In a room filled with men and women alike sporting pink ties and scarfs, Rick Metsger, NCUA vice chairman, shared that closing the gender gap begins in the board room.

“It's not about men or women, it's about performance and mentoring one another,” he said to attendees at the Global Women's Leadership Network breakfast held during GAC in Washington March 11. “If you focus on performance, everything else will fall in line.”

For Teresa Freeborn, president/CEO of the $932 million Xceed Financial Credit Union in El Segundo, Calif., that focus is priceless, because an industry-wide, concerted effort to oppress women or keep them out of leadership has not existed.

“Most are astounded that we don't have a better balance,” she said. “They honestly have no idea that we're not living up to our values as much as we should. Acknowledging that fact is the first step toward the concrete actions that are needed to achieve a truly gender-blind future, where a singular focus on leadership development and identifying potential will yield a much closer 50/50 gender balance in the C-suite. We're a long way from that, though, so actively cultivating women in leadership is absolutely essential.”

When evaluating the U.S. credit union movement, Metsger found that organizations driven by female CEOs had better CAMEL ratings and higher net worth than those led by men. In addition, NCUA data showed that 63% of credit unions up to $100 million in assets are led by women, but in the $100 million to $500 million category, that number decreased to just 25%. Female CEOs in credit unions with more than $500 million in assets dropped to 15%, and only 34 women are among the 224 CEOs who lead credit unions in the billion dollar plus range.

“Why a woman is the overwhelming choice for a job running an institution of $100 million but not the right choice at a $101 million institution defies logic,” Metsger said. “Change starts at the top. The boards of directors of the largest national trade organizations for credit unions include only six women among their 39 directors. We can all do better.”

Countless studies have supported that a gender balance in any company's leadership team allows for better monitoring of corporate affairs and higher quality decisions due to an expansion of ideas, perspectives, experiences, attention to detail and corporate responsibility. According to Metsger, working toward leveling the scales could represent an opportunity for the credit union industry to lead the way.

“If you're concerned about your organization's performance in the marketplace, you need to be concerned about having women represented in your leadership ranks,” Freeborn said. “It's plain and simple: An organization with more women in the leadership ranks results in a more effective one.”

So, what's keeping credit unions from achieving that goal? That's a question the Filene Research Institute, together with the World Council of Credit Unions, has been researching for more than a year. A recent study on the state of women's leadership within credit unions conducted by Melissa Thomas-Hunt and Mahak Nagpal of the University of Virginia revealed the following five challenges to closing the gender gap at credit unions:

1. Pipeline problem: Women start working in lower-level roles and departments that do not directly lead to the executive suite.

2. Leadership style and perception: Across credit union asset size, women are perceived to use slightly more authoritarian leadership styles.

3. Leadership climate: Employees with female CEOs perceive themselves differently than those managed by men.

4. Ambition and motivation: Mentors and mentees often group toward their own gender. With men more likely to hold senior credit union positions, women have a harder time getting a hand up.

5. Family concerns: Men and women did not report family as a career inhibitor; but at the senior level, men are more likely to have children. Women more often seem to make tradeoffs between career and family.

At Xceed Financial, where women comprise 80% of the executive team, 60% of the leadership team (one tier level below senior management) and 55% of the nine-member board, Freeborn still sees room for improvement. Recently, the credit union initiated formal processes for counting women at various levels and mentoring promising women to ensure the credit union maintains and expands on its strong record of cultivating women leaders. Recognizing the need for a work-life balance, the credit union also fosters a family-friendly environment by offering flexible work practices and policies. She said this not only benefits both mothers and fathers, but paves the way for more young women to “lean in” and take advantage of opportunities to hop on the leadership track.

In looking at the credit union's overall culture, Freeborn identifies a strong appreciation for diversity of all kinds – not just gender, but also racial, cultural and even age. She said that foundation has made it easier for staffers to believe that anyone, regardless of gender or ethnicity, can rise to the C-suite.

“When I was chosen to lead Xceed Financial, I benefitted from a very progressive and diverse board of directors,” Freeborn said. “But too often I think we see large credit unions simply replicating past choices without considering broader options and the benefits of bringing more women into leadership.”

She added that at the end of the day, it's about shining a big spotlight on advancing women in leadership in the credit union industry throughout the world.

“It's a formidable task, given our lackluster starting point,” she said. “But we have an amazing supply of professional women just waiting to be called into action. And it's time to see a significant increase in the number of women in power.”