Meet the team: Lisa Warburton

Tuesday 02nd Mar, 2021

Here, we hear how Chief Operating Officer, Lisa Warburton, has found the past year.

Since the pandemic hit, our staff have been working hard to keep Unify Credit Union services running and to support our members during this challenging time to keep control of their money matters with affordable loans and easy ways to save. Here, we hear how Chief Operating Officer, Lisa Warburton, has found the past year. 

 

How has your role been affected by the pandemic? 

Being a senior staff member, I have had to adapt to home working alongside not being able to work in the office the same time as the CEO to safeguard the running of the business. This has meant our working relationship has had to change and adapt, no longer being able to make decisions quickly and have sometimes even lost the personal touch - zoom and email just isn’t the same.

On the plus side, it has meant I have been working with staff that I would not ordinarily work with on a day-to-day basis. This has helped to build stronger working relationships and a deeper understanding of each other.

Personally, it was a huge loss personally and professionally as we lost our Finance Officer, Peter. 

Peter was the epitome of everything that Unify stands for and was highly respected and loved by all. Our credit union family will never forget him or the contribution he made to not only our credit union but many across the country, over more than 30 years. He’s left a big hole in the team.

 

How has Unify adapted to support members during this time?

It has enabled Unify to streamline a lot of their services benefitting the member and also allowing the member to still have full access to Unify during this tough time. I believe we adapted brilliantly and are still doing so.

 

Have you learned anything about members, the Unify team or yourself during this challenging time? 

At the start it highlighted how some members rely heavily on us and we had to learn how to educate them to be able to do more themselves. We have learned so much more technical uses for our system and on how we operate. For myself, it has truly been a very tough time but I have learned that it is OK sometimes to admit you are not OK and it is OK to take a time out when needed.

 

What advice would you give to members to manage their money in 2021?  

This pandemic has highlighted how your life can be turned upside down in an instant and how having a rainy day pot for any instances can help and relieve a lot of stress caused by financial worries should things change

Since the pandemic hit, our staff have been working hard to keep Unify Credit Union services running and to support our members during this challenging time to keep control of their money matters with affordable loans and easy ways to save. Here, we hear how Sarah Hall, who has worked as a Finance Assistant for Unify for six years, has found the past year. 

  

How has Unify adapted to support members during this time?

Unify has adapted to be able to process all loans online so as not to affect members applying for loans at this challenging time.

 

Have you learned anything about members, the Unify team or yourself during this challenging time?

The members have been really accepting of the branch closures and have taken really well to the new online procedures when they originally didn’t think they could do it. In fact, the majority of members have said they have found it a lot easier and will continue to apply this way.

 

Say hello to the team by getting in touch! 

 

 

 

 

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