Job Details

Description

Are you a leader who thrives empowering teams and using insights to guide strategy and growth? Members First Credit Union is seeking a VP Marketing. You would collaborate with our executive team to grow our credit union and strengthen overall market position. This role will be a visible presence in the community, actively representing the credit union in the community to foster strong relationships and champion initiatives. Weekend, evening hours, and travel required.

We strive to create an atmosphere of belonging with no judgment, just opportunity. We are interconnected to each other, and when we embrace out true authentic selves, we are stronger. We will empower you to be the best version of yourself while helping you to flourish in work and life. Join us create thriving communities!

VICE PRESIDENT MARKETING I

Exempt

Reports to:  Chief Strategy Officer

The primary purpose of this position is to assist Members First Credit Union to deliver on its mission, vision, and brand promise. You will do this by living out our core values in every service contact to both internal and external members. At the heart of our Employee Value Proposition lies the belief in purpose, belonging, and joy, fostering a culture where every team member feels invested and encouraged to make a meaningful impact in the lives of others.

Essential Duties

• Through leadership, create a positive, empowering environment for team members to allow for goal success and professional development.
• Be a strategic leader in the credit union.
• Innovate, develop, and implement the long and short-term marketing, community impact, public relations, and grant funding plans in alignment with the credit union strategic plan.
• Lead the marketing teams to reach portfolio performance goals.
• Deliver innovative growth strategies, products and services, and relationships that generate significant value to our teams, members, and the organization.
• Collaborate with executive team to grow our credit union and strengthen overall market position.
• Be an expert resource in member, market, and industry research to gain insights and trends related to the industry.
• Be a visible presence in the community, actively representing the credit union in the community to foster strong relationships and champion initiatives. Weekend, evening hours, and travel required.
• This is a hybrid position with the expectations of 3 days in the office.
• Deliver on the Credit Union’s promise in every service situation.
• Successfully obtain Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor (CCUFC) designation through America's Credit Unions within first year of service with M1

Duties and Responsibilities

The following statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by this position.  It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and skills required of this position.  Other duties may be assigned to meet business needs.

