Member Spotlight: James Black

Mark Crawford, CUNA Councils
August 23, 2006

I have been in the financial services industry for eleven years, nine of those with credit unions. I originally come from California's central valley, but have spent the last 10 years in the Sacramento area. I'm a huge Sacramento Kings fan and enjoy watching a game whenever I get a chance. My wife and I have no children, but our three cats are sure that they fill that role.

My career history includes a lot of growth in the branch area, since I started as a teller at a large bank at the age of 16. My new position as BDO for Heritage Community Credit Union will definitely present some challenges, but also many rewards.

Biggest challenge for 2006

The biggest challenge HCCU is getting the business development program off the ground. As with any new program, there is a large gap between ideas and implementation. This gap is where all the back work and preparation are done—getting the program ready to maximize success is the biggest challenge for me.

Best advice

As a new person to the business development area, my advice is to never forget the enthusiasm you had when you started.

Greatest benefits of Council membership

Members sharing successes and areas for improvement with other members. The Listserv allows for the sharing of ideas so that its members can be both original and effective.

As we are just starting our business development program, the Council membership has given me insight on what to do and how to focus my energy.

Best part of my job

The dreaming! I believe that if you cannot dream, then you have no reason to work. So coming up with new ideas and goals that seem unreachable are part of the motivation I need to do the best that I can do.

Hardest part of my job

Getting our new program working. Whenever you start anything new, there are bound to be areas of improvement that you never even thought existed. Being able to spot these areas in time, and fix them, is the hardest part of my job.

Best success story

The success of our business development program right now is the complete communication of its goal to the entire credit union staff. So far, we have been successful in telling all our departments and employees about the program and how it fits into the goals and direction of the credit union.

Hobbies/interests

I love to play guitar and have about five at home. I am a voracious reader and complete three to four books a week. I am a Sacramento Kings fan first and a Denver Broncos fan second.

People would be surprised to learn that I . . .

Don’t have cable TV.

Most recent book

The Bourne Ultimatum by Robert Ludlum.

Life goal not yet accomplished

I would like to travel to Europe, specifically Germany.

Something that always makes me laugh

The movie The Big Labowski

If I had an extra hour in the day . . .

I would probably spend it reading. In my opinion, you can never read enough!!