WARWICK, R.I.–To be a really effective leader, a CEO must surround him or herself with an excellent management team and recognize that he or she cannot do everything, according to David B. Suvall, who is sharing his insights as part of a CU Daily series on retiring leaders.
Suvall has retired from Rhode Island Credit Union after 45 years of service. The $427-million RICU has selected current Executive Vice President/COO Nancy L. Zeppa to lead the organization.
Suvall joined the credit union in 1981 as the VP/controller and became president/CEO in 2006. The credit union credited Suvall for leading its growth to become an institution now serving almost 30,000 members across six branch locations.
As part of an ongoing series in the CU Daily that seeks to capture some of the wisdom and lessons learned during careers as leaders retire in order to share it with younger generations of would-be leaders, below Suvall shares some of his thoughts.
The CU Daily: How did you come to be involved in credit unions?
Suvall: As a cooperative education student at Northeastern University, I was assigned to a CPA firm in Rhode Island that specialized in financial institutions. I did several co-ops with the firm and eventually was hired after graduation. With that experience, I had become familiar with credit union’s and their accounting and operational systems which eventually led me to the CFO position at Rhode Island Credit Union.
The CU Daily: If you could go back and talk to yourself on day one as a new CEO, what advice would you share?
Suvall: Assemble the best executive team possible and remember you cannot do everything. Also, truly listen to all the team members whether the news or advice is good or bad.
The CU Daily: What have you learned during your career about overseeing and managing growth, and has that evolved?
Suvall: Growth must be managed and controlled. The numbers do not lie.
The CU Daily: What have you learned during your career about managing people and has that—or have people-evolved over that time?
Suvall: I think that does go back to listening to the staff. After you have worked with individuals for a significant amount of time, you get to know them and as such you must treat them with respect and honesty and as unique personalities.
The CU Daily: t approximately $430 million in assets, Rhode Island CU is bigger than many, but also lacks the scale others say is necessary to compete? How do you view that issue?
Suvall: There is no simple answer to a question about size. Every size has their own set of issues. I believe that you must find your niche and develop a culture that works for your credit union. Competition certainly exists, especially in such a small state as Rhode Island, but I believe that we have been successful by serving our members well and as efficiently as possible. They know who we are, of course marketing to the public at large is very important. You want them to think of you when it’s time for them to borrow or save.
The CU Daily: Are there one or two things you might point to that you feel were the biggest drivers of success at RICU?
Suvall: I believe that the executive team as well as the staff in general have bought in to the credit union philosophy of ‘people helping people.’ I have used the quote many times over the years. It is so important to remind the staff that we are here because the members are here. Without the members, there would not be a credit union.
The CU Daily: What is your view on the future of credit unions, if there is to be one.
Suvall: I am pretty sure that credit unions will exist for many years to come. That being said, it will become more and more difficult to survive between costs of doing business, competition and the need for additional technology. You have got to be the very best at what it is that you do, or you will be left behind. We will probably see many more mergers than we have seen in the past few years. I hope Rhode Island Credit Union is not one of those, unless of course it is in the best interest of our members.
