CU*Answers, a 100% credit union-owned CUSO, held their 2017 Annual Leadership Conference and Stockholders Meeting on June 21st at the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The event brought together credit union leadership from across the country for a briefing on the organization’s overall direction and major projects for the coming year.

This year’s conference theme was “It’s a Cooperative Thing: Cooperatives Rock for Being More Than Just a Brand.” The day started with a celebration of the 7 Cooperative Principles, and the agenda for the day revolved around how the cooperative business design gives both the CUSO and its credit unions a unique cooperative advantage. Key topics on the agenda included Overwhelming Our Retail Cultures, Believing that Everyone is a Developer, and Manufacturing Insight and Inspiring Data Awareness as a Currency.

The day-long conference was attended by 207 leaders from 95 credit unions, along with representatives from 30 vendors and 44 internal staff. This year CEO Randy Karnes was joined on stage by nearly a dozen other CU*Answers leaders in the areas of software development and network infrastructure, as well as participants from the 2016-2017 “What Makes Data Valuable?” and “Building Solutions in a Cooperative” Boot Camp focus groups.

At a separate session, CU*Answers stockholders met for the annual board member election and to hear a recap of the CUSO’s financial position and projections for the fiscal year. Representatives from 53 of the CUSO’s 126 owner credit unions attended the evening stockholders meeting, with many more sending their vote electronically or by proxy.