Jason Lindstrom, CEO at the $535 million Evergreen Credit Union in Portland, Maine posted the following yesterday:
We’ve got a great Board of Directors and are looking for great people to join our Board. Please let me know if you are interested.
Are you a passionate Maine business owner, community leader, or senior manager looking to collaborate with professionals like you? We’re looking for hardworking Mainers to serve on Evergreen’s Board of Directors. 🌲
On our Board, you’ll be sharing your knowledge and collaborating with Evergreen’s leadership team to create change in our credit union for our members and positively impact your community.
Evergreen Credit Union is the 5th largest credit union in Maine with over $535 million in assets to date. We’re proud to serve over 28,000 members throughout 6 counties in southern Maine. We’re excited for Evergreen Credit Union to grow as we continue to bring award-winning member service and products that help our members every day.
Ready to start? To submit your application or inquire, email ceo@egcu.org by December 15.
An All Hands Effort
I called Jason to find out more about this unique approach recruiting new board volunteers, all unpaid.
The credit union has nine voting members and three non-voting directors. As a community charter, it is vital for the credit union to expand relations with local organizations. Jason is on three 501C3 volunteer boards and a Maine League director.
In prior years and again this year, the credit union had placed ads for board openings in local papers, but received no response. Finding volunteers has become more difficult effort for all his associations. A different approach was necessary to attract persons whose might feel they had little spare time to give.
The board decided to go all out in its search for three openings in 2024 by using social media. An ad was placed on Facebook. Directors and staff were asked to repost the announcement on their social media accounts, hoping to expand the audience reached.
Building Deeper Community Ties
In most credit unions, board recruitment is a private affair. Candidates are incumbents, self-nominated, or sought from directors’ existing relationships. The process is characterized by political considerations versus a public invitation for leadership talent.
Evergreen’s strategy is to be more and more “community connected.” Membership has been growing at almost 7% per year. In a largely rural state, people value their local relationships and organizations. Informing the community in this messaging effort is another illustration of their commitment to Portland and surrounding towns.
Reinforcing their community ties is integral to Evergreen’s business model. Tapping into the Maine spirit that values relationships is vital to attracting motivated talent. And as Ed Callahan would say, “When you run with good people, good things will happen.”