Vice President Loan & Card Servicing

Empower Federal Credit Union•Syracuse, NY

52d•$140,859 - $234,766•Hybrid

About The Position

The Vice President of Loan & Card Servicing reports directly to the Chief Lending Officer and provides strategic and operational leadership for all loan servicing and card operations functions. This role ensures regulatory compliance, operational excellence, and a member-first approach across consumer, mortgage, and commercial servicing, as well as debit and credit card programs. This VP Loan & Card Servicing will act as a functional expert on all payment-related services, including initiatives and projects relating to these operations. The VP is responsible for ensuring the stability of existing processes, expanding the Credit Union's service offerings, and seeking opportunities to improve efficiency in this space.

Requirements

Experience: 7 to 10+ years of progressive experience in financial services operations, with a significant portion in a leadership role within a credit union or bank of comparable size. The role requires excellent analytical, organizational, and project management skills.
Strategic Leadership: Proven ability to develop and execute long-term strategies that enhance operational efficiency and member experience.
Technical Expertise: o Deep knowledge and practical experience in loan servicing (consumer, mortgage, and commercial) and card operations (debit and credit). o Demonstrated expertise in developing and managing a Loan Quality Control program. o Solid understanding of the payments industry and card association rules (Visa, Mastercard, etc.).
Regulatory Knowledge: Strong working knowledge of relevant federal and state regulations, including but not limited to TILA, RESPA, Reg Z, FCRA, PCI-DSS, and an awareness of regulatory requirements for the credit union/banking industry in general.
Education: A bachelor's degree in Finance, Business Administration, or related field.
Interpersonal Skills: Our Mantra: We lead by example with fairness, integrity, and honesty, always assuming positive intent. We are present, collaborative, and responsible for the results and actions of Empower FCU.
Leadership Competencies-How You Lead: - Integrity and Transparency - Empathy and Compassion - Communication and Collaboration - Empowerment and Mentorship - Adaptability and Continuous Learning - Resilience and Accountability - Recognition and Celebration - Strategic Vision and Decision-Making - Accessibility and Approachability - Inspiration and Influence
Other Skills: Business and Operational Excellence-What You Deliver: - IT and Business 101: Maintain a basic to moderate understanding of IT and Business Products & Services. Understand the minimum necessary to lead projects effectively. - Financial Acumen: Understand and regularly review financials. Know how financial levers work and how your team can influence, and drive results up or down. - Strategic Thinking: Understand and be able to articulate the organization's strategy up and down the pyramid including alignment with culture, the in-flight year's business plan, and the 'why' behind all of it. - Business Case Development: Write and articulate a proper business case, including capital needs, project scope, and recurring OPEX costs. - Managing an RFP: Effectively lead and manage Request for Proposal (RFP) processes to ensure competitive, strategic outcomes. - Vendor Management: Manage vendor performance and successfully negotiate contracts to support organizational goals. - Budget Management: Create and manage a proper budget, maintaining accuracy within +/- 5% of actuals to budget. - Executive Communication: Present confidently and with clarity to Board Committees and senior leadership audiences with executive presence i.e. the ability to influence and align stakeholders at all organizational levels, including Board members. This requires skills in building trusted relationships with senior executives and acting as a strategic thought partner on complex organizational challenges. - Big Picture Leadership: Lead within the context of the big picture to align and work cross-functionally and vertically. Effectively move forward projects, change management efforts, and resource allocation decisions. - Incident Management: Properly facilitate and manage member-impacting incidents. If not part of the direct role, participate in or consider involvement in the member incident committee. - Communications Management: Properly facilitate and manage communications for both members and staff, ensuring clarity, transparency, and timely updates.
People Leadership-How You Build High-Performing Teams: - Performance Management: Work through performance management issues with HR (and/or appropriate leadership), including writing and delivering feedback up and down the organization, and implementing Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) when needed. - Goal and Objective Setting: Write and communicate goals and objectives aligned from the top of the organization down to individual contributors. Ensure alignment by clearly communicating the 'why' and 'how.' - Team Engagement: Facilitate and plan meaningful All Hands Meetings for and with teams, building and creating alignment and clarity across the organization. - Culture and People Leadership: Create and foster a culture of delegation, empowerment, and accountability with managers, ensuring they do the same with their teams. - Leadership Excellence: Consistently lead the way through Empower FCU's Leadership Excellence competencies and coach direct reports to demonstrate the same behaviors.

