Chief Technology Officer

Duties and Responsibilities (Essential Functions)

• Partner with the CEO and executive leadership team to define and implement strategic plans aligned with the credit union’s mission, vision, and growth objectives.
• Translate the strategic plan into a prioritized, sequenced technology roadmap supporting growth, efficiency, and member experience.
• Act as a business leader first, contributing meaningfully to enterprise strategy discussions.
• Monitor emerging industry trends, fintech developments, payments innovations, and technology capabilities to inform strategy.
• Lead enterprise-level evaluation of technology investments, partnerships, and modernization opportunities.
• Communicate technology tradeoffs, risks, and investments clearly to executive leadership and the Board.

Digital, Data, AI, and Payments Modernization

• Modernize digital account opening, lending, member-facing platforms, and payments capabilities.
• Establish a modern data and AI foundation to support decision-making, personalization, risk management, and operational efficiency.
• Ensure systems are integrated, scalable, and aligned with long-term enterprise architecture.
• Promote innovation while maintaining strong architectural discipline and vendor management practices.

Technology Operations, Risk, and Resilience

• Provide executive oversight of IT infrastructure, systems, applications, telecommunications, and cloud environments.
• Ensure secure, stable, and efficient operation of all technology platforms.
• Establish strong operating discipline through portfolio management, capacity planning, prioritization, and transparent reporting.
• Oversee cybersecurity, data privacy, vendor risk management, and regulatory compliance.
• Maintain effective internal controls and risk management practices aligned with regulatory expectations.

Enterprise Project and Vendor Management

• Oversee enterprise project management and business solutions teams to ensure delivery of strategic initiatives on time and within budget.
• Establish clear governance, prioritization, and sequencing of technology initiatives.
• Lead vendor evaluations, contract negotiations, and strategic technology partnerships.
• Ensure clear visibility into technology investments, risks, and outcomes.

Organizational Leadership and Culture

• Build and lead a high-performing technology leadership team.
• Promote a culture of accountability, transparency, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Mentor and develop leaders, supporting succession planning and leadership pipelines.
• Champion change management, training, and adoption to ensure technology initiatives deliver business impact.

Stakeholder and Executive Engagement

• Serve as a trusted partner to the CEO and executive team, bringing solutions, options, and recommendations.
• Represent the credit union with regulators, industry groups, technology partners, and community stakeholders.
• Build strong relationships across business units to ensure technology is viewed as an enabler of strategy.
• Participate in board committees, reporting, and governance activities as appropriate.