Reputation Risk

By Theresa Witham

Scenario: A large, natural person credit union across the country has just failed. You have voice mail from a local reporter asking for an interview. Or worse, a TV crew is in your parking lot asking about the safety and soundness of your credit union.

Do you have a plan?

At CUES Annual Convention in Orlando last month, Patrick Adams, president/CEO of $188 million/38,000-member St. Louis Community Credit Union, St. Louis, said credit union leaders, including board members, need to “be ready to fend off reputation risk.”

“We have a plan, but I am worried about the industry as a whole. It’s one of the things that keeps me up at night,” Adams said.

The board of directors needs to worry about this stuff, he said. “Make sure that the board is independent and transparent and has a plan of action to fend off reputation risk.”

Do you have a plan? A response already crafted that you can pull out and tweak as needed? 

Read more from Adams’ CUES Annual Convention session.

And read:

PR Insight: Are You Ready for a Crisis?

PR Insight: Communicating in Crisis

PR Insight: Crisis and Disaster Management: Are You Prepared?

Theresa Witham is a CUES editor.