Mutually Strategic
Linking Member and HR Strategy in Mutual
Organisations:
Lessons from Credit Unions
Leanne Cutcher
Work and Organisational Studies
Faculty of Economics and Business
University of Sydney
The Balanced Scorecard

Member perspective –
the ‘value proposition’

Financial perspective

Internal perspective –
how to improve
operations

Learning and growth
perspective
(Kaplan and Norton 2001)
Members
Financials
/Processes
Learning and
Growth
Learning and Growth Perspective

Strategic competencies

Strategic technologies

Climate for action
(Kaplan and Norton 2001)
Strategic Issues and Initiatives




Member Service Strategy

NSW Teachers Credit Union

Holiday Coast Credit Union

Envision (BC, Canada)

VanCity (BC, Canada)
A sense of place and and
organisational identity
Training
CSR
Serving not selling

Discourse of enterprise (du
Gay 1996)

Organisational Climate
(Schneider, et al 2005,
Schwartz and Davis 1981)

Shifting the psychological
contract (Rousseau 1995,
1998)

See Cutcher 2008a
NSW Teachers Credit
Union
No! No! we don’t say the ‘C’
word. That gets knocked out
of people very early on. In
orientation we will get people
in and they have worked in
banks and other service
organisations and so they
refer to customers but I
would say by the time they
leave orientation they know it
is members (Human Resource
Manager, NSW Teachers
Credit Union).
Member and Staff Equality
Psychological Contract
Honouring the Contract:




Increased OCB
High job performance
(Sturges, et al 2005)
Development of a
strong service climate
Extra service role
behaviours (Schneider
et al 2005)
Breaching the Contract:




Turnover (Sturges, et
al 2005)
Diminished OCB
(Coyle-Shapiro &
Kessler 2000)
Increased mistrust
(Macquire 2002)
Reduced job
satisfaction (Deery, et
al 2006).
Place as Locale = Geographical bonds
Most people still live their
lives locally their
consciousness is formed in
a distinct geographical
place (Massey 1984 117).
“They are aware they know
us. We were born and
bred here and they know
us. They know that they
can trust us” (MSO)

See Cutcher (2008b)
Strategic CSR

Outside-in linkages

Three approaches:
Kramer 2006)




(Porter and
Generic social issues
Value chain social impacts
Social dimensions of
competitive context
Integrated, affirmative
approach
Vancity
$1,000,000 award yearly
We’re looking at all of our
granting and saying, we’re
like sowing seeds out there
and all that’s good but can
we be more strategic,
should we be more
strategic, how should we
do this, should we leverage
money in a different way
than we have in the past
(Chair, Vancity, November
2007).
Training

A possible model of
engagement

HRD Dimensions:



Intensity
Form
Sponsorship mix
(Niehoff and Bunch 1992)

University and Cooperative partnerships
References
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