Worcester Business Journal

14 Worcester Business Journal | May 15, 2023 | wbjournal.com F O C U S S M A L L B U S I N E S S 'Our loss is GFA's gain' PHOTOS | CHRISTINE PETERSON BY KEVIN KOCZWARA WBJ Staff Writer M ark Hettinger was searching for the next step in his life. His youngest of six children had packed her bags for college, and he and his wife Jaime were empty nesters. He'd spent 19 years at First Alliance Credit Union in Minnesota as its executive vice president and chief operating officer. He made a good salary, which, according to ProPublica's nonprofit's database, was $154,000 in 2020. But, he had his eyes scanning for something different. He was look- ing for the next opportunity, a chance to finally take the next step in his career and become a CEO. Hettinger reached out to the Phoenix-based DDJ Myers, which helps credit unions with board and organization alignment, leadership training, executive searches, and recruitment, aer seeing a posting for GFA Federal Credit Union's open CEO position. He's been monitoring the site for a bit and jumped at the oppor- tunity. Hettinger had known the recruiting company's CEO Deedee Myers for a long time and gave her a call. "She thought it was a really good match for me," Hettinger said. "Myers knowing me and knowing the board at GFA, I felt it would be a good match." GFA was in the midst of its own search for its future. Lead- ership at the Gardner-based credit union had been steady for a long time, as it had four CEOs in its first 83 years, but was looking for its third leader in three years. When Tina Sbrega retired in 2021 aer 12 years as GFA's CEO and president and more than four decades of employment there, the credit union hired Joshua Brier in April 2021, but he le in August 2022 to take a As the third leader to take over GFA credit union in three years, Mark Hettinger brings a track record of asset growth and technological innovation job closer to home as COO at GYL Financial Synergies in Connecticut. e credit union named Daniel Waltz as the interim CEO, pulling him out of retirement, as GFA searched for its next CEO to lead the credit union with $666 million in assets, its 30,764 members, and 91 employees. Enter Hettinger. A history of innovation In his 19 years at First Alliance, Hettinger saw the credit union based in Minnesota reach nearly 20,000 members and more than $285 million in assets. When Hettinger started, First Alliance had between $75 and $80 million in assets, and he was a big part of the growth the credit union saw over the years, said First Alliance President and CEO Michael Rosek, who worked with Hettinger for the last six years. "Mark was a great employee. A role model for his team" Rosek said. "Certain leaders will talk about how it needed to be done. Mark will go do it and show his team and never ask them to do something he wouldn't do." Hettinger helped First Alliance grow from two branches to six and was the driving force behind the credit union's cooperative complex that included not only a First Alliance location but also a bakery and coffee shop in 2020. It was the first of its kind in Rochester, Minnesota. He helped broker the deal for the merger with AE Goetze Employees Credit Union in Lake City, Minnesota, in July 2021 and helped open an administrative branch in nearby Stewartsville. Tina Sbrega had been GFA's leader for 12 years when she retired in 2021. 0 $100 $200 $300 $400 $500 $600 $700 2018 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 Assets (Dollars in millions) $505M $666M GFA assets Since 2018, GFA Federal Credit Union has grown its assets 32%. Note: Assets are as of March 31 in each respective year. Source: National Credit Union Administration Before being announced as GFA Federal Credit Union's new CEO in April, Mark Hettinger worked for two decades at a Minnesota credit union.

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