Garth Warner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Servus Credit Union, announced the appointment of Joanne Simes as Chief Credit Officer.

"I'm pleased to welcome Joanne as the newest member of the Executive Leadership Team that we are reshaping as part of a carefully planned transition to ensure continued, capable leadership to guide our credit union into the future," stated Mr. Warner. "Her extensive background in credit and credit union management will help us achieve our purpose – shaping member financial fitness."

Joanne joined Servus in 2015 as the Senior Vice President Credit and has been a member of the Executive Leadership Team Advisory Committee (ELTAC) since 2016. Before joining Servus Joanne held a variety of management positions in the financial industry, most recently as Vice President Risk Management of Cambrian Credit Union in Manitoba. Joanne has her CMA designation and has served on the boards of several community and professional organizations. Joanne is responsible for the overall credit quality at Servus, including retail and commercial credit, collections, lending policy and credit risk tolerance.

Joanne assumes her new role effective December 21, 2018 when Darcy Peelar retires. Darcy will continue to mentor Joanne until then. Darcy retires after 40 years in the financial industry, including 22 years as Chief Executive Officer of Vermilion Credit Union. He was appointed Chief Risk Officer at Servus Credit Union in 2008 and held that position until he retired in 2014, only to be lured back in February 2015. Darcy was a member of the Board of Directors of Credit Union Central of Alberta until his retirement in 2014.

Servus has made succession planning and developing talented leaders who believe in cooperative values a priority. The new Executive Leadership Team will include a balance of seasoned and new executives with the skills and experience needed to position the credit union for a successful future.