AUBURN, Mass. – The Central Credit Union Fund, the nation's first corporate credit union, has named Jim Van Arsdale as its new CEO effective April 26. Van Arsdale comes from BISYS, where he most recently served as vice president in charge of account management. BISYS is a business outsourcing firm that primarily serves insurance and investment firms and banks. Credit unions are not new to Van Arsdale. He worked in the credit union industry for 10 years on the investment side with CUNA Brokerage Services and CNBS where he rose to president. "Back then was a time when Ginnie Maes were shot, S&Ls were going down the tubes. We had to help credit unions make sound investment decisions, make sure they were staying out of trouble," said Van Arsdale. He recalls fondly his time in the credit union industry, and said he's fortunate to be back. "I have kept in touch off and on with good friends in the industry and was contacted about a couple of different opportunities around the first of the year. This is the one that really bubbled to the surface as the most attractive to me," said Van Arsdale. The $315 million Central CU Fund has had a CEO vacancy for about a year. Former CEO Gary Glassman departed last year (now works for a brokerage firm), and the corporate has been relying on Emile Bonneau, a CU consultant, as interim CEO. Under Bonneau, the corporate has reduced the intensity of its alliance strategy, which Glassman was a big believer in. When Bonneau came on, Central CU Fund had about 40 strategic alliances, yet many were underutilized by its 229 member credit unions. Today the list stands at about 10. "We are now focusing on the relationships that have immediate and long-term value to members," said Van Arsdale. One of Central CU Fund's most successful business lines is its broker/dealer services offered through its Credit Union Brokerage Services CUSO. The CUSO in some ways has overshadowed the corporate, according to Bonneau, and he started to work to turn that around. Central CU Fund will be converting to a Symitar system later this year, something Van Arsdale thinks will help service levels. Van Arsdale said one distinct difference in today's corporate network from his days of working with them is competition. "Like a lot of corporates, we're nationally chartered. For corporates to view their potential membership as the entire country, they run the risk of overreaching. We want to continue to expand our membership base in a way that is least disruptive to the relationships we enjoy with other corporates," said Van Arsdale. That means fitting products to credit unions that their own corporate may not offer. Van Arsdale also hopes to partner with other corporates for products Central CU Fund lacks, such as business lending services. Van Arsdale said he knows about 18 of the 29 corporate CEOs very well, and he will use those relationships to find partnerships. "I think the consolidation of corporates doesn't have to the only path for the future. If we can collaborate, maybe it just means a lot more CUSOs owned by multiple corporates," he said. "We're not going to try and invent products and services that exist in different areas. We're more of a distributor, not a manufacturer." Van Arsdale, 49, said he views this job as a long-term commitment. "I'm at a point in my career where I want to make as few additional moves as possible and go out strong. I'm where I want to be," he said. As for his free time, Van Arsdale spends most of it with his wife and son and daughter. He also started golf last year and likes to swim and read. "I'm lucky if I can get to any two of those things over a weekend," he said. [email protected]