August 27, 2010

The response to the CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec challenge was huge! In total 41 people entered. Their projects were inspiring, unique and innovative. Public voting narrowed the field down to six finalists. Learn more about them here. The finalists will present their final presentations—and the Next Top Credit Union Exec will be selected—at CUES’ CEO/Exec Team Network, Nov. 7-10 in Dallas. But for the next several weeks, we will be checking in with one of the non finalists to see how their project is going and learn a bit more about these next generation leaders.

Amanda Thomas
Marketing & Business Development Manager
Members First Credit Union
Columbus, Ohio
CU’s Twitter page
CU’s Facebook page

What is the best thing that has resulted from you entering the CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec competition?

The experience from the competition was certainly the best thing that has resulted from my being a contestant. It takes a lot of preparation, time, confidence (and guts!) to enter a national competition and put yourself out on such a huge stage in front of so many people who you respect. From the time I decided what idea I would use as my "pilot" project to the execution of the video and submission of the entry, it was a wonderful experience to be part of something that has never been done before. And it gave me the courage to keep trying, and taught me that it's OK to give myself credit for good ideas!

Give us the elevator speech about your project (as in how would you describe your project to someone you meet in an elevator).

Credit unions plus cutting-edge technology don't often get used in the same sentence, especially by consumers. This is why we took the Twitter technology and tied it to our digital billboard campaign to engage the local social media community. When we started the campaign, we were the only company to be doing this in the United States! The Twitter Billboard allows us to update our message as often as we like and reach thousands of potential members who drive by our digital billboard everyday as they go to and from home, and to the plethora of restaurants and stores throughout the bustling metropolis of Columbus.

What progress on the project have you made since entering the competition?

We met our membership goal this year by July (we didn't even reach that same goal in the entirety of 2009), and our consumer loan growth has increased despite a very sluggish local economy.

What is your long-term career goal? (What do you want to be when you grow up?)

I'd love to continue to grow my credit union, and eventually travel around the country to credit unions and conferences sharing the knowledge I've learned over the past eight years of being in credit unions. I love to bake, too, so I'd have to fit that in there somewhere as well! Maybe the official credit union bakery?

Fill in the dots: The future of credit unions will be bright if ...

The rock star leaders I see out there continue on with the amazing things that they are doing. People among the movement will continue to join the ranks and that shift we've all been waiting for will happen: Credit Unions will dominate one day!

Who is a must-follow on Twitter?

SO MANY! @morrischris @kelleyparks @jimmymarks @jrwlay and @denisewymore are among my favorite credit union Tweeple.

Check out Amanda’s Next Top Credit Union Exec entry video.