SANTA ROSA -- Redwood Credit Union is a not-for-profit financial cooperative, owned by members, who may receive low rates on loans, better rates on deposits, low fees.
“We’re not here trying to serve stockholders,” said Brett Martinez, president and CEO. “Every one of our members is an owner and they benefit by participating in the cooperative.”
Mr. Martinez leads 425 employees in 18 branches from San Francisco to Ukiah, east to Sonoma and Napa, in eight counties. “It has been continually growing,” Mr. Martinez said.
The financial organization was started in 1950. “We don’t focus on revenue because we’re not-for-profit,” he said. “We measure our success on member surveys, employee surveys. We are more financially stable and sound than we have ever been. We stick to who we are.”
The credit union is organized along “a completely different model” than a bank, Mr. Martinez said.
To maintain that spirit of cooperation, “the number one decision we make is who we hire,” Mr. Martinez said. “We have 425 great employees who are passionate about what they do. We’re looking for passion. There are a lot of people who can do the job.”
The credit union’s mission statement is to “passionately serve the best interests of our members, our employees and our communities.”
“Our success is due to the business model and to our employees,” he said.
“We try to have fun on a daily basis,” acknowledging and recognizing employees, Mr. Martinez said. “We tell a lot of stories of success.”
He holds all-staff meetings monthly, about 270 to 280 people each month.
“We’re communicating and celebrating,” he said. Having fun is “up to each individual employee who gets up and comes to work and decides to make it a great day and have fun. Our members appreciate that.”
