No matter how big your business is, First Alliance Credit Union is here to help
For Rosalina Fombuena, Business Lending Advisor for First Alliance Credit Union, there is nothing about her job she enjoys more than being able to help small business owners.
And because of First Alliance’s commitment to supporting broad sectors of the community, that sometimes means working with businesses shut off to other sources of funding.
For instance, she notes, most other providers will not look at a business unless they have been in operation for at least two years. First Alliance, though, has a different philosophy.
“If a member walks in and they have a solid business idea, they have done their homework and put together a business plan, they have gone and gotten help from the Small Business Development Center; we don’t just turn them away,” shares Fombuena. “We find ways to help them and get their business started.”
““We are more than just your banker. We are more than just your lender. We are here really to help you every step of the way.””
That approach, team members say, is at the heart of what makes working at First Alliance different from many other financial institutions. Rather than being pressured to focus on high-dollar accounts, they are empowered to help businesses get started and grow.
“Some of the businesses just need a starting point, and I think we are really good about helping them get started with the basics they need,” says Julie Schultz, a Business Services Specialist at First Alliance.
Adds Fombuena, “I have a lot of appointments where people just walk in and they are just looking for guidance. They don’t necessarily need a loan or something at this time, but they want help being pointed in the right direction — and that’s our philosophy as a credit union. We are more than just your banker. We are more than just your lender. We are here really to help you every step of the way.”
Fombuena, Schultz, and the rest of the business lending team attribute their culture of putting members first to First Alliance’s belief in local decision-making. From the top-down, staff and board members live in the area, work in the area, and send their children to school here.
First Alliance is also committed to reaching a broad set of demographics and investing in its team members to ensure they have opportunities for growth within the organization.
“We want team members who want to come on board and want to do more and grow and develop — and I think that helps our culture grow along with it,” says Andrea Allen, Director of Lending at First Alliance.
Not lost on the business lending team is that, in a male-dominated industry, they are all women. Still, they all say, it is what makes them different — the unique insights and abilities each teammate brings to the table — that enhances their culture of collaboration.
And, in turn, fostering that environment helps small businesses thrive.
“Being a homegrown financial institution, First Alliance really means it and is always looking for ways to help people in ways others won’t,” says Allen.
