As it turns out, the dual CEOs formally picked this month to run the $434 million Southeast Financial Credit Union in Franklin, Tenn., are actually a threesome with one of the trio taking retirement last month, it was disclosed Tuesday.
“We simply have always had great respect for one another and all three of us have worked together to lead our credit union quite successfully for more than a decade,” is how one of the new president/CEOs, John Jacoway, describes the out-of-norm management style.
Jacoway and Jeff Dahlstrom, both executive vice presidents for years, were officially anointed by the Southeast board as dual CEOs following the Jan. 15 retirement of the former and designated CEO, John Simmonds.
“We truly have a great management team and we simply saw the timely retirement” of one of their own, said Jacoway.
For reporting purposes, Dahlstrom's name appears on official regulatory and industry documents but the trio has always known how duties were parsed and how the internal management system operated, explained Jacoway.
Jacoway pointed to at least two other CUs with a history of dual CEOs, Point West CU of Portland, Ore., and Quest of Topeka, Kan.
Moreover, there are multiple examples of co-CEOs in other industries and Jacoway listed six of the firms as Oracle, Microsoft, Sony Pictures Classics, HBO, VMware and McAfee.
“The dual presidency does seem to be growing in popularity,” observed Jacoway, who contends he and Dahlstrom both have already demonstrated strong leadership ability and retain staff support.
“In this situation,” said the CU, “selecting one candidate over another would have been counterproductive. While they share a singular vision, each brings something unique to the table.”
Since joining Southeast Financial as president/CEO in October 1999, the retiring head, Simmonds—with his two EVPs—has watched the central Tennessee CU double its asset size and grow from 37,000 members in 2005 to 75,000. In retiring as CEO, Simmonds is now president/CEO of a CUSO, Southeast Resource Group.
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