VP of Lending

Job Description

Careers with our clients through Forvis Mazars | Executive Search

The Vice President of Lending provides tactical and operational leadership for the Credit Union's

Consumer, Business, and Mortgage divisions. This position is accountable for consistent, high-quality and compliant underwriting; effective staff leadership and development; efficient lending processes and system controls; and clean internal, external, and regulatory audits. The Vice President ensures lending decisions support member needs while protecting the Credit Union's safety and soundness and advancing its strategic goals.

Responsibilities:

Lending Leadership and Underwriting

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• Provide oversight of Consumer, Business, and Mortgage lending, including underwriting, processing, quality control, policy administration, and product delivery.
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• Establish and maintain consistent underwriting standards that reflect the Credit Union's risk appetite, lending policy, applicable investor requirements, and sound lending practices.
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• Maintain strong quality-control and documentation standards so loan files are accurate, complete, supportable, and ready for internal, external, and regulatory review.
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Risk Compliance and Audit Readiness

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• Lead audit and examination preparation for Consumer, Business, and Mortgage lending; respond promptly to findings, identify root causes, and ensure sustainable corrective actions are completed and documented.
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• Stay current on federal and state laws, regulations, agency guidance, and industry developments affecting credit union lending, including fair lending, consumer protection, mortgage, flood insurance, and appraisal.
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• Partner with Compliance, Risk, Operations, Accounting, Information Technology, Retail, and other leaders to translate regulatory and business requirements into effective policies, procedures, controls, and staff practices.
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Performance Systems and Process Excellence

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• Monitor credit quality, policy exceptions, approval and funding trends, turnaround times, and other key performance indicators; take timely corrective action when needed.
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• Ensure lending systems, decision engines, workflows, integrations, and reporting tools support accurate decisions, regulatory compliance, efficient service, and reliable management information.
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• Evaluate staffing, workloads, and workflows across the lending divisions and allocate resources to meet service, quality, compliance, and growth objectives.
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People Leadership and Development

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• Develop lending leaders and staff through clear expectations, regular coaching, technical training, cross-training, performance feedback, and succession planning.
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• Promote a culture of sound judgment, accountability, consistency, continuous improvement, and respectful service to Members and internal partners.
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• Lead assigned lending managers and staff through workforce planning, hiring and onboarding, work assignment and review, performance evaluation, recognition, corrective action, issue resolution, and development for expanded responsibility.
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Products Vendors and Executive Reporting

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• Recommend lending products, pricing, guidelines, and process improvements based on Member needs, risk, financial performance, market conditions, and regulatory expectations.
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• Provide accurate and timely reports to executive management, clearly communicating performance, emerging risks, significant exceptions, compliance matters, and improvement initiatives.
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• Manage vendor and third-party relationships supporting Consumer, Business, and Mortgage lending, including due diligence, performance monitoring, access controls, and issue resolution.
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Qualifications

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• Bachelor's degree in business, finance, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
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• Working knowledge of credit union lending regulations, fair lending requirements, audit and examination expectations, loan origination systems, automated decisioning, reporting, and portfolio risk management.
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• Ability to perform the essential duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodation.
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• Seven or more years of progressively responsible lending experience, including significant Consumer and Mortgage underwriting experience.
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• At least three years of leadership or management experience.
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• Knowledge of secondary-market or investor guidelines where applicable.
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