Community First Credit Union of Florida initiative featured in CreditUnions.com ‘Best of HR 2019’ article

In March, CreditUnions.com wrote an article about Community First Credit Union’s innovative reward program that offers high-performing branch staff experiences rather than cash.

The online publication recently re-featured the article — titled ‘A reward program that takes the cents out of incentive’ — in its rundown of the best HR pieces published in 2019. 

Below is an excerpt from the original article:

It’s been nearly a decade since branch staff at Community First Credit Union of Florida ($1.6B, Jacksonville, FL) collected any form of cash incentive — not that anyone misses it.

Cash incentives didn’t fit into the organization’s culture for several reasons, says Chris Culpepper, the credit union’s sales performance manager, but competitiveness was not one of them. To encourage a sense of service and sales, the credit union sponsors the Community First Games.

Community first divides branch staff into teams, sets product-specific goals to reach within a set time-frame, and rewards the winners with experiences. For example, a team that opens the most auto loans might be treated to a dinner on the credit union’s dime. Every employee voluntarily participates in the program, underscoring the staff’s preference for experiences more than cash.

The article about Community First Credit Union’s incentive initiative was one of five featured in the CreditUnions.com’s Best of HR series. To read the full article, click here. 

Also featured in: CreditUnions.com