• Create a comprehensive, sophisticated marketing plan, including the use of data intelligence, public relations, and brand loyalty that is driven from the strategy and will strengthen our overall market position.
• Using a data driven approach, develop a strategic roadmap to increase new member acquisitions, digital engagement, and drive loan growth throughout all channels.
• Be an innovator and expert resource in member, market, and industry research to gain insights and trends related to the industry. Present key ideas, opportunities, threats, performance metrics and significant trends that lead to solid decision making and action.
• Lead integrated marketing plans by brand, including compelling strategies and tactics that increase brand awareness, relevancy, and generate demand. This includes planning over time to connect key messages across all channels/touchpoints of synchronized timing.
• Leads the creation and maintenance of appropriate marketing key performance indicators, ROI models, and predictive models for marketing campaigns to determine effectiveness, provide optimization recommendations, and influence marketing planning.
• Develops and executes the annual marketing budget with intention in increased growth, increased revenue, and generates the highest possible return on our investment. Look for economies of scale and negotiation opportunities.
• Combine deep, critical, quality strategic thinking skills with effective leadership to drive team and plans success. Set direction and apply expertise.
• Ensure the use of data analytics and intelligence is a core function of our marketing teams and decision making. Support the organization with insights and predictive models to produce improved results and impact.
• Generate deep insights through the analysis of data and turn them into actionable recommendations to drive growth.
• Lead a member first mindset, developing a data informed position on who current and target markets are; implement strategies and tactics that grow the credit union and retain valuable members.
• Ensure fact-based reporting, analysis and analytical models to enhance decision making across the marketing team.
• Develop and implement a public affairs strategy that strengthens our credit union’s reputation as a partner of choice using the levers of external communications, media, governmental relations, community engagement, philanthropic giving, and team engagement.
• Cultivate the credit union’s public image to gain market share and inspire confidence in members, community, and industry.
• Seek out opportunities for networking in and out of industry that will allow for personal, professional, and credit union development. Create a network of strategic partners and opportunities for us to be a partner of choice.
• Ensure collaboration with business development teams in event planning, public relations and community outreach programs.
• Create passion, pride, and loyalty around the brand of Members First Credit Union.
• Lead the development of the marketing and brand strategy for the credit union to create company awareness to both internal and external groups.
• Set and manage ongoing brand governance including verbal, visual and logo guidelines. Ensure the use of a current brand book for clarity.
• Lead all teams in the execution of marketing initiatives, communications, events, and campaigns that elevate our brand.
• Provide strategic leadership and oversight for Community Impact initiatives, ensuring alignment with M1’s Giving Pillars of Education, Housing, and Well‑Being while strengthening the credit union’s presence and influence across the communities we serve.
• Oversee major community programs, including the annual Swinging for Scholarships golf outing, ensuring successful planning, promotion, sponsorship growth, and event‑day execution.
• Lead the strategy, messaging, and operational coordination of the Joy in Teaching Grants program, including launch planning, marketing campaigns, school outreach, judging support, grant distribution, and cross‑functional collaboration with Finance, Branch teams, and Community Impact staff.
• Guide and support the Community Impact Leader and team in delivering impactful outreach, partnerships, sponsorships, volunteerism, and philanthropic programs that advance M1’s mission to Create Thriving Communities.
• Ensure all community investments and partnerships are strategic, measurable, and mission‑aligned, demonstrating both community value and organizational impact.
• Serve as a highly visible ambassador for M1, representing the credit union at community events, partner engagements, and community impact initiatives—including those requiring evening, weekend, and travel commitments.
• Integrate Community Impact priorities into the broader Marketing & Strategy framework, ensuring consistent storytelling, brand alignment, and amplification of community outcomes across campaigns, channels, and internal communications.
• Oversee measurement and annual reporting of Community Impact outcomes, ensuring clear, data‑driven visibility for senior leadership, the Board, and external stakeholders.
• Provide executive oversight and strategic direction for grant funding initiatives, ensuring proposals, and awarded funds align with M1’s mission to support underserved, CDFI, and ALICE populations while strengthening Community Impact outcomes.
• Lead the identification and vetting of high‑value grant opportunities, including federal, state, foundation, and credit‑union–specific funding sources such as the National Credit Union Foundation, Michigan Credit Union Foundation, and Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis.
• Oversee the development of compelling, outcomes‑driven grant proposals, guiding teams to gather necessary data, impact stories, financials, and member testimonials to clearly articulate community need and program effectiveness.
• Ensure strong grant governance and compliance, including management of deadlines, reporting requirements, documentation, and fully auditable records of grant submissions, awards, expenditures, and outcomes.
• Lead quarterly updates to Senior Leadership, communicating funding progress, timelines, deliverables, risks, and strategic opportunities for additional impact or program expansion.
• Build and strengthen cross‑functional collaboration, partnering closely with Data Intelligence, Finance, Community Impact, and external organizations (nonprofits, community partners, vendors) to support successful implementation and measurement of funded initiatives.
• Represent M1 as a community and industry leader, maintaining visibility at key meetings and events related to CDFI, the Michigan Credit Union League, housing initiatives, FHLBI, Chamber programs, and other mission‑aligned networks.
• Establish strategic evaluation practices, ensuring each grant-funded program is assessed for effectiveness, community impact, and alignment with M1’s mission, with insights used to improve future proposals and initiatives.
• Develop long‑range grant strategy and pipeline planning, ensuring sustainable funding growth that supports M1’s broader community impact and strategic plan priorities.
• Take ownership of the ongoing management and enhancement of our products and services by collaborating with Strategic Development to conduct monthly assessments, evaluate progress, and identify potential areas for improvement. Collaborate with the Vice President team to develop and present monthly recommendations to the Project Governance Committee for new products or services to research or implement.
• Be a leader in the development and implementation of the credit union strategic plan. Lead enterprise projects when related to marketing and member communication.
• Partner closely with executive team to create a unified approach in reaching credit union goals.
• Provide market and competitive insights to support pricing and promotional rate decisions to the VP of Finance, ensuring alignment with marketing strategies and member engagement goals.
• Accountable for providing leadership to a high-performing team of marketing professionals who collaborate across the organization to build and maintain a robust pipeline to ensure the credit union meets revenue and growth objectives.
• Prepare for, report at, and participate in Board meetings, strategic meetings, and internal committee meetings.
• Create and maintain professional and mutually beneficial vendor relationships. Lead the evaluation, presentation, implementation, launch, and monitoring of systems, vendor changes or product/system launches.
• Control risk by ensuring that teams adhere to established policies, procedures and legal requirements Required documentation is happening and teams are trained and in compliance. Present any recommended changes to policies to the Board for approval.
• Lead the teams in interfacing with internal and external auditors, examiners, and portfolio review consultants. Develop management responses to findings and ensure implementation of recommendations.
• Align department and individual team member goals with the credit union strategic plan.
• Create a positive environment for team members; allow for empowerment and the ability to reach/exceed goals. Ensure succession planning.
• Lead and coach employees to ensure that they are meeting minimum expectations and striving to exceed expectations by seeking improvement through action plans. Make recommendations for training/disciplinary action if necessary.
• Conduct consistent coaching on performance development for department staff. Collaborate with team members to create development plans to allow for team member growth and overall succession planning. Provide reports to the President/CEO.
• Ensure on-boarding, training and orientation for new department employees. Emphasis should be placed on our culture, mission, service promises, and service standards from the beginning.
• Provide written documentation of policy and procedural violations or inadequate performance of employees and recommend disciplinary action to the CEO and Human Resources before the action is taken.
• Schedule and delegate departmental activities to ensure accomplishment of required duties and responsibilities. May occasionally assist staff with the performance of their assigned duties.
• Ensure continued education of yourself and team to maintain and demonstrate knowledge and certifications. Attend educational opportunities, review professional publications, establish personal networks and participate in professional societies. Prepare pre and post write-ups on the educational experience and ideas for implementation.
• Lead special projects, research, analysis and other duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Expectations

