Downtown Corvallis, Ore. (Source: Adobe Stock)
After nearly a quarter of a century as president/CEO of the Corvallis, Ore.-based Oregon State Credit Union, Richard Hein announced Friday that he plans to retire next April and is grateful for his time building the $2.1 billion credit union into what it is today.
The credit union has retained D. Hilton Associates to begin a nationwide search for the credit union's next leader after Hein's service has spanned 23 years of growth for Oregon State CU.
In a statement, Oregon State CU Board Chair Kelley Kaiser said, "On behalf of the board of directors, I want to share our appreciation for Rick's 23 years of dedicated service to Oregon State Credit Union. Under his leadership, the credit union has succeeded in honoring its commitment to better the lives of its members by delivering products and services to improve the financial well-being of the membership. We are proud of our exceptional growth and performance under Rick's leadership."
Hein came to Oregon State CU in 2000 and has grown the credit union to include nearly 140,000 members and making it the state's fifth largest financial cooperative. His work has been recognized with numerous awards during his tenure, including winning the Community Credit Union of the Year in 2008, the 2016 recipient of the Buck Levin's Award and the Youth Desjardins Award in 2020 for the credit union's efforts in financial education. According to the credit union, Hein was inducted to the Credit Union House Hall of Leaders in 2019.
Of his upcoming departure, Hein said, "I've been fortunate to have the support and confidence of the board in leading Oregon State Credit Union to the position it has reached today. Financially, Oregon State Credit Union is in an excellent position, we receive high ratings from our regulators, both state and NCUA, and the credit union has a great reputation. I am grateful and honored to have had the opportunity to lead the team here. We always put our members first and live by the cooperative spirit and principles that distinguish credit unions from other financial institutions. I am proud of all that we have accomplished during my time at Oregon State Credit Union. I can retire knowing that the executive team is well prepared to achieve even more in the years to come."
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
