2 minutes
It makes me a little sad to see so many credit union CEOs retiring, leaders who have contributed greatly to CUES and the movement, people I’ve known directly or at least feel like I’ve known through their participation on the CUES Net™ listserv.
At the same time, I’ve very happy for these leaders, as I envision them spending time with families, traveling, volunteering or enjoying whatever activities they’ve been planning for this magical time when 9-5 responsibilities no longer call.
Just as rewarding is seeing who will follow in these CEOs’ footsteps—and imagining the mark the newcomers and their teams will leave on the industry. Many of these next-generation CEOs have graduated from CEO Institute and worked their way through multiple roles and/or credit unions to help fulfill their corner office dreams.
Credit union boards face the ultimate challenge when it comes to selecting replacements for their retiring CEOs. Boards must determine the skills and traits that will best move the credit union forward, advises William A. Stevenson, a senior associate with The ProCon Group, Madison, Wis.
The board’s first step in the process? Stop and take a “selfie.”
This won’t be a shot fit for Facebook, nor will it be of individual directors. It should be a picture “of how the organization operates … the dynamics of how decisions are made, how strategic choices are examined, how difficult decisions are managed ....,” Stevenson writes in “‘Selfies’ of Your CU,” p. 36. In the article, he illustrates how the selfie will help the board figure out “what culture you want for your credit union and whether a particular CEO candidate could get you there.”
This issue also offers advice to the candidates, particularly marketers with an eye on a top credit union job. In “Marketer to CEO,” four chief execs share what it takes to make the move—and why credit unions are more frequently looking beyond finance, lending and operations for their CEOs. “The numbers can be learned and figured,” explains Teresa Y. Freeborn, president/CEO of $1 billion Xceed Financial Credit Union, El Segundo, Calif. “Knowing the consumer is a much more integral process.”
Still, she explains in the article, “Competition for the corner office is intense, so you can’t expect anybody to search you out. You have to put yourself out there and be somebody that others view as a leader.”
Get more advice from Freeborn and three other marketers-turned-CEOs, starting on p. 22.
