ARLINGTON, Va. — This week's NAFCU 41st Annual Conference and Exhibition will have over 40 breakout sessions that aim to promote innovation and growth in the industry.
"This year's annual conference and exhibition, the largest in the industry, will look at every angle of the credit union business with a keen eye on innovation and motivation," said NAFCU President Fred Becker. "With over 40 breakout sessions and more than 200 exhibitors, fresh ideas will abound to help credit union professionals identify growth opportunities and leverage their potential."
The conference key note speakers will be Marshall Goldsmith, author of What Got You Here Won't Get You There, and Keith Harrell, an executive educator and life coach.
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The exhibition will hold the industry's first green pavilion with green building technologies and products applicable to credit union facilities. Breakout sessions will cover topics ranging from identity theft to the subprime crisis to marketing to Gen X and Gen Y. Friday evening will feature comedian and actor Bob Newhart. The finale on Friday will also be a celebration of 100 Years of credit union history.
The Defense Credit Union Summit is slated for July 9 from 8 a.m. to 1:10 p.m. This year the event is under the new direction of NAFCU Associate Director of Legislative Affairs Javier Sanchez. Sanchez, a former Marine, took on the associate director role at NAFCU in the fall and specializes in defense credit union issues.
Sanchez said that while the framework for the summit is basically the same as previous years, there are some changes.
"The substance and delivery has changed," Sanchez said. "We took a more dynamic approach to it. We want you to get the feeling that the minute you walk out the door that you want to come back because of the content you've seen."
Sanchez said that he is particularly excited to have Nelson M. Ford, secretary of the U.S. Army, as a speaker at the summit. Ford will deliver an Army update. The summit will also feature a Defense Credit Union Council update from President/CEO Roland Arteaga.
"Military demands are second to none so that's why we want to address them at the conference," Sanchez said.
During his own military experience, Sanchez said that when he was at Paradise Island he was told that he would put his money in a credit union and he hasn't regretted it.
As part of NAFCU's year-long support and celebration of the 100th anniversary of the credit union movement, the annual conference will feature several centennial focused events, including parts of the NAFCU exhibit America's Credit Union Museum to the conference in addition to handing out 100th anniversary pins at the NAFCU booth.
"History is important to us as a movement," Becker said. "We will be carrying this celebration forward through out the year."
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