From Modest Beginnings to Billion-Dollar Growth
Mark Rosa’s credit union career began in 1985 with a $3 million credit union. When he joined Jefferson Parish School Board Employees Credit Union in 2004, the organization was still a single-SEG credit union serving only the local school system.
But that soon changed. With a board open to progressive thinking, Rosa pushed beyond traditional limitations: upgrading technology, applying for underserved area designations, and embracing strategic mergers. Over time, Jefferson Financial grew through seven credit union mergers, transforming from a sub-$100 million institution to nearly $1 billion in assets by 2018. At their peak, they were the second-largest credit union in Louisiana.
What fueled this transformation? A clear strategy: no opportunity was off the table if it made sense for the credit union’s mission and membership.
“We were the ones to be with in the Greater New Orleans area,” Rosa recalled. “Other institutions started approaching us.”
The Inflection Point: COVID and a New Reality
But then came COVID—and the growth trajectory took a sharp turn.
Despite regulatory approval at every step, the NCUA asked Jefferson Financial to “pause” growth. Post-pandemic economic turbulence, inflation, and a dramatic shift in member behavior led to shrinking assets and dwindling deposits. Mark described the pandemic’s impact as “way worse than the credit crisis.”
Membership numbers fell from a high of 65,000 to 45,000, revealing a troubling truth: M&A-driven growth was masking a persistent struggle with member retention in a tough, bank-dominated market.
Jefferson Financial wasn’t alone. Rosa observed that credit unions across Greater New Orleans were seeing net negative member growth—despite solid products, strong service, and upgraded technology.
“You would have to continuously be merging credit unions in just to maintain size,” he said. “We had to take a hard look at that.”
“You’re Playing Defense Now. When Are You Going to Play Offense?”
The real turning point came not just from market pressures, but from within.
Mark found himself at a crossroads. Despite infrastructure built for a $1.2 billion institution, Jefferson’s actual size had slipped significantly. He faced a choice: undertake painful downsizing to match their new scale, or consider a merger—not as the aggressor, but as the acquired.
What followed was a series of unprecedented conversations. For the first time in his 41-year career, Rosa received multiple inquiries—from both credit unions and banks—asking Jefferson to consider merging. The trend was clear: the landscape was consolidating, and larger institutions were entering the market aggressively.
“I told my board, we’re not invincible. $10 billion banks have merged here. Why do we think $900 million makes us immune?”
With help from long-time collaborator Mike Macchiarola and the team at Olden Lane, Rosa explored every lever—from fresh secondary capital to further M&A—but the numbers didn’t support continued independence.
It was time to shift from defense to offense again—just not in the same way.
Making the Mental Shift: Merging for the Member
Emotionally, the decision wasn’t easy. Mark and his board had spent years building Jefferson Financial into a respected institution. But as Rosa emphasized, ego couldn’t be the guiding force.
“At the end of the day, your North Star is the membership. If you’re not doing this for them, then what are you doing?”
They evaluated several suitors, ultimately choosing Keesler Federal Credit Union—a strong regional player already operating in Louisiana. The choice wasn’t just about proximity, but about member value. Better rates, more locations, enhanced technology, and new product offerings were all immediate benefits.
And staff retention? That was a non-negotiable. With Olden Lane’s help, they secured a three-year minimum employment guarantee for all 150 Jefferson Financial employees, including Rosa.
The Path Ahead: A United, Stronger Entity
In early 2025, Jefferson Financial received NCUA approval for the merger, with a member vote and integration plans underway. By July 1, the combined entity—retaining the Keesler name—will become the largest credit union in both Mississippi and Louisiana.
Technology conversions are scheduled for Q1 of 2026, but culturally, the shift is already happening.
Some long-tenured board members chose to retire, unable to reconcile emotionally with the change—but most understood the broader mission: to build something sustainable for future generations of members.
“We were built for $1.2 billion,” Rosa said. “But now, we’ll actually have the scale to support it—and more.”
Stream the Episode to Learn More
Here’s what you’ll take away from this powerful conversation:
- How to Recognize When Growth Masks Deeper Challenges
Rosa shares how member attrition and economic shifts revealed vulnerabilities beneath Jefferson’s impressive M&A track record. - Why Letting Go Can Be a Form of Leadership
Discover how Mark’s humility, paired with strategic analysis, led to a decision that prioritized member outcomes over legacy. - A Model for Member-First Mergers
Learn how the Jefferson–Keesler deal was structured to benefit everyone involved—from executive staff to frontline employees to members.
Ready to hear the full story?
Listen now!
Mark Rosa and Michael Macchiarola are not affiliated with or endorsed by ACT Advisors, LLC.
