Dec 22: Vancity receives innovation award

Vancouver, December 22, 2003 – A marketing campaign geared towards the lesbian and gay population has earned Vancity Credit Union the Innovation Award from Credit Union Central of British Columbia (CUCBC).

The campaign included ads in mainstream newspapers and was meant to build affinity with the lesbian and gay population, while publicly acknowledging the diversity of our membership and community. The campaign was recognized as “innovative” because of the extensive consultation with the community and employees and because it was the first time a financial institution had “come out” in mainstream media.

Each year, CUCBC, the provincial credit union umbrella organization, presents the award to member credit unions to showcase new concepts and solutions that can be adapted by other credit unions. Vancity also received the award in 2002 for its online brokerage digital business card.

North Shore Credit Union also received the award for its Customer Relationship Management software system.

Vancity is Canada’s largest credit union, with $9.3 billion in assets, 305,000 members, and 41 branches throughout Greater Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and Victoria. Vancity was chosen as the best place to work in Canada for 2005 by Maclean’s Magazine as part of its annual Canada’s Top 100 Employers issue. Vancity owns Citizens Bank of Canada, serving members across the country by telephone, ATM, and the Internet. Both Vancity and Citizens Bank are guided by a commitment to corporate social responsibility, and to improve the quality of life in the communities where we live and work.