Fifteen CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec Applicants Advance

Voting has ended and the 2015 CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec challenge has narrowed to the Top 15 applicants. CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec (NTCUE) competition – held in partnership with DDJ Myers and powered by Currency – searches for emerging leaders age 35 and under from within the credit union industry.

 “Entering our sixth year of this challenge, we are encouraged to see the deserving young leaders the credit union world continues to nominate for this award. Applicants from three Canadian provinces and 12 U.S. states submitted an entry video. After putting the applicants to a public vote, we were thrilled to see thousands of people voting,” said John Pembroke, CUES’ president/CEO.

The top 10 vote-getters automatically advanced in the competition, and five additional applicants were chosen by a judging panel of former NTCUE finalists to round out the Top 15.

Named to the Top 15 in the CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec competition are: 

  • Hayley Badeaux, 29, Chief Operations Officer at Shell Geismar Credit Union, Geismar, La., USA
  • Matt Beckett, 30, Private Wealth Advisor at Coastal Community Financial Management Inc., Courtenay, B.C., Canada
  • Danielle Buscher, 30, Learning and Development Manager at West Community Credit Union, O’Fallon, Mo., USA
  • Brittney Dessart, 23, SEG & Social Media Coordinator at PCM Credit Union, Green Bay, Wis., USA
  • Nathan Dormody, 35, Branch Manager at Royal Credit Union, Edina, Minn., USA
  • Molly Gary, 25, Marketing Research Specialist at Ent Federal Credit Union, Colorado Springs, Colo., USA
  • Ally Haegele, 24, Collections Specialist at Rocky Mountain Credit Union, Helena, Mont., USA
  • Jimese Harkley, 35, Philanthropy and Community Relations Manager at America’s First Federal Credit Union, Birmingham, Ala., USA
  • Jae Kim, 32, Branch Manager at Servus Credit Union, Edmonton, Alta., Canada
  • Ryan Manis, 29, Regional Branch Manager at Kohler Credit Union, Kohler, Wis., USA
  • Karen Myers, 32, Member Experience Manager at Community Choice Credit Union, Farmington Hills, Mich., USA
  • Joshua Poole, 34, Chief Lending Officer at Shell Geismar Credit Union, Geismar, La., USA
  • Candice Thiry, 33, Branch Manager at PCM Credit Union, Marinette, Wis., USA
  • Garrick Throckmorton, 35, Assistant Vice President Organizational Development at Allegacy Federal Credit Union, Winston-Salem, N.C., USA
  • Kris Wanner, 34, Investment Specialist at Conexus Credit Union, Regina, Sask., Canada

The Top 15 will now submit a blog post update about their project to www.NextTopCreditUnionExec.com. 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 DDJ Myers CEO Deedee Myers, Ph.D., will then score the Top 15’s applications and blog posts, narrowing the competition to the Final Five, who will move on to the finals.

 The five Finalists will receive additional coaching, airfare, accommodation and registration to CUES’ CEO/Executive Team Network™, November 8-11 in Scottsdale, Ariz., where they will give their final presentations. The winner will receive further coaching, airfare, accommodation and registration for two CUES’ CEO Institutes, a total prize package valued at $20,000.

Follow along with the next stages of the competition, by checking the website frequently.

CUES Next Top Credit Union Exec team

2015 Competition, UpdateCUES Next Top Credit Union Exec Team