While attending law school, Michelle Balog became introduced to the world of financial services while assisting with the regulatory compliance program at a community bank, where she also had the opportunity to learn about the operational and sales aspects of banking. After a few years of practicing law and teaching Ethics & Business Law at St. Xavier University in Chicago as an adjunct professor, she joined the team at NuMark Credit Union.

The rest, as they say, is history - after 17 years with the $877 million, Joliet, Ill.-based NuMark, she’s now serving as CEO, having taken over for the now-retired Lloyd Fredendall in April. In this episode of Shared Accounts With CU Times, Balog shares her career journey and vision for NuMark, including how she’s approaching legal and risk management, cybersecurity and employee culture. Becoming CEO during a time of regulatory uncertainty comes with its challenges, but thanks in part to her legal background, Balog is well-equipped to handle them.

And, since no conversation with a Chicago native would be complete without mentioning deep-dish pizza or Pope Leo the 14th, we made sure to touch on those topics - and Balog had a lot to say about both! Grab a slice, get comfy and take a listen!