Our November guest is Justin Martin, CEO of TAPCO Credit Union in Tacoma, Washington. Justin has served in this role for four years, but had previously served the industry in various executive roles including CHRO, Chief Marketing Officer, and COO. In his current role, Justin has led the credit union using four strategic pillars - culture, digital, community impact, and data centricity. During this competitive and challenging environment TAPCO believes it all starts with a culture of belonging. This spans their business model both internally and externally, from their employees to their members. He also shares how his background in the training and people area has helped him align people around a common objective and empower them to move forward together. Listen in to hear how Justin and TAPCO's strategy leverages culture to deliver upon their other three pillars.

Interviewers: Shonna Shearson and Nate Burns

Producers: Ryan Kane and Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Jeff Morris, Robert York, James Wileman, and Ryan Olsen.

This month we are joined by Michael Nagl, President and CEO for Centennial Lending, LLC. As a CUSO, which is a company owned by credit unions and for credit unions and its members, Centennial Lending provides an important strategic partnership to the industry. Michael's career journey to credit unions was a "long, strange trip", going from bar/restaurant management, to golf pro, to the industry we all love. WCMS, of course, was an experience that became a turning point in his journey. Listen in if you want to learn more about this history of CUSO's, how they work today, and where they are going in the future!

Interviewers: Shonna Shearson & Nate Burns

Producers: Ryan Kane & Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Robert York, James Wileman, Jeff Morris, and Original Ryan Olsen

This month's guest is an icon of the credit union movement. With a career spanning four decades, Gene Pelham has proven himself an impactful leader across the movement and within the halls of WCMS. His 2022 retirement as CEO of Rogue Credit Union has not ended his impact at all. Gene continues to serve credit unions with a special focus on helping smaller CU's thrive in this difficult environment. His impact at WCMS, since graduating in 1995, is also notable. Upon graduating he was chosen by his classmates as the Charles M. Clark Award recipient at graduation, served on the WCMS Board of Trustees, and was recently awarded the Likens Award by the WCMS Alumni Association. During our conversation today Gene shares with us his approach to leadership and learning, and the importance of continuously building new capabilities within your organization. Listen in and learn from one of the best!

Interviewers: Nate Burns and Shonna Shearson

Producers: Ryan Kane and Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Robert York, Original Ryan Olsen, Jeff Morris, and James Wileman

We are fortunate to have Erin Estelle, Chief Marketing Officer at Valley Strong Credit Union, join us on the Frogcast this month. As a former collegiate and professional athlete, and with a previous career in Retail, Erin has some interesting viewpoints and valuable insights about the credit union movement. Among many things, she shares with us today her leadership of Valley Strong's impressive financial literacy initiative. Covering all aspects of financial wellness, for all stages of members, the CU is making an impact with this effort... and receiving recognition for it. Case in point, Valley Strong received a Diamond Award for their creative approach to youth financial education. Erin graduated from WCMS this year and shares with us why she decided to attend as a senior leader who is new to our industry. Listen in and learn how she, and Valley Strong, aligned and prioritized their work with a heart for impact!

Interviewers: Nate Burns & Shonna Shearson

Producers: Ryan Kane & Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Robert York, Jeff Morris, Original Ryan Olsen, and James Wileman

Today we have a double-hitter as both Darin Woinarowicz and Stefanie Villalobos joining the Frogcast. Darin serves as the President & CEO at Arrowhead CU, and Stefanie as the AVP of Philanthropy & Community Impact with the CU. The Alumni Association has asked them to join us because of their leadership of the ArrowHeart Foundation. Stefanie simultaneously serves as the Foundation's Executive Director and Darin its founder. The ArrowHeart Foundation is an organization intent on helping those Arrowhead neighbors that need it the most. Purposefully working under the radar, the Foundation does everything from awarding higher education scholarships, providing the homeless with items from their closing closet and pantry, and supporting community partners with the same philanthropic aim. Give the episode a listen to learn additional details and hear some inspirational stories about the Foundation's founding.

Interviewers: Shonna Shearson & Nate Burns

Producers: Ryan Kane & Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Robert York, Ryan Olsen, James Wileman, and Jeff Morris

Our June episode is a two-for-one, as we have two credit union leaders and recent graduates of WCMS for you. Marlene Nielsen is the Payments Manager at Granite CU and Elise Schexnayder is the Director of Professional Development for the California Credit Union League. Both graduated from WCMS last year as part of the Phi Class. They join the Frogcast today to talk about public speaking skills. Third year students are required to present a topic to a panel before graduating, and Marlene and Elise had very different reactions to learning this news. Along with their classmates, they decided to schedule some formal practice time for their class. This practice, however, continued well beyond the class presentation itself and became a CU-based Toastmasters group in partnership with the WCMS Alumni Association. Marlene and Elise share with us the growth, skills, and takeaways they gained from their Toasmasters and WCMS experiences.

Thom Back, Director of Education and Client Insights and Analytics at Performance Trust, joins the Frogcast to discuss the current economic landscape and its impact on credit union margins and ROA. He goes on to discuss strategic opportunities and challenges many of his clients are facing, including membership growth and demographics, and today's credit risk profile.

Interviewer: Robert York

Producers: Ryan Kane and Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Nate Burns, Shonna Shearson, Jeff Morris, Ryan Olsen, and James Wileman

Melia Heimbuck, President & CEO of the Credit Union Association of New Mexico, joins the Frogcast this month. Melia has served multiple leagues in her career, and as Principal of Risk Management Solutions for CU Solutions Group. Today, she speaks about the important advocacy work the leagues are delivering today for credit unions. Education, both to elected officials and credit union staff and boards, is critical to the work of the leagues. Speaking of education, Melia goes on to discuss the good work that credit unions are doing to provide financial education to their communities. There are so many impressive and impactful educational efforts happening within the State of New Mexico, which Melia shares today. Listen in and get inspired!

Interviewers: Shonna Shearson and Jeff Morris

Producers: Ryan Kane and Steve Schmidle

Supporting Cast: Nate Burns, Robert York, James Wileman, and O'Ryan Olsen

This month we have the amazing Ronaldo Hardy on the Frogcast! Ronaldo has served in multiple prominent positions within the CU industry including CEO of multiple credit unions, owner of CU Strategic Planning, CEO of NACUSO, and host of an award-winning reality show. Just recently, Ronaldo accepted the CEO position at Balance, a 50-year-old financial wellness nonprofit dedicated to increasing the financial health of all consumers. Financial wellness is becoming increasingly difficult to manage and maintain across our communities, and Balance helps those in need by providing solutions that help people manage their debt, understand their credit, and provide financial planning coaching - among many other services. It is obvious that Ronaldo is driven by his values and his values align with those of credit unions. He shares with us his career story, leadership framework, and how he leaned into his values to make a difference around him. Among the many beautiful nuggets shared by Ronaldo is his personal mission statement. “Change the world by building the people who will change the world“. Give a listen to this episode and get inspired!

One of the WCMS’s long-time supporters, Jim Stickley, joins the Frogcast today to talk all things cyber security. Jim is the CEO of Stickley on Security, where he served as an identity thief (but he is no criminal) for thousands of financial institutions, Fortune 100 corporations, healthcare facilities, legal firms, and insurance companies. Jim is also the CEO of Mahalo, a provider of online and mobile banking solutions for credit unions. Today’s topic of cyber security, and some interesting insights into well known breaches, will be timely and educational for everyone listening.

Interviewer: Robert York

Producers: Ryan Kane and Steve Schmidle

Supporting Crew: Original Ryan Olsen, Shonna Shearson, Nate Burns, James Wileman, and Jeff Morris.