PALM DESERT, Calif.— Mitchell Stankovic & Associates will host an “Underground” meeting and discussion in conjunction with next week’s REACH Conference, with the registration fee waived and replaced with an optional contribution to the Shapiro Credit Unions, the organization of smaller, community-focused credit unions in California, Nevada and Utah, the three states that are hosting the REACH meeting.
The event is scheduled for Nov. 4 from 1-4 p.m.
“The future of the credit union movement will not be defined by the size of individual institutions. It will be defined by their willingness to work together,” Mitchell Stankovic said. “At the UNDERGROUND @ REACH 2026, credit union leaders, CUSOs, strategic partners, innovators, and cooperative champions will gather to explore a bold premise: the future is not big or small. It is about leveraging the power of all. “
The organization said the meeting is built around the theme “The Next Chapter of WE,” and the UNDERGROUND Shared Services Summit will challenge “the movement to move beyond traditional boundaries and consider how cooperation can become a strategic advantage.”
While discussions often focus on the differences between large and small institutions, UNDERGROUND asks a different question: “What becomes possible when the movement acts as a connected system rather than a collection of individual organizations?” Mitchell Stankovic said.
Not About Big Vs. Small
“The future of the credit union movement is not about big versus small,” Susan Mitchell, founder and CEO of Mitchell Stankovic & Associates, said in a statement. “It is about leveraging the power of all. When we stop focusing on the size of individual institutions and start recognizing the scale of the cooperative system, we unlock opportunities that no organization can create alone. That’s the conversation we intend to have at UNDERGROUND.”
According to Mitchell Stankovic, throughout the summit, participants will engage in candid conversations about partnerships, shared services, succession planning, governance, cooperative investment, compensation, sustainability, and influence. Sessions will challenge attendees to rethink assumptions about scale and explore how large institutions can create opportunities for broader participation while smaller organizations can exercise influence well beyond asset size, the company added.
” ‘WE’ is more than a theme: It is a call to action,” according to Mitchell Stankovic. “The next chapter of the movement will be written by leaders willing to think beyond their own organizations, invest in shared success, and build solutions that strengthen the cooperative system for future generations.”
