How we create a member-obsessed culture at Chime®

“We don’t call the people who use Chime ‘customers,’ and that’s on purpose,” explains Chuck Liu (he/him/his), Chime’s Head of User Research. “Instead, we refer to them as ‘members.’” Here’s why:

• Our members are humans and they’re inherently part of our company: intentionally choosing to call them members helps us always be on their side. “The truth is, our members could choose to be with any bank* at any time,” Chuck explains. “By calling them members, we’re also reminding ourselves that we should keep their best interests in mind and treat them well.”

*To be clear, Chime is not a bank. Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by, and debit card issued by, The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC.

• We’re an active part of new behaviors and habits — and take responsibility for that: In today’s world, people are more adaptive than ever and use phones so naturally that we often forget that some of their mobile experiences are their first time doing something, ever. A lot of folks have their first financial experiences on digital platforms and are forming habits on Chime. “That’s a huge responsibility for us to craft experiences that are positive, inclusive, give our members confidence, and will set them up for success,” Chuck says. “We strive to be a resource for them and to be a human-centered company, not just a fintech or technology company.”

In this post, we’ll take a closer look at our guiding company value to “Be Member-Obsessed” — how it manifests in the way Chime operates and how we put it into practice every day.

Why being member-obsessed matters

Chime views its success when we see our members succeed, and to do that, we feel it’s necessary to do our best work as a team. “It’s our belief that great teams make the best products and produce amazing outcomes,” says Chuck. “But being member obsessed alone isn’t enough — we have to work with others to turn our member obsession into results for our members themselves.”

One central way that Chime — and Chimers — stay focused on our members is by defining success in terms of our members. “Many businesses do this in terms of the business — such as through revenue or conversions,” explains Chuck. “Of course, we track those metrics, but our true sense of success depends on outcomes we’re able to create for members — do they have more money in their account before their next paycheck? Have they grown their savings? Are they using features intended for emergencies less? Instead of optimizing for people to spend as much as possible, we optimize for their financial health — which can seem counterintuitive to traditional business metrics sometimes.”

How a member obsession helps Chime — and Chimers — be successful

Our member obsession starts with deep empathy and understanding of their reality. Chris Britt, our CEO, was raised by a single mother who worked tirelessly to support him and his siblings. “I myself am a child of immigrant parents who moved to the US with a lot of uncertainty on how to make ends meet,” Chuck says. Many Chimers share experiences common to those of our members — living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to save money or build credit, and feeling anxiety about financial responsibilities.

When it comes to understanding our members and their ever-changing needs, we rely heavily on research and getting to know them. “It’s normal in tech — and in major cities — to be caught in a bubble of sorts,” Chuck says. “Because of our commitment to research and the deep understanding of our members’ reality stemming from their own experiences, our leaders constantly check themselves, and Chime, to make sure we’re not making decisions in a bubble.”

When Chime’s leaders brought Chuck onto the team, it was to start the research function at our company. “They wanted everyone to understand our members’ problems in a human, empathetic, and strategic way,” he explains. “They knew that in order to put our members’ needs first, we’d need more than just one person working on it — that’s why they’ve empowered me to build an entire research organization that helps Chime develop a deep understanding of our members and hold Chimers accountable for the choices we’re making and how they affect people’s lives.”

When he joined the team, it was just him — now, Chuck’s team is nearly 30 people in User Research and Research Operations who act as thought partners across Chime to help others make member-led decisions. “While we can’t be everywhere, we can inspire Chimers to make decisions as advocates for our members,” he says. He’s learned that while the team can’t scale to be embedded on every single team at Chime, what can scale is for Chimers to act as everyday champions — empathy does scale.

To do that, Chuck and his team create moments for Chimers to connect with members regularly. “We democratize access to our members by inviting Chimers to sit in on studies and interviews — after all, there’s nothing more powerful and inspiring than seeing someone using the product you’re working on,” Chuck says. “It provides context and helps Chimers see their work is real — and really making a difference.”

Every time a Chimer observes the Research team’s interactions with members, it encourages them to continue to be a thought partner with research and empowers them to make good decisions and answer: “What is the right thing to do for our members?”

Our member obsession in the day-to-day

Chime’s member obsession shows up in our daily work in many ways. For Chuck and the research team, staying member-obsessed is part and parcel of their roles, but still requires a unique mindset: “We almost have to assume we know nothing and adopt a beginner’s mindset — though we work in this industry and make fintech products and services, most of the time, we’re not our own user, so we have to start there,” he says. Instead of coming at problems with already baked solutions, which can be dangerous, Chuck and his team do their best to understand what it’s like to be in our member’s shoes.

“I like to use giving directions as a metaphor for our work: If you’re asked for directions in your own neighborhood, you can give them off the top of your head,” Chuck explains. “But those directions are relative to your knowledge of landmarks, areas, and streets. They’re only truly helpful if the other person knows the places you’re talking about. User Research, internally, helps all Chimers remember that this is uncharted territory for many of our members, and to think about the decisions Chime makes with a big focus on being intentional and thoughtful.”

Across Chime, the Research team brings knowledge and insights to others to think about, constantly sharing information so that every Chimer can be informed about our members’ experiences. And on Slack, we have a Research-Ask channel where any Chimer can ask questions about members and the Research team can share resources and data. Finally, researchers are embedded in every part of the business so research — and therefore, the voice of our members — is always part of the conversation. That means that in strategy meetings, planning conversations, design reviews, and more, research is chiming in and helping everyone stay obsessed with our members.

Always learning from our members

One thing that Chuck has noticed over the years of his work at Chime is that, even though he thought he’d relate closely to our members, he’s constantly humbled when talking to them. “No matter our members’ ages or life trajectories, they each have unique experiences that have shaped their financial realities,” he says. “Every time I learn more about our members, I’m reminded that we can’t assume we know anything and must start at the beginning. I’m always inspired by their creativity and resourcefulness — like knowing the best place to buy toilet paper, down to the cents per sheet.”

“I’ve learned so much from our members and still have so much to learn about personal finances — they know more than we do, really,” he adds. “Our members are why we do what we do and constantly challenge and question why things are the way they are — it’s by listening to them that we’re able to deliver what they really need, and that’s what Chime is here to do.”

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