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the expectations of the person performing this job.

• Works autonomously
• High level of analytical and problem-solving skills
• Ability to motivate and positively influence others
• Teamwork and collaboration oriented; obtains cooperation from team members
• Creates a work environment of enablement
• High level of strategic thinking and presentation skills
• Manages projects successfully from start to finish
• Understands deadlines and does what is necessary to meet them
• Highly organized
• Has a high level of productivity and personal initiative
• Coordinates a variety of projects and jobs simultaneously
• Produces accurate work results with excellent attention to detail
• Demonstrates professionalism in interactions and fosters positive working relationships with teams and stakeholders
• Readily keeps others informed through a high level of clear and concise interpersonal and written communication skills
• Ability to make engaging presentations to groups
• Maintains a high level of knowledge of credit union products and services; policies and procedures
• Strives to exceed credit union, department, and personal goals
• Maintain confidentiality with sensitive information
• Thorough knowledge of financial institution accounting and application of all accounting treatments for credit unions as prescribed in the state Credit Union Act, bylaws, NCUA accounting manual, policies, and regulations
• Must be a strategic leader with vision and ability to lead others to performance success
• Must be able to understand a variety of complex concepts
• Must possess a high level of clear and concise interpersonal and written communication as well as presentation skills
• Must possess strong organizational, analytical, and problem solving skills
• Demonstrates strong decision‑making abilities and provides effective, solution‑focused support
• Willingness to work some evenings and weekends
• Courtesy, tact, and diplomacy are essential elements of the job. Work involves personal contact with others inside and /or outside the organization generally regarding routine matters for purposes of giving or obtaining information, which may require some discussion.
• Effectively apply and maintain financial counseling concepts, gained through America's Credit Unions' Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP), to promote financial well-being.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Ability to move or transport up to 25 pounds.
• Able to remain stationary for 2-4 hours at a time.

Work Environment

• Must maintain a neat and orderly work area.
• Routinely clean and disinfect work areas (i.e. teller stations, desk surfaces, phones, electronic equipment).
• Protect the confidentiality of credit union staff and members by locking door or removing items from desk/workstation when away.

Education and Experience

• Eight to Ten years similar or related experience; five years of leadership experience
• Requires a bachelor's degree, or achievement of formal certifications recognized in the industry as equivalent to a bachelor's degree (e.g., information technology certifications in lieu of a degree)
• Skills in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook

Qualifications

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities
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