. A rushed answer can end the thinking too soon. Dismissing an unfinished concern can make the next concern harder to raise.
This week, make one recommendation more thoughtful or help someone else make theirs.
Which is harder for you right now: making the recommendation or giving someone else room to make it? Reply and tell us.
Until next time,
Keep Ascending.