Audio Transcription
Doug English: [00:00:00] Welcome to CU On the Show we’re you’re delighted to have Mark Rosa and returning guest Mike Macchiarola back on the show.
We’re here with Mark Rosa from Jefferson Financial Federal Credit Union. You’ve been a CEO for, uh, many years. I think 20-21 years at Jefferson Financial. Got a really interesting story to tell. So, uh, Mark, thank you for joining us on the show. And let’s, let’s just kind of, uh, walk back.
Let’s, let’s just tell the story of, uh, Jefferson Financial and all the mergers that you’ve done over these years. Let’s just kind of start with the history of the credit union and where, uh, the original SEG group, and then how you came to merge in all these credit unions over these years.
Mark Rosa: Doug, thanks again for having me.
So my career in credit union started in 1985. I was got into an office manager position for 3 million credit union. So that’s been a long time. ago. But if we’re fast forwarding, so I’ve been in this [00:01:00] role for my entire career in credit unions, which this is the 41st year. But moving over to the one that’s meant the most for a variety of reasons was coming to the Jefferson Parish School Board Employees Credit Union, a state chartered single seg credit union got here in 2000 and four.
We were serving the school system and that was it. So, we had a couple of board members that that were thinking a little bit more progressively than they had previously thought, meaning to get away from a single seg and I was asked specifically, okay, we want to grow the credit union said the board and they didn’t know what that was particularly meaning. So, okay, the usual steps, you know, maybe get a community charter, maybe consider mergers. I never considered those before. You got technology things to consider when going into that. We had antiquated technologies, and it was work to do. So through, uh, since 2004, that’s what we started doing, and we were applying for, um, [00:02:00] uh, increased areas of, you know, like, underserved areas and, and so forth, getting away from the single segs, starting to take on, on other segs, and we started growing, and we were open to mergers, and we probably did, since I’ve been here, seven, so that, that, that was the whole, Number of them that prior to me that didn’t merge anybody in, but that was required.
The greater New Orleans area where we operate is, uh, a, uh, is, is a tough market to crack. It’s basically a bank town. It’s not so folksy like other places in Louisiana. Ones I’m very familiar with, they enjoy growth a little bit easier than I think then we have and I think that’s been, that’s been echoed by many, many people that understand the area here, but we went from it was right, right under 100 million to almost a billion in my tenure, and it was through doing everything that we could put our hands on that made sense for us.
It was nothing really off the table. We got [00:03:00] secondary capital. We got we got some mergers and the smaller mergers turned into larger mergers as other people in the industry look to us as we were, we were kind of the, we were the ones to be with in the greater New Orleans area. So that all brought us to that, um, to that high point of about 960 or so, and we had, uh, other things on the table waiting to propel us into the over 1 billion mark.
So we were probably Uh, when I got here about number 20th in assets in the state, we rose to number two. So, you know, it’s really attributed to collecting professional staff on the way because we needed to do all those things. And they, I mean, I’m awfully proud of my people. I’m awfully proud of my board that saw that this was the thing to do.
And they were supportive in that way. And I think a lot of people from the seg the original school system. They’re not financial people, but they were, they were supportive in every way that they [00:04:00] could be. And that, that’s what brought us to, uh, that high point.
Doug English: When, when was that Mark?
When, when did you hit that 960 number?
Mark Rosa: 2018.
Doug English: 2018. Okay. All right. The, uh, seven mergers that you brought, these were all credit union to credit union mergers?
Mark Rosa: Yes.
From 1 million, believe it or not, the smallest one was a million. The two larger ones were about 130 million. Each.
Doug English: very good. So that, you know, substantial undertakings seven times, right? So then in 2018, you get to the 900 million level. And then what?
Mark Rosa: Well, not first of all, NCOA was like, you grew too fast. It’s like, yeah, with your permission, we did. Because we wrote to the region, we did everything that you’re supposed to do. I mean, it’s, it’s their forms to fill out and they make, they mandate that you fill them out.
So imagine that, we did, they got approved from the region. Then they said, well, [00:05:00] let’s take a pause for a year and let’s stop growing. Let’s, let’s see what’s going on. Okay, that’s fine. We’ve, it’s not like we haven’t been examined before. Uh, the, the real change was of course, when COVID came in, and I, I’m thinking that might’ve been a change for, A lot of people.
And, you know, after that, that’s just been that’s been the fight since then. It wasn’t just COVID and, and, and it was all that came out after that. It was the government’s response and, uh, you know, lack of deposits and people down here started spending money like crazy. And that’s when assets began to shrink consolidate and uh, so you fast forward to today and we had to look at, uh, we had to really, really look at things very critically and maybe, uh, make, make other decisions.