Nice To Haves

Candidates with equivalent formal certifications or professional experience in loan servicing and card operations, financial services, or related fields are also encouraged to apply. Empower FCU recognizes and values a variety of educational and professional backgrounds that contribute to success in this role.

Responsibilities

Strategic Direction: Provide vision and leadership for loan servicing and card operations, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives and member experience priorities. Drive innovation to position the credit union as a leader in loan servicing and card operations.
Strategic Storytelling: Communicate complex strategies and operational priorities through compelling narratives that influence executive decision-making and engage stakeholders across the organization.
Payment Expertise: Act as the primary functional expert on all payment-related services. Possess deep knowledge of the payments industry, including mobile payment systems, Card Networks, Settlement processes, procedures, and Rules.
Compliance & Regulations: Maintain strict compliance with all Federal Regulations and requirements. Have a solid understanding of card association rules, including MasterCard, VISA, AMEX, and regional PIN networks, and ensure adherence to PCI-DSS standards.
Card Operations Lifecycle: Direct the complete lifecycle of debit and credit card operations, including card issuance, activation, transaction processing, and dispute resolution (chargebacks).
Fraud Management: Oversee fraud monitoring and prevention strategies for both debit and credit card portfolios. Direct responses to significant fraud events, ensuring high performance, accuracy, and adherence to regulatory requirements.
Strategic Initiatives: Analyze trends to support the development and implementation of strategic initiatives for a comprehensive payment philosophy. Stay updated on credit union and industry trends in card operations, payments processing, fraud, and regulations.
Financial Oversight: Develop and monitor budgets for Loan Servicing & Card Operations. Measure actual results against budget projections and make appropriate recommendations.
Vendor Management: Manage vendor relationships with card processors and network providers (e.g., Visa, Mastercard).
Daily Operations: Oversee the daily operations of consumer, commercial, and mortgage loan servicing, including payment processing, escrow management, collateral management, and release of liens.
Regulatory Compliance: Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations relevant to loan servicing (e.g., RESPA, TILA, Regulation Z).
Process Optimization: Manage and optimize servicing platforms and technologies for efficiency and accuracy.
Policy & Procedures: Develop and maintain robust policies and procedures for all loan servicing functions.
Program Management: Establish and execute a comprehensive Loan Quality Control program across all lending types (consumer, mortgage, commercial).
Review & Reporting: Conduct post-closing reviews to verify loan file completeness, adherence to underwriting guidelines, and regulatory accuracy.
Corrective Action: Report on QC findings and collaborate with lending and compliance teams to implement corrective actions and process improvements.
Data Integrity: Maintain a high standard of data integrity within the core servicing and lending systems.
Talent Management: Recruit, train, mentor, and develop a that reflects our core values, as well as manage staffing levels and associated expenses. Ensure you are continuing to develop and engage a high-performing team of Managers and team members.
Supervision: Conduct annual performance reviews and work with assigned team members to establish individual goals. Ensure all groups reporting to this role are adequately staffed, trained, and supervised to meet departmental requirements efficiently.
Enterprise Alignment: Partner with Operations, Risk, Finance, and Analytics to align servicing and card operations strategies with organizational priorities and member experience goals.
Executive Influence: Deliver clear, data-driven insights and recommendations to senior leadership on portfolio health, recovery performance, and strategic direction.
Representation: Advocate for servicing and card operations in cross-functional forums focused on member experience, regulatory strategy, and risk management.
Other Duties: Perform additional responsibilities as assigned by the CLO and Executive Leadership.