By, Stuart R. Levine Published in Credit Union Times Zara is the flagship store of the Inditex group, the world’s largest clothing retailer. The company is an excellent example of how putting the customer in control, having collaboration infused into the culture, building seamless communication into the organization, using “Big Data” in day to day [...]

By, Stuart R. Levine Published in Credit Union Times October 2012 This past month at the Credit Union Leadership Forum’s Edu-Leader® Leadership Learning Series we focused on Innovation.  I thought it would be valuable to share some of the day’s learning as we all face the challenge of how to innovate, which can be one [...]

As the presidential campaign intensifies, I am struck by the common sense opportunity for all of us in the credit union world to come together and start to turn this country around. There is a practical way that we, as mission-driven people, can assert leadership and re-infuse energy into our communities. My suggestion is that [...]

Lately in our business, I have observed a disturbing trend. Companies are on a shorter planning cycle, and long term planning and visionary thinking is difficult to achieve. However, visionary planning informs every future decision, including hiring the right talent on both your management team and board. Too few leaders spend time talking about these [...]

As we begin the new year, most CEOs and C-Suite executives are thinking about how to strengthen the leadership team and management to best execute on strategy. Some leaders may have the “gene” that inspires them to naturally keep learning about the world and how it will impact their business. But many don’t have that [...]

As we go deep into the fourth quarter of this year, I’d like to reflect upon lessons learned as well as thoughts for the new year and beyond. This morning, after Thanksgiving day, I walked through my rose garden. In some strange way, there were still roses in bloom, unlike most species whose leaves and [...]

Last week I attended a conference in New York City hosted by the National Association of Corporate Directors.  Core to this organization is the belief in education of directors who serve shareholders and other important stakeholders. Here are some directional issues that will redefine standards and behaviors and will require boards to transform their governance [...]

This past year IBM released it fourth edition of their biennial Global CEO Study series entitled,  “Capitalizing on Complexity.”  Over 1500 global CEOs were interviewed in person, throughout 60 countries and across 33 industries.   The insights gained from this study have major implications for how leaders should view strategic planning, valued leadership qualities and decision-making [...]

I’ve spent the last two months with clients on the road visiting eight cities in the United States and making two trips to Europe. My meetings stimulated some thoughts that I would like to share with you. Michael Dowling (CEO of North Shore-LIJ) concluded his remarks to our Board retreat last week with the following [...]