Doug English: So, so COVID just really is, is what shifted the growth path of the credit union. That’s, that’s what, because you were, it sounds like you were just steady grow, grow, grow, grow, grow, and then you [00:06:00] stopped.
Mark Rosa: That’s right. And you know, Doug, what I was describing before is I think the greater New Orleans area is not so much the credit union town when, when you, when you’re adding on other credit unions, it was, uh, you know, you add 100 million to your assets and believe it or not, you grow by 100 million, but keeping that and, and, uh, combining all of the, you know, for the members and things you, you’re going to lose, it seemed like every merger, you wake some people up in the merging credit union, and they may be not happy for one reason or another.
Right. But, um, this area, even, even it was before COVID, it was hard to maintain membership growth. It, it’s just, it was always difficult and again, you, not, not so much like you, you’re going to kid yourself, but when you’re adding, adding mergers on, well, oh, we just grew about 10, 000 members or 25, 000 members.
But to keep them around has always been a challenge for this [00:07:00] area. And, you know, I was working with the league working with other peers of bond to say, you know, what can we do about net negative membership growth in the area. That’s one thing if I was growing members and somebody else wasn’t growing members that the word competition comes to mind.
And that’s okay, but it was like this area was always difficult to maintain your memberships, uh, even when you, when you’re doing all that you can with the products and services, doing everything what you can about locations and, and good staff and, and good service and all those things. So it just, it seemed like to maintain that growth, it would be like you, you would have to continuously merging credit unions in.
And, uh, that’s what we were realizing. And of course, and again, COVID changed the whole equation for obvious reasons, but we were, we were realizing that, um, right around that time when we were cresting in, in, uh, the largest asset size that we [00:08:00] ever were, uh, just saying, how are we going to genuinely keep growing in membership?
Doug English: Do you remember how much that, that 920, I think the high point was like, how much did it go down to in 2021 or 2020?
Mark Rosa: Not, not per year. It’s all, my memory is not that good, but we, we had, let’s say out of, you know, 960 or whatever the assets were, we probably were topping out at about 65, 000 members. So today we have 45, 000 members.
So you go from the, from the top where everybody, where you merged in and you get all the membership and you could claim the high point. Well, then you go and you know, you, you purged some of the, you know, stale accounts and zero balance, you get what you’re supposed to be doing to get a real picture of who you’re serving.
But, um, it’s been through the last couple of years that that’s been the most difficult. And I do talk about being on a podcast. I do. a little, um, uh, radio work here and I have for [00:09:00] years, but I was describing it very publicly like the credit crisis. That was nothing. I mean, that, that, that was easy. That was champagne.
And we didn’t have any trouble there. We actually were growing our portfolio. We were doing very well, but this was the most aggressive set of circumstances that just. That I’ve ever seen in financial institutions, way worse than the credit crisis, I think, and making sure I’m under, I’m describing that accurately, going through COVID, and then the government’s response, and then the inflation that followed, and the, the interest rate increases, talk about interest rate risk, uh, all of those things combined in people’s reaction to COVID, people coming out of…
You know, we were at work, we were considered essential, so I, I, I kept, I didn’t see any difference, I was coming to work every day, and, but you had people that were, they couldn’t work at restaurants, I mean, they couldn’t work for I don’t know how long, so what they were doing coming out of COVID, they were spending money [00:10:00] like there was no tomorrow, and that’s where we lost a lot of assets, we lost a lot of deposits, I, I know we weren’t the only ones, so it, all of those things combined were very, very aggressive, and I’m sure I’m not the only one thinking that way.
Doug English: Yeah, it was hard for sure. Very difficult times. Now, was your board, uh, uh, the same board over that long period of time? Did you have, uh, you know, folks that stayed with you or did your board turnover in that 2018 to 2021 time?
Mark Rosa: Uh, very little turnover. Let’s put it that way. Okay.
Doug English: Okay, so same folks for a long period. And that’s what you’re seeing, right?
That’s what you’re used to seeing your credit union. Very, very long term, uh, board members. So, um, so the so things become very difficult for the credit union after a long period of outstanding growth. And then, and then what do you do from there?
Mark Rosa: Well, that’s it. So, you know, you built for 1. 2 billion [00:11:00] and our infrastructure and staff and products and programs all of those things were You know what?
I think we did did decently about about forecasting what we would need to do. And I think we did those things. So when you start sliding back. And you’re built for 1. 2, then you’re gonna have some earnings problems. And we did. So it was, you know, telling my board what, what the state of affairs was, not that they weren’t seeing financials every month, but if you, if you’re talking about a lot of the volunteers that aren’t financial people. It was like, well, this is this is just going to get better. Um, maybe, you know, for some people, it might have gotten better. And they, because of the economics in their area, whatever else was going on with them, but it wasn’t getting any better for us. I would have had to, uh, retreat like so many companies do, you know, Walgreens of late that we’ve got to close 2000 stores and stories like that.
I think that was coming to us to say, we’ve got to [00:12:00] downsize seriously late. Uh, reverse course on many of the things that we did to reach this size when we’re not that size anymore. So we got to, you know, right size the ship, which would have taken on a lot of pain. Or, uh, we were getting, uh, courted by, for the first time in my career, courted by credit unions saying, you know, why don’t you consider merging with us?
Fast forward to today and that’s what we’re doing
Doug English: A fairly amazing change of sort of direction from being the acquirer being the big fish swallowing up the smaller fish to actually giving serious consideration to, to being absorbed into another credit union like how did you, how did you make that mental journey and how did you guide your board through that mental journey.
Mark Rosa: Well, okay, and first of all, through all of my 41 years, I never had, just over the last couple of years, it was just so concentrated, [00:13:00] in the 30, what would that be, 39 years prior to that, I never had anybody, I genuinely think I’m accurate here, nobody ever said, why don’t you merge with us? Never, you know, so I didn’t, you know, that, that didn’t hit my head.
But in the last two years, I had not only a credit union ask and one that, you know, we’re, we’re in a transaction with right now, it might have been seven credit unions asking me to merge with them. Some made no sense at all, you know, but they were asking, they didn’t have anything to lose. So it’s like, well, I’ll dial this guy and talk to him a little bit and see what he says.
And on top of that, we had three banks calling us saying, please buy us, three community banks that couldn’t take it either. So I’m like, I’ve never seen anything like that. Again, in a very concentrated time. So to answer your question, that was just a flurry of emotion and everything else going on in your head.
It’s like, well, we got to, we really have to digest this well. And we did make [00:14:00] a run at one of the community banks. It was very well run, and they had a good portfolio, about 150 million bank, and we were outbid, and that was the end of it. So, but we, we were doing something we never had thought of doing before.
So I had a couple of other board members to transition on, uh, you know, people that are like, high ranks at local CPA firms and things, so they would know their way around the financials. I needed that, and we have it. But it, it just got to the point where, okay, even if I’m merging in another hundred million dollars, and that’s going to do wonderfully to my deposit base, and that’s going to do well to my net income, and, and certainly add pluses, it was nowhere close to where I finally woke up one morning in this greater New Orleans area, never to what we encroached on by, um, people just other, others looking to expand.
Two four billion dollar credit unions that were all of a sudden not coming. They’re here. So [00:15:00] that’s where I walked into a couple of board meetings saying guys. I mean, this is real. This is not, you know, theoretical. This is not some, strategic plan. But we all sit around eating bologna sandwiches and talking about pie in the sky.
No no no.. This is here. And, uh, you know, you could look over here. They have a couple of branches over here. They have a couple of branches and they were They were some of the ones calling the multi billion dollar credit union saying, you know, what do you think? So that’s where the reality came in in a way that it was never presented to us before And it was a business.
It’s just a business decision. So let’s put the emotions aside and ego and everything else.
Doug English: It is, but hold on, Mark, because that is that right there. Let’s, let’s talk about that. Let’s talk about emotions and ego and how you did that, because that is big. That is huge, right? It is. Legacy of this credit union and how it served its membership and the difference it made in families and the way you’re connected to the [00:16:00] community.
Mark Rosa: Yes.
Doug English: How did you work through that?
Mark Rosa: Well, it was tough because if you think you’re right in your head, that that way of thinking was getting contagious, but you had a, you had to get people buying in, and I still might, you know, I don’t think I’m saying anything out of turn.
I think I have a couple of directors that they can’t get there and they weren’t. They weren’t going so far as to say, I want to scuttle a deal or vote against it. It’s like, no, you know what? It took longer than anybody else, but I finally had clarity on this. And it’s, it’s hurtful to me, meaning some of these directors that have had tenure way before I got here.
It’s like I just can’t go, that, that’s a bridge too far, I need to segue out, this will be my last hurrah, and I, I’m, I can’t be any part of the combined entity. I have an account here and those types of things, but I can’t be a direct anymore, I can’t, I just can’t get there, this is, this is where I have to leave it.
[00:17:00] I respect that. I understand. But this is where the organization had to go. And, you know, you start, uh, baby steps. I was, uh, brought my C suite in and say, Guys, look, this is what’s going on. And not that you all can’t see it, because we’re seeing the financials all the time and understand what we’re dealing with, uh, here.
