When Meridian launched its new corporate strategy, “Meridian for Good,” in April, it established a clear, purpose-driven mandate for itself.

The province’s largest credit union – and the second-largest in the country – spoke clearly about its objectives: “We’re leaning into our bedrock values as a financial cooperative to better integrate our purpose into everything we do,” said Jay-Ann Gilfoy, president of the collective, at the time. The organization plans to “put purpose to action” by delivering financial services and advice to all people, planning for a future that is clean and diverse, and instilling “financial confidence” in its members.

Of course, those are lofty ambitions. Grounding them are some very real promises and commitments. Among these are the embedding of ESG principles into the credit union’s long-term strategy. This includes efforts to work with small- and medium-sized, purpose-led businesses in Indigenous communities; to support businesses working to create or transition to clean energy and other sustainable environmental practices; and reinvesting returns into the credit union itself.

Underpinning much of the strategy is the key promise of investing in digital and analytics. Enter Matthew Seagrim, who joined the organization last month as its chief digital and marketing officer, with a clear mandate to develop the brand’s narrative and integrate its digital platforms to create an omnichannel experience for members, while also launching and refining a partnership strategy in tandem with the credit union’s tech and digital investments to improve upon its member experience.

Seagrim, who joined Meridian after leading a data and analytics transformation for loyalty program Scene+, plays a vital role in the execution of Meridian’s purpose-driven strategy. We sat down with him to discuss his transition into the new position, and how he will help deliver on the commitments Meridian has made.

What are some of the key goals you’ve set as you look ahead to your first six months with the credit union?

We’ve just launched our new strategy this year, called “Meridian for Good.” It really puts into context the organization’s vision over the longer term of how we’ll play in the market and build success both for ourselves and our members. The strategy is really centred around the organization’s purpose: helping our members and customers to achieve their best lives. That applies to both our retail members and business customers.

Part of my role, as I come in, is to help the organization crystallize what that means as we integrate across business lines, digitize, unlock value in our data and seek new ways of bringing the purpose to life for our customers. In my first six months, I’ll be framing out that strategy, building out our priorities over the long term and really putting us in the position to bring our message to market. In my past lives, I learned how far an organization can go when the entire team is connected to its core purpose, and when you align your digital strategy, marketing technology and data to serve that purpose, there’s no limit to how far you can take it.

What opportunities does Meridian see in its data, and what should your hiring signal with respect to those opportunities?

I think the organization realizes there are untapped opportunities it has yet to discover. We have a powerful story, and we know there are consumers across the province for whom that story will have huge resonance. We know that purpose-driven organizations resonate incredibly strongly worldwide, and that consumers in Ontario are hungry to do business with organizations that stand for something.

We know we can bring relevant products and services forward that will be very helpful to members and small businesses and help build stronger communities across the province. But a lot of building that path relies on having a great understanding of who your customers are, and that’s one of the things I bring to the table: I can help leverage the data to build insights, to build a level of personalization into our strategy, and the fun thing about my mandate is that it gives me a terrific opportunity to leverage the combined strengths of our digital and marketing teams, as well as our technology and analytics, to bring our story to life.

What are some of the key challenges you see on the horizon for the credit union?

There are challenges facing consumers and small business owners and operators across the province that are being felt by everyone in this sector. We’re keenly aware that Canadians are facing some significant economic challenges – namely, housing affordability and inflation. These are challenges we need to confront, and a huge part of our strategy is to help our members be more financially confident.

While these are challenges we need to face as an organization, they also present huge opportunities for us to build new products and services that alleviate financial pressure, as well as to take a longer-term view. That’s one of the strengths we have as a cooperative: we are able to make decisions for the long term, without the kind of short-term focus that is increasingly challenging for other financial institutions. And we are in a position where we can really work with small- and medium-sized businesses that are purpose-led and on a path to growth, who are looking for trusted relationships with their financial partners.

What most excites you about the future of Meridian?

I get very excited about possibilities, and as I came into this organization and saw how committed the leadership team – and the team as a whole – is to its purpose, as well as how strongly its business resonates with its members, I became excited about the opportunities within the organization to integrate and execute transformations in critical parts of the business to really bring its message to life.

Throughout my career, I have worked with organizations big and small across a number of different sectors. I felt most satisfied with the work I did not only to build strong businesses, but also where I felt I was doing something to deliver value to members and customers and be a positive influence in society. As I got to know the Meridian team in the weeks prior to joining, that commitment to members, to their communities and to the planet was front and centre, and that was a message that I found incredibly compelling and made me really excited to be a part of this team.