C.F.O. CORNER

ough act to follow for the 2nd edition of Insider but let’s give it a shot. I have worked with many of you for quite a while now, but if we have not crossed paths or if you are new to the company, I am Ben Altonen and serve as your CFO, located in the Administrative Building. My areas cover much of the back office duties so you likely aren’t going to see me in the branches all that often, but I am only a phone call or email away. Over the last 11 years with SCCU, I have seen a lot! This year has not been an exception to this by any means and I am hopeful everyone has seen the positive changes from the new leadership. Whether it be the small changes that you don’t see daily or some of the bigger changes that you cannot miss, I hope you are all seeing the effects. With change there are sometimes difficult decisions that are to be made during the budgeting process that we are working on. Currently, we are working through the middle stages of budgeting for the upcoming year and so far things are shaping up how we want to see. There has been a lot of progress with expansion of our brand through new branches, development of branch consistency, and reaching out to the membership to serve them in different channels. All these changes do come at a cost which sometimes can create cuts in programs or forward progress, but in this instance early changes to how we do business are helping avoid those outcomes. The outstanding job that you as staff are doing to enhance processes, loan volume, and bringing in new members is making budgeting much easier than expected! Keep up that great work and the forward momentum. As Tim has continued to let you all know, there is a lot of good going on in the background and a lot of cool ideas coming. I can only hope you are all enjoying it as much as we are.

GET TO KNOW BEN

WHY DID YOU COME TO SCCU?

I came to SCCU in August 2010, 11 years ago, to pursue an opportunity in the credit union world after spending some time working for larger corporations such as American Express.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BOOK?

The Code: The Unwritten rules in the NHL by Ross Bernstein and Throwback by Jason Kendall. Find myself drawn to the behindthe-scenes sports books.

WHAT IS YOUR PERSONAL MOTTO?

Never up, never in.

WHAT’S YOU GUILTY PLEASURE?

Understanding and working with golf club specs and swing data for optimization.

WHO’S YOUR FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM

Kansas City Royals

LAST 2 TV SHOWS YOU BINGE-WATCHED?

White Lotus and Letterkenny

IF YOU WERE AN ALIEN FROM MARS, WHAT WOULD BE THE WEIRDEST THING ABOUT THE TWIN PORTS?

The people that insist on wearing shorts the first 40-degree day in the spring. Grew up here and still can’t figure it out.

WHAT TEMPERATURE DO YOU CONSIDER COLD?

65 in the Summer and below 0 in the Winter

DOES YOUR PORSCHE HAVE A NAME?

Typically it gets referred to as “little car” or “P-car”.