Financial Minds: Meet the Experts

Credit unions are all about advocacy – for our members, for our institutions and for financial wellbeing that is accessible to everyone. As such a critical component of the work we do each and every day, Jaime is bringing several voices of advocacy to the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast. The credit union advocacy series continues this week with Christina Mihalik, senior vice president; N...

It’s almost time for the final FOMC meeting of the year! With the December FOMC meeting set to take place next week on December 9-10, we’re bringing back our economic experts, Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer, to the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast. What do they think will happen during the meeting? Join Scott, Tim and Jaime as they dis...

Credit unions are all about advocacy – for our members, for our institutions and for financial wellbeing that is accessible to everyone. As such a critical component of the work we do each and every day, Jaime is bringing several voices of advocacy to the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast. The credit union advocacy series continues this week with Billy Boylston, SVP of governmental affairs...

Credit unions are all about advocacy – for our members, for our institutions and for financial wellbeing that is accessible to everyone. As such a critical component of the work we do each and every day, Jaime is bringing several voices of advocacy to the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast. The credit union advocacy series kicks off this week with John Bratsakis, president/CEO of the MD|DC...

With a growing Latino population in the U.S., there’s an increased need for inclusive financial services and leadership that reflects these communities. Joining Jaime on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast this week is Barbara Mojica, executive director of The National Association of Latino Credit Unions and Professionals (NLCUP), to talk about the organization’s origin story and impact,...

This week on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast, we’re continuing our discussion on Vizo Financial’s Empowerment Grants Program! Two years ago, Vizo Financial launched the Empowerment Grants Program to provide financial support for credit union foundations that help institutions develop financial wellness programs. In this week’s episode, Jaime talks with Lauren Whaley, president of the...

In the fall of 2023, Vizo Financial launched the Empowerment Grants Program, pledging $1 million in funding for the span of five years to provide financial support for credit union foundations in developing financial wellness programs. In this week’s episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast, our host Jaime sits down with Sue Ward-Diorio, executive director, CrossState Credit Union...

With the October FOMC meeting set to take place next week, we’re bringing you another economic update episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast! Our pair of experts, Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer, chat with Jaime this week about what’s coming down the economic pipeline. Listen as they explore: How the lack of recent data from th...

When it comes to balancing mission and risk, there’s a lot to consider! Thankfully this week, we’ll cover the importance of mission in the risk landscape on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast! Erin Doan, VP of administration at Vizo Financial, sits down with Jaime to talk about how your credit union’s team can stay mission-driven without sacrificing risk management. Tune-in as they disc...

Will they or won’t they? That’s the question on everyone’s minds ahead of next week’s FOMC meeting. With downtrodden data and pressure from all angles, the role of interest rates is more important than ever. Join Jaime and our pair of economic experts, Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer, on the podcast to explore the economic environment and the im...

Will they or won’t they? That’s the question on everyone’s minds ahead of next week’s FOMC meeting. With downtrodden data and pressure from all angles, the role of interest rates is more important than ever. Join Jaime and our pair of economic experts, Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer, on the podcast to explore the economic environment and the im...

If your credit union has a small team and limited resources, our latest episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast is for you! This week, Jaime sits down with Paige Barry, VP of strategic partnerships at DefenseStorm, to discuss a new, bundled cyber risk management solution that’s made specifically for smaller credit unions…Defense Storm Essentials! Discover how your credit union can...

Does your financial institution have AI anxiety? During the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast this week, Jaime chats with Elba Arenas, president/CEO of MC FCU, and Mitch Rutledge, CEO of Vertice AI, about ways your credit union can overcome the unease associated with adopting AI in office operations. Hear from them as they explore: · Common fears and misconceptions about how AI is used in...

How can your credit union navigate the changing landscape of advanced technology? In this week’s episode of Financial Minds: Meet the Experts, Jaime sits down with Meredith Piotti of Wolf & Company to talk about how credit unions can best approach developing technology in their business operations. Discover how your institution can build tech-focused business strategies to shape successful out...

How can your credit union find valuable information, and more importantly, growth potential, in your existing data? Find out in this week’s episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast! Jaime talks with Jeremy Jenkins, VP of data analytics with Vizo Financial, about member growth tools and tactics that can be advantageous for credit unions. Learn how your organization can reclaim valua...

ISO 20022 on your mind? With the recent migration of FedWire to this new standard, it’s not surprising. And this week, we’re going to help you find everything you need to know about ISO 20022 (including how to pronounce it!) on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast. Jaime connects with our team of experts, Erica Johnson, director of payments; Ben Braun, payment application analyst; and Kri...

It’s never too early to start planning for back to school, and in this week’s episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast, we’re talking about student loans! More specifically, what options are available for you to provide higher education financing for your members? Karie Bedford, senior relationship manager, financial institutions channel with Sallie Mae, sits down with Jaime to dis...

With the July FOMC meeting taking place next week, it’s time for another economic update episode of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast! Joining Jaime are Vizo Financial’s very own dynamic duo, Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer. Hear from our economic experts as they explore: Predictions for the upcoming FOMC meeting Signals the Fed has...

With the 2025 Financial Conference coming up on September 10-12, 2025 at the Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C., our fearless podcast host, Jaime, is chatting with past attendees to get the inside scoop! She caught up with Phil Barnhill with Greenville FCU and Darrell Tyler with Richmond Heritage FCU to find out more about the benefits of this conference for financial leaders. Hear from them a...

With the FOMC meeting taking place next week, get caught up on the economy in this week’s podcast episode! Joining Jaime for the latest installment of the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast are Vizo Financial’s Scott Wood, SVP/chief investment officer, and Tim Sustak, SVP/chief treasury officer. Learn from our economic experts as they discuss: Predictions for the upcoming FOMC meeting Outlo...

We’re putting fraud under the microscope and turning up the focus in this week’s episode of Financial Minds: Meet the Experts! Listen in as Jaime connects with a panel of experts from four financial institutions to discuss the types of fraud that credit unions are increasingly facing and what practices and strategies may help in the fight against these growing threats. You’ll hear from Michele For...

If your systems are vulnerable, you want to be the first one to know about it, right? This week on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast, Jaime sits down with William Snowden at Fortra to discuss how vulnerability scanning and penetration testing provide key insights to quickly identify weak spots and ultimately keep sensitive data out of reach from attackers. You will learn a LOT from Jai...

How has social engineering evolved over the past decade? What are some of the latest tactics that attackers are using, and why have they been so effective? How can you train your team to better defend your credit union? These are all important questions, which is why we will be covering all of them and many more during this week’s episode of Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast! Jaime is sitt...

With sophisticated advancements in tech, it’s crucial for credit unions to stay current on the threats that come with them. But with information overload, how can you filter through the noise? By listening to this week’s Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast episode, of course! Jaime sat down with Shyam Menon, director of fraud at DefenseStorm, this week to talk about synthetic identity fraud,...

As we look ahead to the future of the financial sector, it’s clear that risk management and security best practices aren’t going anywhere. In fact, they are more imperative to the success of credit unions than ever before. This week on the Financial Minds: Meet the Experts podcast, Jaime speaks with John Cuneo, SVP/chief risk officer at Vizo Financial, about the ways that your financial institutio...