So that, it just started to accrue to people. And that, you know, fast forward, that’s where we are today. Everybody’s on board. I’m not getting any inkling of anybody saying no, this is a big mistake. It is not.
Doug English: So the, the, uh, the process of getting yourself just because it sounds like it started from your own like internal reflections and just awareness of the trend, right?
And just seeing the trend and knowing that you, you can’t defeat the trend. Uh, am I right? That’s that’s sort of where it is your own in your own head. The awareness that we can’t solve this.
Mark Rosa: Yeah. And it’s, it’s like, you know, you’re going to [00:18:00] pick a fight with a locomotive. So reaching out to people that, you know, some tells me, I know who’s going to win that.
It’s not going to be pretty. And, and reaching out to, uh, people that are wealths of knowledge and, um, see something from, um, a very vast sphere. And who were always very helpful to me and that I don’t know what you’re saying that because he’s online with us, but Mike and company of Olden Lane, just, um, indescribably helpful.
And I needed Mike and company to sit with me and say, well, let’s, let’s really understand this the best that we can. And then you start talking to others, but I can’t say enough about what Olden Lane has contributed to us and me.
Doug English: So, so yeah, let’s, can we talk a bit about that conversation? So, you reach out to Mike to talk sort of philosophically about the challenges of the credit union and what are the levers you can pull [00:19:00] to address those challenges, which is, is that, is that how it started?
Mark Rosa: I guess I go a little bit further back with Mike that that helped this process. So let me step back. Mike got us the 12 million in secondary capital. And that was part of the ways that we grew. That was 2017, 2018. He and I’ve been friends ever since but when we were getting 12 million in secondary capital mike, wouldn’t that one of the largest single pieces in the country?
Mike Macchiarola: It might have been, it might have been the largest at the time, yeah.
Mark Rosa: 12 million dollars. I mean that’s lunch now Secondary capital Okay, you got an extra martini in there but it it’s you know, mike took that mike and Olden Lane took that and ran with so many credit users looking to expand And secondary was, was a big piece of that.
So, you know, they did 200 million pieces, but going back to all that conversation, what it meant to [00:20:00] us. So I started there with Mike saying, well, okay, maybe we just need more secondary capital to provide some growth and no, no, not, not after COVID, not after the interest rates, it just didn’t make any sense anymore.
So that’s where he was instrumental in helping say, well, let’s look at all the options. Let’s sit down with it. Let’s consider things that you never considered before. He was right. I never considered merging with another one. I was always saying, well, it’s me, me, I’m gonna grow the credit union. And we’re gonna stay like we are.
Doug English: That’s what you’ve been doing
Mark Rosa: And never realize. And maybe I just need to put a, I need to put a different that to throw my career. And, and we gotta put a different hat on and see how it fits. So sometimes it’s hard, it’s hard for people, uh, but you know, there’s clarity. You okay, you put the hat on, you look at it, you kind of check it out, and it added the clarity that was much needed.
Not that you don’t know at the, you know, within yourself, but you, um, it’s like, okay, that this [00:21:00] is, it’s our turn. We’re going to do something different and we’re going to be not the continuing credit union.
Doug English: Yeah, a difficult conclusion to reach, but you reached it with analysis. Right? You went and you did some pro forma with additional capital or other things that you considered and you didn’t see it solving the problem.
That’s where you end up going. Whoa, we need to rethink everything.
Mark Rosa: You know, Doug, when approaching, um, approaching my, my board or C suite, just going through the whole thing with everybody that, you need to tell about this. And it’s like, guys, who do you, who do we think we are? You know, community banks, a billion plus that have merged out around here.
Just looking at local examples, things that everybody remembered. We had a $10 billion, uh, a hundred plus year old bank here. They merged, uh, that was part of the credit crisis, that bit them 10 billion. Oh. Talk [00:22:00] about economies of scale. They could solve any problem. Of course they could. They merged. There was one that was twice that big.
Because it made sense for them. They weren’t caught in a pinch. There was a 20 billion bank here that merged. So, you know, they’re no longer here. It came up to another name. So it’s like when you kind of get to the board, it’s like, what, we think you’re invincible at 900 million in assets? When you got examples here that were 20 times multiple, that they had to have their set of meetings like this, and they made the decision.
So we got to be open to this. And be pragmatic and, and, and know at the, at, at the end of the rainbow, it’s got to be for the membership, you get there and all the other stuff’s got to be set aside. All this other legacy stuff and, and, uh, well, what’s going to happen to the name and all, no, no. No, no, you, that, you got to get past.
