BEDFORD, Ind.–George McNichols, the long-time president and CEO of Hoosier Hills Credit Union, has announced his retirement effective March 1, 2020.
McNichols was named to lead Hoosier Hills in 1984, when it was known as the Bedford Independent FCU and when it had a limited FOM and approximately $10 million in assets. Since that time McNichols has overseen growth to approximately $575 million in assets, eight branches and an expanded, 35-country field of membership.
"As we've built our business, it wasn't because there were lots of new people moving into town,” said McNichols in a statement. “I think it really was because we offered a good alternative to the financial services they currently had access to. We've had a positive impact on the people who live in those communities, even those who didn't end up coming to Hoosier Hills Credit Union for their financial needs and services, because of the impact we had on pricing and fees to other financial institutions."
Taking Care of Members
In the statement, McNichols said growth has been driven by taking care of individual members, one at a time. "Our goal has always been to give our members the best advice we possibly can and hopefully have the products and services to meet their needs. So far, it has worked for us."
During his career McNichols has been active on the Radius Indiana board, the Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce, the Bedford Recreation Foundation and the Lawrence County Community Foundation. He also served for 13 years on the Indiana Credit Union League board, including as chair, and for 20 years on the state's Governmental Affairs Committee, 12 of those years as Committee Chair. In 2015, he was named to the Indiana Credit Union Hall of Fame. Nationally, McNichols served on CUNA’s Governmental Affairs Committee and as a member of CUNA's Kitchen Cabinet, a national task force to explore alternative structural options for credit unions in the United States. McNichols was also appointed in 2016 by then Governor Mike Pence to the Indiana Board for Depositories as the first-ever credit union representative on that board.
Hoosier Hills said it has hired a search firm to find a successor.