Innovation
P2P Lending
- Describes the major players in the industry.
- Explains the economic and consumer value of P2P.
- Explores the legal issues with which a P2P lending service must contend.
NCUA Staff Brief Filene’s Volunteers During D.C. Visit
Filene’s i3 Group visited the NCUA’s Alexandria, Virgina headquarters on Tuesday, April 8th as part of their Washington, D.C. Spring Gathering.
Old Problems / Young Minds = New Solutions
When you combine a few dozen fertile young minds with a place called Catalyst Ranch in a city like Chicago, you’re bound to get a recipe for change. Filene’s 30 Under 30 group crashed the windy city earlier this month, bringing a bevy of ideas and leaving with an action plan for getting those ideas into real-life products.
Connecting the Dots on Credit Union Collaboration: A Colloquium at the Wharton School
Do credit unions trust each other enough to make collaboration happen? In the face of diminishing margins, increasing expenses, fierce competition, and declining memberships, credit unions must trust each other and collaborate to survive. Connecting the Dots on Credit Union Collaboration: A Colloquium at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, summarizes the key findings of a 2007 colloquium of academics, practitioners and consultants, which was sponsored by Filene in conjunction with the Wharton School.
Filene i3’s “WHAT’S THE BIG IDEA” Boosts Budding Entrepreneurs, and Seeks CU’s to Pilot Program
Millions of baby-boomers are getting ready to leave their day jobs, but that doesn’t mean they’re ready to hang up their spurs. Americans aged 55-64 form small businesses at a higher rate than any other age group. And boomers are more likely to see credit unions as relevant providers of financial services than are other age groups.
With those facts in mind, the Filene Research Institute’s i3 innovation group has developed an online business readiness tool, The Big Idea Evaluator, to help aspiring entrepreneurs evaluate the market-worthiness of their enterprise. The team that developed this tool is now looking for credit unions interested in piloting the idea.
Blueprints for Innovation
Credit unions strive to help members build sound financial lives. But helping members change can be like exercising and eating right: ingrained habits are very difficult to break even when you know what to do.
To help the credit union industry positively inspire its members in new and effective ways, the Filene Research Institute has just released its latest edition of Key Findings: Blueprints for Innovation by Denise R. Gabel, chief innovation officer. The ideas presented within are intended to help credit unions stay future-focused and are meant to encourage fresh thinking on a daily level, while providing the framework to implement ideas.
Tinker Federal Credit Union Employee Kent Sugg Begins Six-Month “Radical Sabbatical” with Filene
Tinker Federal Credit Union in Oklahoma City, Ok., is demonstrating their commitment to the growth of the credit union industry as well as their employee by sponsoring an employee’s six-month sabbatical with Filene Research Institute of Madison, Wis.
Kent Sugg of Tinker Federal Credit Union (TFCU) started his “Innovation Sabbatical” on Jan. 7, 2008. In his role he’ll be using his experience, energy and creativity to putting the Institute’s research and innovation findings into action in their local credit union marketplace. Sugg was recommended to the program for his energy and his willingness to learn and grow, both personally and professionally.
TFCU executive vice president Gary Bartley says he considers this to be a great investment. “We believe this is an important program to support,” says Bartley. “The program is truly a win-win; we look forward to the knowledge Kent will bring back to us and are proud of the contributions he will make to the credit union industry.”
The Mind of Low- to Moderate-Income Savers
Cognitive scientists claim 95% of all human thought is unconscious. New research tools are emerging which can help executives tap consumers’ unconscious thoughts to better understand their preferences. Filene Research Institute recently partnered with Doorway to Dreams Fund (D2D) to test one such methodolgy, called the Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET).