Many young credit union professionals who attended CUNA's Governmental Affairs Conference had an important goal in mind: Work the room every chance they would get and make valuable connections that could potentially lead to career advancement.

With nearly 4,000 credit union industry professionals shuffling between breakout sessions, speeches, receptions and informal meet-ups, GAC presented numerous opportunities for millennials in the early stages of their careers to gain new knowledge and plant seeds for their futures in the industry.

LaTesha Wheeler, who participated in CUNA and The Cooperative Trust's Crash the GAC program in 2014 and attended this year as a volunteer with the National Credit Union Foundation, said the conference allows young professionals to act as sponges, soaking up new information through their interactions with long-time industry professionals.

“The veterans offer a wealth of knowledge to the young professionals, and in exchange, the young professionals bring an energetic spirit that says, 'I have some great ideas – are you willing to listen?'” said Wheeler, who also serves as an executive assistant for the $52 million Washington-based District Government Employees FCU.

The Crash the GAC program, now in its sixth year, brought 52 young professionals from across the nation to Washington for the GAC last week, where they attended exclusive speaker sessions in addition to the conference's core events and receptions. Several of this year's participants (who are also called “crashers”) said the week's events exposed them to people and ideas they would have never encountered otherwise, and provided ideal opportunities for networking.

“The GAC allowed us to get out of our comfort zones and talk to senior-level professionals, and whether or not those people became career resources, the one-on-one conversations allowed us to learn things that we wouldn't have learned anywhere else,” said Erica Kemp, a 2015 crasher and branch manager for the $924 million, Anchorage, Alaska-based Credit Union 1.

Stephanie Dagg, another 2015 crasher and loan officer/member service representative for the $213 million, Decatur, Ill.-based Land of Lincoln Credit Union, said her interactions with other professionals at the conference gave her an opportunity to explore career options in the industry.

“I'm still trying to figure out where I want to go in my career, and I need to fully understand some of the options out there before I take that next step,” Dagg said. “Talking to people at GAC who are at a higher level professionally has really helped me gain a new understanding.”

Of all the sessions and events available for crashers to attend at GAC, they said the exclusive, crasher-only speaker sessions offered especially valuable career-related insights. These sessions featured speakers from CUNA, the National Credit Union Foundation, CUNA Mutual Group and Filene Research Institute, and gave crashers the opportunity to pick industry veterans' brains one-on-one once the sessions ended. However, crashers also noted the importance of the GAC's after-hours gatherings, which gave attendees a chance to let their guards down and discuss their work in a laid-back environment.

“The after-hours events are very valuable,” said Tammy Wood, a 2015 crasher and relationship management specialist for the $1.3 billion Dupaco Community Credit Union in Dubuque, Iowa. “For example, one night at GAC, I was singing 'Sweet Caroline' in a hotel bar with a group of professionals, and I found it so easy to just go up and talk to them that night. You learn so much in that type of a setting.”

Dagg added, “It was a combination of the speaker sessions and after-hours events that I found valuable. The speakers can be very motivating, but it's also important to talk one-on-one.”

When crashers scored some face time with seasoned credit union professionals at GAC, they wanted to ensure they used their time wisely by asking the right questions. Wood said that during her talks with new contacts at the conference, she often asked them about their favorite part of the GAC, as well as their biggest successes and failures in their careers.

GAC Crashers get to know CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle at the Washington advocacy event.

“Those are both great icebreakers, and the conversations flowed naturally from there,” Wood said.

James Marshall, who heads up Crash the GAC and serves as Filene Research Institute's Cooperative Trust Manager, said he advises young professionals at the conference to ask as many questions as they can, and to be interested, not interesting.

“The amount they can learn through conversations at these events, including the receptions, is phenomenal,” Marshall said. “There's something about making those personal connections that you can't get anywhere else.”

Dave Klavitter, senior vice president of marketing for Dupaco Community Credit Union, said the crashers' presence at the GAC gives them an opportunity to build “cool networks.” He also said he encourages young professionals to engage in conversations with more experienced individuals outside of the conference's speaker sessions.

“Every experience you have can add something to how you approach your career, and even how you approach your life,” Klavitter said. “Sitting in a conference hall is one thing, but getting out there and challenging the status quo is another.”

Klavitter added that he's seen tremendous growth in the number of young professionals who attend the GAC year after year.

“It's become a genuine movement,” he said. “It started out when young professionals said, 'Move aside, our voices count too.' Now, Gen Y has a responsibility to question their more experienced peers in the industry.”

What's the best career advice young professionals received during the GAC? For Kemp, it was to discover an area she enjoys within the credit union industry, and focus on it throughout the course of her career.

“The best advice I received was to find your passion, something that sparks your interest,” Kemp said. “If you really enjoy something, you're more likely to succeed at it.”

Wood said her best career takeaways from GAC were to leave fear at the door and find a person who can help guide you in the right direction.

“I learned that it's important to not be afraid and to find a mentor, and I in fact found my next mentor during GAC,” Wood said.

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Networking Takes Center Stage for Millennials at GAC

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