New Richland Federal Credit Union CEO Announced

The Board of Directors of Richland Federal Credit Union (RFCU) is pleased to announce the appointment of Korey Hagan as the new chief executive officer at Richland Federal effective Jan. 23. A northeastern Montana native who grew up on the family ranch near Plentywood, Hagan holds an MBA in business administration from St. Thomas University, Minneapolis and a B.S. in agricultural, business management with an economics minor from Montana State University. He brings 20 years of progressive lending and management experience in the financial services industry and with farm cooperatives, most recently as the Chief Lending Officer at Dakota West Credit Union, Watford City.

In that position he was responsible for all lending functions and oversaw a loan portfolio incorporating consumer, residential mortgage, agricultural, commercial, and pooled and individual participation loans. Hagan and his team grew total loans by 23%, from $115 million to $141 million during his four-year tenure. Additional responsibilities included developing policies and procedures, regulation adherence, and leading project initiatives. He also originated and executed staff training and development programs.

"Korey brings a wealth of experience to our credit union," RFCU Board Chair Beth Redlin said. "His broad lending background, particularly in agricultural lending, is buttressed by his business management experience with farmer co-ops. We are looking forward to working with him to build our Credit Union for the future and continue to meet our members' ever evolving financial needs."

Hagan is also looking forward to stepping into the manager's post at RFCU.

It is exciting to be back in Big Sky Country and so close to 'home'. The small towns and farms and ranches of eastern Montana have a special place with me. I can't imagine a better place to continue raising my family. It means that much more to be back promoting the benefits and value of a member-owned cooperative in RFCU; principles that I know to still be guiding RFCU today. I am eager to get started and hope our RFCU team can continue to grow its member base and member value while maintaining the strong balance sheet it has built.

Hagan is taking over for long-time RFCU manager Kevin Mayer who is retiring after an impressive 38-year career at the credit union, 24 of those years as manager. During that time, he oversaw the growth of the credit union from $14 million to $108 million, supervised construction of a new facility, and directed numerous additions and improvements to member services for the digital age. Mayer has also served on many state and regional credit union boards over his tenure, most recently as the Montana representative to the Millennium Corporate Credit Union Board.

"Kevin has been an excellent manager for us over so many years, helping RFCU to expand and grow, even during some very tough times," Redlin said. "We are very sorry to see him go, but wish him all the best in his well-earned retirement."

As he prepares to hand over the reins, Mayer reflected on his long career with RFCU.

"It has been a very good run." Mayer said. "I never dreamed a 38-year career would be the beginning for me in 1985. The credit union industry has brought many friendships to me and my family. I have been blessed with a great team to work with and I feel good that I am leaving a healthy and sound financial cooperative to Mr. Hagan."