EXECUTIVE BIO

David’s leadership skills have been instrumental in building and managing high-performing lending teams. He has successfully developed and implemented innovative lending programs, resulting in increased loan origination, improved profitability, and enhanced customer satisfaction. His strong interpersonal and communication abilities foster collaborative relationships with key stakeholders, including executive management, regulators, and clients.

A work ethic built on values

This is key to a great working relationship for Germann, who has “never worked at a place where people who work together socialise” as they do at Credit Union of America. The same is true for Douglas, who says “getting up in the morning is not a chore” when coming to the office; “the culture and people make it a wonderful place.”

Years spent in the military have taught Douglas to value community in the workplace, “a sense of worth and having great collaboration,” which he has found at Credit Union of America. On the other hand, Germann’s values stretch back to childhood, growing up on a farm.

He remembers: “We had cattle, we had horses, we planted crops. Cattle are fed in the morning, cattle are fed at night, they’re fed in a snowstorm, and they’re fed when it’s 100 degrees. They’re fed whether or not you feel good, whether you’re sick. And so I think the work ethic I developed that influenced me the most in this world came from that.

“Every day you get up, every day you work, and every day you have a job to finish before you’re done.” This ethic has helped Germann consistently achieve, because in lending –much like farming – “you’re only as good as your last month.”

Sustaining a legacy, then growing it

A consistent drive for growth is important when both maintaining and expanding a credit union that has been an ever-constant in Kansas since its inception in 1935. Created by a science teacher in a janitor’s closet at a local high school, with an initial 20-25 members putting in US$5 each for loans (or so the story goes), Credit Union of America has become one of Kansas’ largest, with US$1.5bn in total assets.

While aiming to stick to its roots as a credit union for teachers, Germann notes today the mission is to be “everybody’s credit union.” For Germann, the key to expanding the reach of Credit Union of America is using technology.

He adds: “We never want to forget where we came from even with our growth. But we are a large credit union in Kansas and there’s no reason to be held by the state borders. We want to grow and become one of the largest credit unions in the Midwest. The fear is when you use technology to grow you forget who you are, and we never want to forget who we are.”

Embracing fintechs

Embracing fintechs and the advancements in technology they bring is, for Douglas, a reaction to consumer demand. “We want to meet our customers where they are, creating an environment where they can get to us without having to come to us.”

Partnering with new vendors has already helped Credit Union of America to open online accounts, implement phonebot technology and get parameters in place to create a data warehouse, from which new fintech vendors can integrate with one another and have immediate access to pools of data.

It’s not just about embracing the technological demands of customers today, as Germann points out when he joined Credit Union of America in 2015: “We had just under US$600m in assets then; now in 2023, we’re at US$1.5bn in assets. We have more than doubled in the last eight years as technology has been implemented.”

Not one to shy away from a forwardthinking prediction, Germann believes the growth he has seen since joining the credit union “will be slow compared to the next five years.”

In fact, his claim is far from bold. As the proliferation of technology continues across the financial sector, the key for Credit Union of America now is to ensure “that member experience remains no matter where they are,” according to Douglas.

Part of this is curating the right omnichannel approach, facilitating both the digital and in-person needs of credit union members. Douglas adds: “We’re trying to bring in technology, utilise and build that technology so that the member that comes into the branch and the member that does things online have the same experience with us, regardless of how they interact with us.”

To achieve this omnichannel approach, Douglas feels it important to not “get too far ahead and push away the face-to-face interaction” members are accustomed to.