Desert Financial Credit Union started its journey in the Valley more than 85 years ago. Serving Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z, the credit union has evolved to meet members at every life stage.
Who better to highlight how Desert Financial meets the needs of its multigenerational members than Jeff Meshey, president and CEO of Desert Financial Credit Union, whose own family is a mix of generations. “I have four daughters,” he says. “Two are Millennials and the other two are Gen Z. I kind of get firsthand experience regularly.”
In addition to navigating the financial needs of his multigenerational household, Meshey is surrounded by different generations in the workplace.
“Gen X and Baby Boomers make up less than 25% of our staff now,” he says. “Gen Z is the highest and Millennials are a pretty close second.”
Meshey adds that experiencing a mix of generational needs makes Desert Financial a strong partner to those the credit union serves, “because we’ve got to manage the team the same way we’re trying to manage members,” he says.
To help ensure all members receive the individualized financial services they need, Desert Financial not only researches diverse generations, but the credit union also pays close attention to what is of most value to its members.
“We want to be inclusive,” Meshey explains. “We don’t want to exclude anyone. But for us, it’s working well because there are some key differences of what people are looking for and what gets their attention. We try hard to listen to member feedback.”
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Gen Z: Building savings and financial confidence
Gen Z is largely identified as a digital generation. According to YouGov, 66% use mobile apps as their primary banking method. Despite a preference and reliance on electronics, many Gen Zers still want a personal touch.
“When they have a question, they want to talk to a real person,” Meshey says. “And we pride ourselves on that. We want to do both.”
Gen Z prioritizes savings, emergency funds and financial education as they begin planning for their future.
“We offer a Free Checking, no minimum balance and a lot of other features to help them,” Meshey notes.
Millennials: Balancing home, career and family
Many Millennials are balancing homeownership, career growth and starting families, often while navigating financial stress.
A recent study revealed that 74% of Millennials, “are at least somewhat stressed about managing their finances.”
To assist in its financial management endeavors, this generation prioritizes financial education and services that help them achieve balance in the areas they’re looking for.
“We’ve got some mortgage programs for first-time home buyers,” Meshey says. “We have a lot of financial education on our website.”
Desert Financial has a dedicated Financial Well-Being web category that enables members to participate in several workshops and webinars covering:
• Wills and trusts
• First-time homebuying
• Medicare
• Wealth management
“We also do a lot of work in the investment space because it’s important for those folks to start thinking about retirement,” Meshey notes, “at least investing in their 401(k)s or starting to think about putting some money aside.”
Gen X: Navigating the sandwich generation
Gen Xers, often called the “sandwich generation,” are balancing the financial and emotional demands of supporting both their children and aging parents, all while beginning to focus more seriously on their own retirement planning.
About one-third of adults in the U.S., ages 40 to 60, report significant emotional, physical and financial strain from their dual caregiving roles.
Meshey underscores that if they haven’t already, Gen Xers are “really starting to think about retirement or putting their kids through college,” adding, “Not only are you having to worry about your own retirement and your kids, now your parents need help. We help support them while they face more complex things now,” Meshey says, “offering wills and trusts. That’s something that a lot of credit unions don’t do.”
Baby Boomers: Planning for long-term security
It’s not uncommon for Baby Boomers to share in the financial burden of caring for aging parents, similar to Gen Xers. Added to this, this generation must also ensure they have sustainable retirement income and long-term healthcare funds.
“I just think there’s a lot of pressure on Baby Boomers we didn’t really think about or plan for,” Meshey says. “We’re planning for our own retirement.”
Meshey adds, “On the wealth side, we’ve got a lot of tools with wills and trusts and advisors that can help with a lot of the paperwork.”
Desert Financial Wealth Management advisors partner with Raymond James Financial Services to help members of all generations devise an investment strategy based on their goals, timeline and risk tolerance.
Gen Alpha and beyond
Desert Financial isn’t just planning for future generations; it already has next-generation financial programs and services in place. On the heels of Gen Z, Gen Alpha’s exposure to financial planning is starting early.
Children can participate in Desert Financial’s Kickstart checking program as early as 6 years old.
“It allows kids as young as 6 to have their own checking account jointly with their parent,” Meshey explains, adding that once they enroll in Kickstart, children can receive a debit card. “You can’t give them cash as you used to, and you didn’t want to give them your credit card. This way, they can have their own debit card, and you can help them manage the account.”
Other ways Desert Financial is meeting diverse generational financial asks:
• Adding Zelle® as an mobile app service for eligible members
• Partnering with New York Times bestselling author and personal finance expert Nicole Lapin to help members enhance financial well-being through advice on budgeting, fraud prevention and credit union benefits
• Enabling members to buy full or fractional shares of stocks and ETFs, as well as utilize a robo-advisor through Desert Financial Digital Investing through the Desert Financial Credit Union mobile app and online banking.
Above and beyond the evolving financial services, programs and educational offerings, Desert Financial continues to anticipate the needs of every generation. Meshey says listening to members’ needs will always remain a priority. “I think for us, it’s about helping people live their dreams and be more successful through better financial management,” he says.
Learn more: desertfinancial.com