Doug English: Is part of it, do you actually identify the things that the membership will [00:23:00] receive if we go through with this? Do you actually like, identify those individual things in advance? Or is it, is it more high level strategy about just assets and loan ratios and ability to continue to be viable?
Mark Rosa: Both and and when Michael and I were talking about it when it was the idea at its infancy, then you start talking about both of those like some type of strategic idea what goes forward, but also you get down to the bread and butter.
It’s like, okay, take a couple of these other credit unions. Let’s look at their rates. Pull up their website, see what’s going on, see where their branches are, any of the products and services that they have, and you quickly see, you’ll see what’s going on with somebody else’s shop because it’s all online, and it, that’s That, believe it or not, is not the hardest part.
You know, you could see it very clearly.
Doug English: Mm hmm. And, you know, the, the arguments that you hear in the industry about, uh, [00:24:00] the, the loss. There’s loss of the smaller credit unions. The mergers are losses of, of credit unions. Uh, and obviously there’s a lot of emotional, uh, weight in those words. What does the membership gain?
Like, does the, when you looked at the situation, was the membership going to gain lower rates of lending and higher rates of deposit? Is that what’s, what outcomes that you identified?
Mark Rosa: Between that and just other things, but I also, I wanted to say something that’s, it’s kind of a, just a catch all phrase, but just bear with it.
I think. I think technology consolidates an industry and I’m just not talking about us. So, when, when all of the technology, like right now, all this, the thing is AI, that’s the, you know, buzzwords. I have no idea how we were going to put AI in our credit union and really get into it. Can we afford it?
What’s it going to look and smell like? What are other people doing and things? We thought we were good up to [00:25:00] this point. We were. And at the usual stuff that, you know, electronic services and, you know, you could do what you need by, by off your smart devices and all those things. That’s fine. But that, I think that was, you know, you, you got to talk about the small credit union.
You got credit unions that don’t, their members don’t have access to an ATM. So what are they doing? Well, that small credit union, you’ve got a lot of loyal people, maybe from the original SEG, but as a practical matter, Doug, I think we both know that that’s not the, the members that are a member of that 8 million credit, you know, 80 million.
I don’t think that they, that credit union could be their primary financial institution. So that’s where it goes. And I’ve had credit union CEOs tell me, you know what, we don’t want to be. Well, that’s an interesting approach, but it’s none of my business. Somebody saying, I don’t want to be my member’s primary financial institution.
Okay. Uh, okay. None of my business, but it’s, it’s gonna [00:26:00] reject all this other stuff and who needs ATMs and who needs, you know, phone access to my account and all those things. But I think that’s their way of justifying to themselves. Why? No, I don’t have to grow. I’m 39 million and we’re going to we’re going to be just fine here.
And we made $12, 000 last year of net income. So why do I need to do anything differently?
Doug English: So you reach this this point and you make a very substantial emotional journey from acquirer to wow, I need to look at potentially being merged in, and then how do you evaluate the, uh, the players and, and, and how do you reach your selection?
Mark Rosa: Um, that wasn’t so hard again, and, and Mike was a, a tremendous help there. So it, it was, um, I guess the first thing was for us, and it could be different to anybody that’s listening to the, to, to this program, the one, the [00:27:00] credit unions that were here already. And we’re gaining a lot of steam that was just a lot of energy coming here.
So it’s like, well, let’s look at them first because it’s not somebody that’s coming from, let’s say, three states over. And we had that that have no footprint at all here. So you’re going to start with me. All right, that’s an argument worth having. But, and that’s, that was fine, but I think the ones just fast forwarding, the ones that were already here made more sense to our selection.
Again, somebody else, it could be, it could be different. We’ve got to be open to that. But somebody that was here already, I mean, like right down the street in a very significant way, meaning a lot of branch offices, a lot of products and services coming here at, at prices that it would be difficult, if not impossible for me to compete with.
Doug English: So that’s an interesting takeaway [00:28:00] then. So prices that were difficult or impossible to compete with means that the membership may have gained some advantages, right? From going forward with the merger, you, you, you serve the membership potentially better.
Mark Rosa: Positively.
Doug English: And then so now, uh, you know, as we’re in the, uh, in the spring of 2025, where where are things now? What’s happened now?
Mark Rosa: Well, a lot of discussion last year, what led to an application in December going to NCOA, because it’s the first process, uh, part of this process. So, uh, we just got approval like a week ago, two weeks ago. So that was a December submission in a, um, in a late February, I think, uh, final result. So we’re in the process of scheduling the meeting of our members, since we’re not going to be the continuing, uh, that we hope to have in April, and then the go [00:29:00] live date, you know, this, these are the high points, obviously, I’m leaving on a lot of minutiae, but, uh, we hope the go live date will be July 1.
