The Chairman of CU*Answers announced at the CUSO’s 2019 Annual Meeting that the CEO would have his twenty fifth anniversary this month.
Many important accomplishments could be listed from this quarter century of management leadership. But I would highlight two critical processes that have contributed to this success.
The first is his ability to always plan ahead, not just manage the present moment. An example was the announcement that the cooperatively-owned CUSO will be investing over $400 million in technology spending in the next five years. That fact underwrites the CUSO’s ability to “pay it forward” for future generations of users and their members. The first rule of technology management is that it requires constant reinvestment.
A second factor oftentimes overlooked, is Randy’s unceasing efforts to encourage participation by all the owners and users of the CUSO. This is accomplished by more than traditional cooperative practice of boards, committees and annual meetings. He constantly invents new ways to incent feedback by owners through boot camps, leadership conferences, board planning sessions, and a never ending deluge of emails seeking reactions.
As important as money may be to sustainability, it can never substitute for passion. And participation encourages passion and cooperative pride of ownership.