4 minutes
Branch Manager
$1.4 billion America's First Federal Credit Union
Birmingham, Ala.
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Give us the elevator speech about your project (as in how would you describe your project to someone you meet in an elevator?):
In February, America’s First opened our newest branch, which is our first to deviate from a traditional branch concept, which involves staff that are trained for every job role as well as an open floor plan that replaces the teller line with dialogue towers. In order to operate the branch with a smaller staff, we have implemented technological solutions, such as ARCA Cash Recyclers and electronic signature capture on iPads. The result should be a better experience for our members as well as an efficient and profitable branch for America’s First.
What is your long-term career goal?
I love the member-facing and branch operations environment because I get to see first-hand how we help our members. I would enjoy the challenge of supervising a branch network as a first step toward other executive responsibilities.
Fill in the dots: The future of credit unions will be bright if ...
We can connect with millennials, but they present a paradox. While their values closely align with the credit union movement’s values, their love of technology and quest for the next big thing seem to send them bouncing from competitor to competitor. Credit unions have to find a way to get them involved in the movement.
What my generation brings to the credit union movement is …
My generation brings enthusiasm and a desire to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Due to advances in technology, we are more socially engaged than ever before; we want to be connected and help other people. In short, we are ideal credit union members but may not know it yet.
People consider me a leader because …
I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty and work beside them. I try to be the first one in the door in the morning and the last one to leave at night. A leader needs to work harder than they ask their employees to do.
Who is your hero and why?
I believe the term hero should be used very rarely and should be reserved for those that risk their life or freedom. That being said, I admire Walt Disney a great deal. He overcame a great degree of adversity and built one of the most successful companies in history. Along the way, he never stopped having fun or trying to bring happiness into the lives of his customers. I have a poster of him hanging on my wall that says “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” That quote motivates me on a daily basis.
Who is a must-follow on Twitter?
The people that I follow on Twitter are an eclectic group that mainly covers college football, business news, and local issues. I recommend @carlquintanilla for a good mix of business and general news as wells as @claytravis for college football.
Does your credit union have Twitter/Facebook/YouTube/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram other social media accounts? Please provide links:
LinkedIn: America's First Federal Credit Union
Facebook: America's First Federal Credit Union
Twitter: America's First Federal Credit Union
What is your favorite CUES member benefit? Or, if you are a new CUES NextGen member, what benefit are you most looking forward to using?
I’m looking forward to becoming a member of CUES. In particular, I am most excited about being able to use CUES Net and interact and exchange ideas with others in the credit union movement.
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Online voters and a panel of past finalists narrowed the CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec field from 20 to the Top 15 applicants. The challenge, held in conjunction with DDJ Myers and administered by Currency, searches for emerging leaders age 35 and under from within the credit union industry. The Top 15 will blog about their project. And to provide additional value to the competition experience, they’ll each receive an executive coaching session from DDJ Myers, a CUES Supplier member and strategic provider. A judging panel of two CUES members and Deedee Myers of DDJ Myers will then score the Top 15’s applications and blog posts, narrowing the competition to five finalists. The five finalists will receive additional coaching, airfare, accommodation and registration to CUES’ CEO/Executive Team Network™, Oct. 23-26 in Savannah, Ga., where they will give their final presentations. The 2016 CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec will receive further coaching, airfare, accommodation and registration for two CUES’ CEO Institutes, a total prize package valued at $20,000. |