Where my board will no longer exist. they’re going to be in an advisory capacity, but then it’s going to be 100 percent Keesler and then to get on data system conversions. That’s probably, that is the longest piece that after all the requirements are met. Then I think we’re looking at converting the core systems in first quarter 26.
So, start to finish, let’s say mid-24 to first quarter 26. That’s what that means here. You got two credit unions that are by, by NCOA’s definition complex. They’ll leave it to their definition of that. But I don’t think that, you know, I don’t disagree with it. So, it takes that long to put everything together.
Doug English: Well, huge transaction. So, a couple, couple of, [00:30:00] uh, tactical details to see if we can talk about it. Again, say no, if we can’t talk about them. So, first place, uh, in order to keep your senior staff into the new organization did you design any sort of retention strategy to keep them into the new time because folks don’t like change, right? Change is not popular. How do you keep your staff to the other side?
Mark Rosa: And you, you realize how many people don’t like change when you have, when you reach a point where it’s not only just a C suite. Okay. Well, at some point, I got to draft an email and get it out to every single soul. Then you see what, because you, by then you’re so used to the idea because you’ve taken it this far.
But you got a whole bunch of people that are just going about their day. Yeah, lunch, you got to pick up milk going home and all, all of a sudden it’s so again, it was, uh, it was so well crafted and negotiated meeting with Mike and Olden Lane to help me, [00:31:00] uh, get to the, uh, the, the continuing credit union in this case, Keesler and sitting down with them and then them realizing what they knew, but they didn’t, in no disrespect to them, I don’t think that they knew how, how good it was going to be in terms of looking more deeply at the financials, the footprint, the structures that we have, it was going to all accrue to them. So, Mike was very good at putting together that initial contract that included keeping everybody on for a minimum of three years.
Minimum. Everybody. Not just me. Everybody in the whole all 150 of my employees to give them peace of mind and no salary reductions. That was by contract. So that was, um, that’s what’s on everybody’s mind. I mean, by the time it hits the employee, think so I’m gonna be [00:32:00] laid off. And when, in 15 minutes from now, or 15 days from now, zero of that.
And, and Keisler knew that prior to them coming to us. ’cause they are proud of the fact that in their 75 year history, they’ve never laid off anybody. So they take that very seriously. And that was, we like that about them, amongst other things.
Mark Rosa: It was Olden Lane’s help in putting together a deal that was so win win that we all fell in love with it. And we’re already in love with Mike, but we fell in love with Mike now and all of the work that he did for this. Just the truth.
Doug English: Maybe that’s what we’ll title the podcast, How to Fall in Love with Mike. Yes. That, that, that, that would be a unique.
Mark Rosa: Okay I might get a little jealous over that. That’s very, but you go ahead.[00:33:00]
Doug English: So, uh, all right. So, so you, you, you’ve gotten your approval, uh, you retained your staff with a three year retention plan, uh, and you’re getting ready for an annual meeting that could be really, uh, quite a, a, a new adventure. How are you thinking about that?
Mark Rosa: Yeah, you know, the ones that we had taken in, of course, we were sitting at the other side of the table.
But yes, where people from other credit unions, they would come to that meeting with with very specific questions. And they did their homework. And they usually the voting process just by regulation, the voting process is going to happen largely up to that point. People are going to get ballots, people are gonna be notified by mail people all within NCOA’s regulation.
So I would say it’s been my experience that 90 percent of the voting is happening before that [00:34:00] meeting day, let’s say a credit union with 20, 000 members. You might have 1 percent of that show up physically show up to the meeting. So let’s say 200 people and I’m prepared for all their questions.
I mean, this, this, uh, this process is on. It’s going. I mean, the train left the station months ago. So I’m interested to, to hear and see what’s on their mind. Answer any questions. Just tell them the truth. And some say, well, you know, this is not for me. I’ve had that on a very minority of the cases. But otherwise, if anybody wants to look at it objectively, because we had to times a hundred getting to this point. So if somebody wants to be objective about this, I think they will see why we’re doing this.
Doug English: [00:35:00] Yeah, very interesting story to change from one direction so dramatically to the other. I would almost call that a bravery to be able to do that. That’s, it’s difficult. That’s not a small thing that you’ve, uh, you’ve done, uh, in, uh, in service to the membership.
Mark Rosa: That’s correct.
Doug English: So, with that, I don’t know what else to ask. It’s really a fascinating journey that you’ve gone through. And so you’re going to be, uh, finished, partially finished in 25, fully, uh, technology merged together in 26. Uh, and then, uh, and then, uh, we’ll see what the entity looks like on the other side.
