Press
Mazuma Credit Union President/CEO Announces Retirement
For Immediate Release
Contact: Angela Edwards
E-mail: aedwards@beyondmarketingllc.com
Phone: 913.541.1255, Ext. 5525
(KANSAS CITY, Mo., May 19, 2011) – Mazuma Credit Union President/CEO, Rob Givens, announced yesterday that he will retire from the $448 million credit union effective January 1, 2012.
Givens said, “I want to express my gratitude and praise for the support everyone has provided me throughout my career in the credit union industry, especially here at Mazuma,” Givens announced at an All-Team Meeting with staff members yesterday. “Working with such dedicated and hard-working people has been a joy and an honor I will value for the rest of my life.”
Givens has spent more than 25 years in the credit union industry, holding leadership positions at seven credit unions in California, Nevada and Missouri varying in asset size from $75 million to more than $2 billion.
“I’ve enjoyed my time at each credit union but at Mazuma in particular because of the enhancements and growth we have seen over the last 10 years,” said Givens.
Givens began his career at Mazuma in 2001. Since that time, the credit union has grown from $230 million in assets to more than $448 million while increasing Mazuma’s membership to more than 52,000 members strong and operating 10 branches within three county area.
“The Mazuma team and I take great pride in the accomplishments we have achieved. We are particularly proud of a new style of management/Member engagement called ‘The Experience’ that we implemented in 2008 hoping our members have more than great service but a one-of-a kind experience when they interact with us.”
John Walls, chairman of Mazuma’s board of directors, said, “During Rob’s tenure, Mazuma has made tremendous strides in establishing itself as leader in the credit union community as well as being a force in the local community. Rob is the ‘go-to’ person when the news media, both print and visual need a participant to discuss finances and national financial
issues pertaining to credit unions. I could go on, but it can be seen I respect Rob an awful lot and know he will do well in his next venture.”
Under Givens’ guidance, Mazuma opened four new branches including a location in midtown Kansas City, Mo., a second branch in Lee’s Summit, Mo., a branch in the new Kansas City Internal Revenue Services building, and a branch in Raymore, Mo. Mazuma’s field of membership also expanded to include Cass and Clay counties in Missouri.
During his tenure, Givens helped create several Credit Union Service Organizations (CUSO—a for-profit subsidiary of Mazuma Credit Union), including Beyond Marketing, LLC, the country’s only marketing CUSO; TruHome Solutions, a mortgage CUSO; a payday lending CUSO, XtraCash, LLC; and a statewide business lending CUSO, Heartland Business Services. He serves on the board of Beyond Marketing and CU Holding LLC.
He is as a member of the Business Advisory Board of the University of Missouri-Kansas City Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE), the Business Advisory Board of Park University Business School and is past President of the Board of Directors of Brush Creek Community Partners, a local community redevelopment partnership. Givens is a Herman A. Johnson mentor and serves on the Advisory Board of the Diversity Business Connection, both programs through the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. He is a commissioner for the Local Investment Commission (LINC) which oversees more than $10 million in state funding for the underserved communities in the Kansas City, Mo. area. He was recently appointed Chairman of the Business Formulation Committee for an economic recovery program in midtown Kansas City.
Givens served as the sole credit union executive participating in a two-year Collaborative for Deluxe Financial Services, working alongside 14 national banking executives to develop better needs assessment for small businesses.
He served eleven and a half years in the Air Force as a Navigator, Account and Finance Officer, Fiscal Control Officer and Education Officer.
Givens received a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from the University of Kansas and a Master’s of Business Administration from the University of Utah.
Givens and Debbie, his wife of 42 years, plan to stay active in the Kansas City community and travel during his retirement.
Mazuma’s board of directors has formed a search committee for Givens’ successor who will start on January 2, 2012. For information about the position, please send a letter of interest to: ceoapps@mazuma.org.
About Mazuma Credit Union
Established in 1948, Mazuma Credit Union serves more than 52,000 Members and has more than $440 million in assets. Mazuma is open to membership for those living or working in Cass, Clay and Jackson Counties in Missouri. For more information about the Credit Union that’s “all about you,” visit Mazuma’s Web site at www.mazuma.org, or contact Angela Edwards at aedwards@beyondmarketingllc.com.
About XtraCash, LLC
XtraCash, LLC is a credit union owned CUSO, offering credit unions a 100% risk-free, payday lending alternative solution. XtraCash owns the loans and assumes all risk, incurs any loan loss, and serves as a non-interest income generator. The company utilizes one of the leading short-term lending transaction systems in the United States.
Offering small, short-term loans is cost prohibitive for credit unions. It is more effective and economical for a credit union to collaborate with a CUSO like XtraCash to offer financial products and services on a cooperative basis. While an individual credit union might not be able to afford this program, XtraCash works as an alliance for all credit union partners to provide this system.
XtraCash offers a complete turn-key operation providing web-based software, underwriting, collections, servicing and training. XtraCash partners with credit unions to uniquely offer lower cost loans and to encourage financial education to their FOMs.
XtraCash is a division of CU Holding Company, LLC, headquartered in the Kansas City metropolitan area. CU Holding Company, LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mazuma Credit Union, Kansas City, Mo. To learn more about XtraCash, visit www.xtracashllc.com.
About Beyond Marketing, LLC
Founded by credit unions for credit unions in 2003, Beyond Marketing, LLC became the first full-service U.S. marketing CUSO and remains the nation’s only CUSO specializing in full-service marketing for the financial services industry. Its focus centers on providing clients with revenue and results based on ROI. Beyond Marketing offers an array of marketing services to fit its clients’ needs. Capabilities include strategic planning, market research, brand identity development, interactive Web design, print design and production, public relations management, advertising and promotion implementation, media buying, direct marketing, and broadcast production. Beyond Marketing’s investors include CU Holding Company and The Veridian Group, Inc., a wholly-owned CUSO of Veridian Credit Union, Waterloo, Iowa. For more information visit www.beyondmarketingllc.com or @BYMarketing on Twitter.
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