COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Do More for the Communities You Serve
Your credit union is built upon a cooperative mission. The question is how to reach the members of your community that need it most, and find opportunity through member-focused lending, certified programs, and funding that allows your impact to spread deeper into your community.
That takes specialized expertise most credit unions don’t have in-house: navigating CDFI certification, building compliant grant applications, designing outreach that actually builds trust, and finding leaders who can carry the work forward.
CU Strategic Planning is Callahan’s community development practice, bringing specialized experience in CDFI programs, grant funding, lending growth and community engagement to the broader strategy, performance and purpose work Callahan delivers to credit unions nationwide.
Together, we help credit unions better understand the communities they serve, identify opportunities to meet unmet needs and build sustainable approaches to expanding access and opportunity.
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Community Development Expertise for Credit Unions
CDFI certification can open new opportunities to expand lending and investment in underserved communities. Our team helps credit unions pursue and maintain certification, compete for CDFI Fund grants and meet ongoing reporting and compliance requirements. And we’ve won more awards for CDFI credit unions than any other firm.
Bringing a community development lens to the strategic questions facing your credit union can help you understand and serve your members better. Our specialized consulting helps uncover unmet lending demand, identify product and service opportunities, and connect growth strategies more closely to the people and places you serve. From focused analysis through the Lending Growth Blueprint to deeper CU Results engagements, this work provides insight into community development, lending and market opportunities that can inform broader strategic planning and decision-making.
The organizations working in your community can provide insight no data set can capture on its own. Community Development Summits bring your credit union together with nonprofits, agencies and community leaders to identify needs, build relationships and uncover opportunities for greater impact.
Leadership matters, particularly for credit unions with a strong community development mission. Our executive search team combines deep credit union relationships with firsthand knowledge of CDFIs and mission-focused institutions to help boards find leaders equipped for what comes next.
Equip employees to provide meaningful support when members face financial challenges. HERO Community Development Certified Financial Counseling gives frontline staff practical skills to help members strengthen their financial health while building trust and creating opportunities for responsible lending.
Put Your Purpose to Work in Your Community
Whether you’re pursuing CDFI certification, looking for new ways to expand lending or working to deepen your credit union’s impact, our community development team can help you determine what comes next. Learn more at custrategicplanning.com or let us know your interests below and we’ll be in touch.