Mark Rosa: Yes, sir. The largest credit union in Mississippi and the largest credit union in Louisiana. That’s what we’re going to see on the other side. Minimum. That’s just going to be a fact. It is a big deal.
Doug English: Very, very [00:36:00] much so. Well, uh, so let’s just give the opportunity for any final thoughts and final messages to the credit union movement from either of you.
Um, just any other things that you want our listeners to know about. Um, this sort of subject because it’s it’s a little contentious, right? This is a subject that’s delicate because the credit unions have, actually one of the things I love about credit unions is there’s an emotional connection between you and this entity.
It means something. It’s something you built that you’ve, you, uh, you know, it comes from generations sometimes from where your parents used to work or your grandparents used to work. It means something. So, how do you, um, what, what messages would you, uh, would you offer to the movement?
Mark Rosa: Well, a couple of things.
First of all, I’ve said, said a lot. I want Mike to, to chime in because his, his words are so valuable. But something that Mike always was telling me, he says, you know, you’re not you’re playing defense now, ever since COVID came [00:37:00] in and the things we talked about earlier, you’ve been, you’re playing defense and you’re doing okay, but when, when exactly are you going to play offense?
And that, that, that I could put, you know, I could get a tattoo of that and I could put it on my tombstone because it’s, it was so true. And I see so many other credit unions crossing that bridge. You know, you’re on the, you’re on the structure already. Okay. If you, and if you keep playing defense, I’m going to get out of this and I’m going to get out of this when the whole world is, is surrounding you, uh, just make an objective decision because that’s what we had to come to the realization.
It’s like, you know what, by the time, and I told my board, there is zero part of me that thinks that we’re not going to come out of this, this hard part. Okay, zero. We were going to have, we have the people on board, we have the assets, we have all those things, we were going to come out. It might take another two or three years.
We were going to come out, we were going to make money and all those things. But then, who is already here? Where are they [00:38:00] going to be? And it’s like, okay, you want to go toe to toe with them then? Well, the offers are not going to be on the table and Mike and I had very candid conversations about that and he quickly said, look, I mean, there’s, there’s timeframes to things and it’s not, it’s not up to you because you’ve got the, the economy, you’ve got other financial institutions, you’ve got other things going on and you’ve got to, um, you’ve got to seize that opportunity when it’s like right in front of you and, and it’s, it’s right there for the taking.
So further delay was not going to be our friend. But anyway, that’s, uh, yield everything to Mike.
Mike Macchiarola: Look, I mean, uh, there’s not a lot to add to that wisdom. Um, Mark gets it. He is willing to put aside his ego, uh, and to understand that you can only have one North Star and that North Star is your membership.
And so when you look at these things, that’s the constituency you [00:39:00] have to be responsive to. At the end of the day, the decisions that you make in the C Suite or at the board level are decisions where your member is counting on you to do the right thing. And I can assure you in this transaction, because of the wisdom of Mark, honestly, because of the great nature of Andy and his team on the other side, uh, we’ve built something here that is going to be lasting.
And the members in this new Keesler, when it comes out the other side after the, after the vote and after the consolidation efforts, it’s going to be very strong. It’s going to be very powerful and it’s going to be an example for others. And at Olden Lane, you know, we take very seriously our obligation to this industry.
We understand that there’s a legacy, a heritage and a brand whenever there’s a merging credit union. And, you know, our job is to do it in a way that respects that and always finds a path that makes [00:40:00] sense. And in this case, we’re very proud of where this one’s going. Uh, and it really is a tribute to Mark, his team.
Uh, very strong team, uh, honestly, you know, and, and it’s one thing to sit here and talk about it. There were very tough days. There were very tough decisions to be made. There were very difficult conversations that were a part of this. I mean, there was one particular night on, on the roof deck of Mark’s main branch, which was very difficult.
Um, but you know, at the end of the day, uh, we’re getting there and we’re doing something that we’re all going to be very, very proud of..
Doug English: Well, Mark and Mike, thank you for, uh, for bringing this topic idea up. I think, uh, again, uh, somewhat contentious in the credit union industry, the shrinking of the industry as far as the number of credit unions, but perhaps the, [00:41:00] the growing of the value add to the member, uh, may, maybe the, maybe the strengthening of the industry, just less entities.
Individually. I think that will be an interesting metric to measure. I don’t have the data for but I hope that that is the case. Thank you both for your leadership and for your service to the credit union movement.
Mark and Mike: Pleasure, Doug. Thanks. Appreciate it. Thanks, Doug
Episode Links
Jefferson Financial Federal Credit Union | Be Proud. Bank Local.
