This past week, seven credit unions revealed new hires, promotions and appointments. Plus, CUES and CU Members Mortgage added new talent to their executive teams.
WEST
The $640 million AltaOne Federal Credit Union in Ridgecrest, Calif., hired Gary Petersen as the new contact center manager. Petersen brings to AltaOne significant experience and expertise in areas such as operations management, customer service, planning and compliance. Petersen comes to AltaOne via Wells Fargo in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., where he served as vice president/collections manager and assistant vice president/operations manager.
The $1.2 billion Altura Credit Union in Riverside, Calif., announced three executive staff changes.
Robert Whitton (pictured) was promoted to COO. As COO, Whitton oversees the member service center, member service center support team and all branch locations. Whitton originally joined Altura in 2004 as a member service representative and has steadily moved up through the organization. He takes over the COO position from Jennifer Binkley who was recently named president/CEO.
Christopher Andrus filled the newly created position of chief culture officer, in addition to serving as president of Altura’s CUSO Auto Expert, an auto locating and buying service.Andrus joined Altura in 2003 and moved through the ranks to become president in 2008. In his new role as chief culture officer, Andrus will manage internal and external brand and culture development strategies. In this new alignment, Andrus will oversee marketing and business development.
Aaron Lynn was promoted to vice president of Auto Expert. Lynn joined Auto Expert in 2007 as a sales advisor and in 2008 was promoted to regional sales manager. In 2015, he again filled the recreated position of sales manager. As vice president, he now oversees day-to-day operations, including vendor and partner relationship management, and member service resolutions. He also manages a 15-person team of sales advisors and a small back-office team.
EAST
The $960 million St. Mary’s Bank, the nation’s first credit union, located in Manchester, N.H., promoted Karen Mayrand to SVP, director of residential lending. Mayrand joined St. Mary’s Bank in 2011 and has more than 25 years of experience as a mortgage professional. Mayrand leads a dynamic sales team developing business state-wide. Mayrand also oversees strategic direction and sales production, identifying business trends, strategies and tactics.
Dr. Michelle Nearon, the associate dean for Graduate Student Development and Diversity of Yale University, was named the new chair of the board at the $6.9 billion Bethpage Federal Credit Union in Bethpage, N.Y. Nearon is the first female chair for the Bethpage board. She succeeds Don Balducci who served as chair from 2014 to 2017.
MIDWEST
The $600 million LAFCU in Lansing, Mich., promoted Todd Thelen to vice president of facilities. The 24-year LAFCU veteran succeeds Todd David, who retired as facilities manager. The position was retooled with expanded responsibilities that include development and deployment of strategic initiatives involving the credit union’s nine branches, coordination of building allocation and expansion activities, and building research, modification and profitability analysis.
SOUTH
The $681 million Dade County Federal Credit Union in Sweetwater, Fla.,selected Adam Blanco as vice president of internal audit. Blanco comes from Gibraltar Private Bank and Trust in Miami where he served as vice president of internal audit for the past six years. Prior to that, Blanco served as senior auditor, assistant vice president for BankUnited.
The $3.1 billion Northwest Federal Credit Union in Herndon, Va., hired Joe Hasto (pictured) as SVP/CFO. Hasto will oversee Northwest Federal’s accounting, finance and risk management teams as well as participate in the overall strategies of the credit union as part of the executive team. Hasto brings more than 23 years of credit union experience to the position.
TRADES
CUES in Madison, Wis., hired Antonio (Tony) Hill as SVP/chief marketing officer, a position new to the membership association. Hill previously served as vice president/marketing at CSCU, where he was responsible for managing the CSCU brand and all marketing initiatives. Hill brings more than 20 years of marketing experience across multiple industries to the position.
VENDORS
CU Members Mortgage in Addison, Texaspromoted three staff members to executive sales consultants. In their new roles, they will create a custom mortgage solution for each individual credit union or CUSO and guide them through the detailed training program. As their liaison, they will also direct their marketing efforts to maximize effectiveness.
Carrie Fenwick (pictured) was promoted to executive sales consultant for the Rocky Mountain region serving credit unions in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming.
Nita Haas was promoted to executive sales consultant for the Midwest region serving credit unions in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Daniel Berrier was promoted to executive sales consultant for the West Coast region serving credit unions in Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.
Please send your People news items to Tahira Hayes at thayes@cutimes.com.
