Volunteering offers credit managers opportunities to give back

From the steady stream of emails to an overflowing pile of credit applications awaiting your careful review, work can be overwhelming. Even after leaving for the day, it might still weigh heavy on your mind as you anticipate the next day’s workload. 

Why it matters: Despite their heavy workload, many NACM members find time to volunteer time and give back to their communities, whether it’s in their local neighborhood or their professional fields. Volunteering their time has allowed members to develop deep connections and build networks outside of their work that give way to mentorship and career advancement. 

For DeAnna Leahy, CCE, NACM immediate-past Chair and corporate credit manager for Sunroc Corporation, (Orem, UT), volunteering her time, whether it’s on an education committee or as a member of NACM’s Board, is an opportunity to help contribute to and strengthen the credit industry. 

“Volunteering and mentorship, in an industry association like this, not only helps us as professionals navigate our own careers, but it also contributes to the growth and sustainability of the field when we’re helping others to learn and to grow,” Leahy said. “I think that’s one thing that I found rewarding is that not only did mentoring and volunteering help strengthen my leadership skills, but it also helped me help other people, which can be a really rewarding thing.” 

Those credit professionals taking time out of their busy schedules to serve on NACM’s Board and committees serve the next generation of credit managers, as their insights will be a guiding light in an industry that changes every day with new innovations.

Penny Jeter, CBF, NACM Board director and director of credit and collections for Ingram Barge Company LLC, (Columbia, TN), said serving on NACM’s National Board was an opportunity to shape the future of credit for the next generation of credit managers. “It was exciting because it gave me a chance to give things that I normally couldn’t be in a position to do,” Jeter said. “I could help make decisions that would steer NACM to other paths for the younger generations that follow.”

Volunteering your time to support and advance an industry you are passionate about is a rewarding experience. “I pride myself on holding the belief that every idea I share and every vote I make is always representing what’s in the best interest of the membership,” said Brett Hanft, CBA, CFDD and NACM Board director and credit manager at International Forest Products LLC, (Beaverton, OR). “Having the opportunity to represent and serve our membership is my greatest reward and highest level of satisfaction from volunteering my time to serve.”

For Leahy, who volunteers on two of NACM’s Boards as well as for local homeless shelters, taking on these roles outside of her regular job can help de-stress from the everyday pressures of work. 

“Anytime you volunteer, you get a lot of satisfaction out of that,” Leahy said. “Serving can be a meaningful outlet, mentally. It can give a purpose to your life beyond your daily work routines and so I think if you’re serving an organization, whether it’s NACM or any organization, you feel like you have a purpose.”

Heidi Lindgren-Boyce, CCE, CFDD Chair and senior credit manager at Star Rentals, Inc., (Kent, WA), said serving as president of the nonprofit managing the well that serves 40 lots in her neighborhood has helped her develop a closer relationship to those in her community. 

“When I took over, I went to every person’s door, made sure I had their cell phones, made sure I had their email, introduced myself, making sure I’m available [to them],” Lindgren-Boyce said. “I know everybody in the neighborhood, I never expected that, and I really like the people in my neighborhood.” 

For a lot of credit managers, like Mike Hill, CCE, NACM Board director and director of credit at MiTek Inc., (Chesterfield, MO), volunteering within trade organizations can feel like a way to give back while also advancing your own career, which makes the additional workload worth it. 

“Yeah, it is additional work,” Hill said. “But again, it’s the right thing to do, to give back, because we all got help on our way up. I get way more out of it than I’m putting into it. It has been a huge part of me developing and continuing to grow in my career and ascend within my company.”

The bottom line: Volunteering, whether it is within the credit industry or within your community, can help you see the larger purpose of your work while also helping build community.