BusinessReport.com

Like most LSU students, Susan Parry Leake needed a part-time job and a friend had just tipped her off about one at a bank.

Unsure of what it would involve, she still applied and was hired. It’s an amusing recollection for Leake, who is now president and CEO of Baton Rouge-based La Capitol Federal Credit Union. She manages the nonprofit cooperative’s $330 million in assets, 15 branches in 11 cities and 175 employees.

“I was intrigued by the notion of providing financial services in a nonprofit cooperative environment,” she says. “It was a great ‘fit’ for me. I could use my business skills and help people to improve their financial well-being.”

Leake’s strong desire to help improve people’s lives through finance has been a continuing focus in her career.

“I want to know that during my time as CEO, La Capitol made a positive difference in the lives of our members, and that when I retire I will leave to my successor a strong, vibrant institution improving the communities we operate in and improving lives,” she says.

When Leake first entered the profession in 1980, she observed credit unions offered more opportunities for women than other financial institutions.

“There are strong women CEOs and leaders in our industry and excellent role models,” she says. “My mentor and retired CEO of La Capitol, Betsy Hooper, was instrumental in preparing me to take the role of CEO. I was willing to work hard, take constructive criticism, and learn from her vast experience and wisdom.”

She believes there are plenty of opportunities for women with business savvy and determination in financial institutions today.

In her own career, Leake considers heading Louisiana Capitol her biggest achievement and she hopes to nurture those who follow her. She also chairs the Louisiana Credit Union Foundation and is helping to build a resource to assist credit unions in disaster recovery. She is vice chairwoman of the Cooperative Credit Union Branching board of directors.

“Most of us, myself included, will not be historical figures leaving legacies in leadership, the arts, science,” she says of what drives her community involvement. “We make our marks by how we live in our communities and what we do to contribute to the betterment of humankind, however large or small that contribution.”

Boy Scouts is nearest to her heart, but the story behind it speaks of how she takes a challenge head on.

“I began my involvement with Boy Scouts after being mugged,” Leake says. “After an attack, there is anger. I decided I wanted to use that anger toward the positive, not allow it to turn to bitterness and hostility. The man who mugged me was obviously on drugs and had made bad choices in his life. Boy Scouts has a proven record of teaching values and good decision making, and has excellent programs for disadvantaged youth … so I got involved.”

Leake serves on the boards of directors of the Istrouma Area Boy Scout Council and the Salvation Army. She also sits on the Capital Area United Way’s Investing in Our Youth Committee.

She has been recognized for her work with the Volunteers in Public Schools Golden Apple Award, Scouting Heritage Society Lifetime Membership award, the Boy Scouts Of America James E. West Fellow award and the Boy Scouts’ Order of the Silver Beaver volunteer service award.

Community involvement gives Leake the opportunity to make a positive difference and feel she has contributed.

“My parents set the standard; community involvement was simply a part of living a good life,” she says. “Betsy Hooper continued that standard and showed me the way. Wonderful people in our community have inspired me, people like Ken Uffman, Dr. Huel Perkins, Lucy Priddy to name just a few. If I can contribute just a smidgeon of what they have done, I will have done well.”