West #2: Matt Vance
Matt Vance is a 28-year-old Marketing & Community Manager with Industrial Credit Union ($135M) in Bellingham, Washington.
Synopsis: Six years ago this May I had a random chance introduction with someone that would forever change my life. After only a brief introduction in restaurant this person decided to take a chance on kid fresh out of college and show me what credit unions were all about. Even after I fully admitted not knowing credit unions even existed.
That introduction would become the catalyst to my start in the credit union movement and eventually take me to my current position today at Industrial Credit Union.
Today, that person is my friend, colleague and most importantly my mentor.
Just like I needed six years ago, all young credit union professionals’ need today is simply, a chance.
- A chance to prove that we care about the future of credit unions.
- A chance to learn from the successes and mistakes from someone who has been there.
- A chance to try new things, even if it means we fail.
- A chance to network honestly and openly with a group of our peers.
- A chance to travel and obtain leading education so we can best prepare for the future.
I’m currently working on 2 projects that address the needs of young credit union professionals and begin to give them these chances.
First – a mentorship program that will match a young credit union professional with a current leader within the industry. It is my goal for these mentoring relationships to be a safe place for both mentor and mentee where they can share, learn and inspire each other.
Second – pass-on the amazing experience I had as a participant at Crash The GAC. This September I’ll be leading a group of local young credit union professionals on a “crash” of our League’s annual convention in Washington State. We’ll buck the conference norm and create our own sessions that are relevant to us by utilizing attending industry leaders.
Today, it is my turn to pay forward the opportunity I was given six years ago when my mentor took a chance on me.
