Linn-Co FCU Uses HERO Financial Counseling Training to Be Members’ Hero

Linn-Co Federal Credit Union learned of CU Strategic Planning’s Community Development Certified HERO financial counseling training, and upon seeing a demo of the platform, Chief Lending Officer Carrie Lovell said, “We knew we had to have it!”

HERO Community Development Certified Financial Counseling is essential for credit unions and other organizations serving working-class, moderate- and low-income populations, including organizations that provide counseling, Community Development Financial Institutions and low-income designated credit unions. HERO is designed to give any staff that directly interacts with consumers the skills to better serve them, by improving their financial literacy or by assisting in times of financial hardship.

“We want our staff to have the ability to answer members’questions,” Lovell explained. “This allows for smoother, better communication with our members.” Linn-Co FCU’s lending staff is going through the HERO training to deepen their knowledge of issues members could be facing, she said, while its frontline team members are gaining training in concepts they might not have received otherwise and which may impact their own financial choices.

CU Strategic Planning’s HERO Financial Counselingcurriculum offers nine modules – ranging from buying a car to budgeting to fraud – to prepare financial institution staff to handle a variety of stressful issues consumers bring to them every day. The program is very user-friendly, with a modern user interface and a learn-at-your-pace structure. Participants may only move forward after passing a knowledge-based test following each module. Upon successful completion of all nine modules, staff are become certified Community Development Financial Counselors.

Better yet, the consumers they work with improve their financial stability and creditworthiness, empowering them to build wealth. “We understand the power of providing actionable financial coaching, which is why we recently reinvested in our HERO counseling training with a modern user experience and tracking system to ensure users get the most out of their investment,” CU Strategic Planning VP of Business Intelligence Aaron Duffy said. “We’re glad to see Linn-Co appreciating the upgraded platform and taking advantage of it for many of its staff.”

Lovell added, “Working with CU Strategic Planning has been easy. The product is pretty hands-off, and the few times I have had to reach out, the service has been quick and professional.”