5 minutes
Meet the 2017 CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec Top 15
Derek A. Fuzzell, CPA, CMA
VP/Finance
$3.2 billion Northwest Federal Credit Union
Herndon, Va.
Connect with him on LinkedIn
Watch Derek’s CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec video
Give us the elevator speech about your project (as in how would you describe your project to someone you meet in an elevator?):
As financial institution professionals, it is vital for all of us to understand the role we play on determining the financial impact, health and sustainability of our credit unions. Through the FARE framework series, credit union professionals are introduced to the key concepts of Finance, Accounting, Risk and Economics and how those concepts impact the overall strategy of the credit union as it relates to market focus and differentiation strategies, balance sheet management, interest rate risk mitigation, and operational performance. Through better understanding our financial impact, we as an industry, individual credit unions, and professionals working within the industry can ensure the longevity and vitality of the credit union movement through our daily work.
What is your long-term career goal?
My long-term career goal is to serve as a CEO in the credit union industry, serve on the board of directors for the Institute of Management Accountants, and to continue to love what I do.
Fill in the dots: The future of credit unions will be bright if ...
We, as an industry, become more efficient without losing sight of our true focus: serving our members. Tapping into efficiencies will be our long-run strategy to find sustainability through reducing operating costs for the products and services provide. However, we will have to ensure every step of the way we do not focus solely on efficiency and sustainability at the cost of our strategic advantage related to the service we provide our members.
What my generation brings to the credit union movement is …
The knowledge and experience gained from coming through the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression. While this sounds like a negative, there were many lessons to be learned from this period about the entwined nature of finance, accounting, risk and economics. This generation has faced the hardships of increased unemployment and underemployment in a time period when wages have remained mostly flat, while the cost of living has risen dramatically. Coping with these aspects first hand has given Gen Y the ability to rethink how to serve those who are unserved and underserved by the financial services industry today.
People consider me a leader because …
I tend to jump in and get my hands dirty. I have been privileged to serve on boards of non-profit organizations, in leadership roles for the Institute of Management Accountants at both the local chapter level and the global level, and within my role at the credit union and prior employment. Through these opportunities I have been able to demonstrate my personal goal, to continually improve any organization with which I am involved, and that requires diving into anything that may be needed at that moment.
Who is your hero and why?
Former President Jimmy Carter. He may have gone down as a mediocre president in history (#26 according to a recent CBS News article), but his dedication to and involvement with Habitat for Humanity is unquestionable. After being released from the hospital recently for dehydration, he shows back up to a build site to give to those less fortunate than him. I have always admired his willingness to support and improve society. We also happen to share a birthday (October 1st)!
Who is a must-follow on Twitter?
Though I’m not overly active on Twitter, I really enjoy reading the posts on LinkedIn, Facebook, and occasionally Twitter from The Economist. Their content is often provoking and helps to remind me that some of the issues I face on a daily basis are trivial compared to other issues the world over.
Does your credit union have Twitter/Facebook/YouTube/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram other social media accounts?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorthwestFederalCreditUnion
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NWFCU
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/northwest-federal-credit-union
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/NorthwestFederal
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 am new to CUES, but I am most looking forward to the networking opportunities, both virtual and face-to-face, with so many credit union professionals. I am sure this will be one of the biggest advantages to share ideas of how to continue to grow and improve 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 19 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. 10-12 in Las Vegas, 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. |
