Force Multipliers and the Discipline of Great Vendors

By Ed Speed

As a young Army officer in the 1^st Cavalry and 3^rd Armored Division, I was taught the concept of a force multiplier: any capability that dramatically increases effectiveness without increasing the size of the force. Smaller units survive and win not by doing everything themselves, but by multiplying what they have.

That lesson followed me into my years as a CEO. Sustained profitability comes from leaders who understand leverage—what must be multiplied, and by whom.

Excellent vendors are the force multipliers of the credit union industry. 

My understanding, however, began much earlier. My father was the senior executive responsible for purchasing of what is now the largest privately held grocery company in the nation. He taught me:  Always make time to see new vendors, and treasure and respect your existing ones.

His reasoning was not courtesy. It was survival. 

A Standing Commitment

When I became CEO, I adopted the same discipline. I made a standing commitment to my staff: I would meet with any vendor they recommended. No gatekeeping. No prejudice against new ideas.   Every vendor visit held potential. 

That openness came with one unbreakable rule: Vendors were not allowed to begin a presentation with any type of reference to company history, personal credentials, customer lists or telling us how great they are.  They had to start immediately with the specific features and benefits of their product or service—and how it applied specifically to us. If we didn’t need or couldn’t use what they were offering, I didn’t care who they were.   If I like and need the product, there would be time for due diligence. 

Impact, Not Pedigree

Force multipliers (and great vendors) are defined by impact, not pedigree.

My staff made this expectation clear in advance. Vendors we told up front that if they ignored it, the meeting would end. On a few occasions, when vendors defaulted to corporate narratives (signaling they wanted us to buy the who and not what they offered), I stood up and walked out.

What I was enforcing was not presentation etiquette. It was discipline around relevance. A force multiplier that cannot quickly explain how it multiplies your effectiveness is not one.

One More Rule

There was one more rule—and I enforced it publicly.     A good vendor is useless when the client lacks transparency. 

I told vendors often in front of staff, “You cannot be a great vendor if we are not a great customer.”  Then I asked them, again in front of my leadership team: “What must we change to become your best customer, so you can be your best for us?”   I kept asking this over and over during an ongoing relationship. 

That question reshaped relationships. Great vendors know what enables success and what quietly undermines it. By asking it openly, we created mutual accountability. Vendor performance is not something you demand, it is something you enable.

A Customer’s Responsibilities

Being a great customer carries real responsibilities:

• Clear decision authority on both sides. Lack of transparency is one of credit union land’s fatal flaws.  Note:   I promised vendors that the person on our team would have full authority and spoke for us, but they had to promise the same in return.    If the rep on front of us had to go elsewhere for any approval, it was a deal-breaker.  
• A well-defined business problem
• Consistent priorities
• Honest constraints, full budget transparency. 
• Speed of decision-making
• Internal alignment before engagement
• Direct, candid feedback.  The vendor rep had to have full “on the spot” authority.
• Willingness to adapt internal processes
• Shared ownership of outcomes
• Professional respect
• Once selected, giving vendors a seat at the table during staff discussions of products and services.
• Vendors don’t buy our meals, or drinks, but we buy theirs.  Period. 
• No gifts to staff, period.  OK to contribute to CU picnic or holiday party.  

What Can’t be Overcome

A force multiplier cannot overcome confusion, indecision, or undisciplined customers.

In the military, commanders who ignore force multipliers lose battles. In credit unions, the loss is quieter—but no less real. Sustained profitability belongs to leaders who understand that leverage, not heroics, not ego, is the real work of leadership.

Edward Speed is the retired CEO of a multi-billion-dollar credit union and holds a master’s degree in theology. These days, he spends his time serving food, washing dishes, and sweeping floors at a Catholic Worker House, helping homeless senior citizens. email: [email protected]