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The Saskatchewan Young Leaders congratulate Kris Babbings on being selected as one of the Top 5 for the 2013 Credit Union Central National Young Leaders.

Kris Babbings

Kris currently holds the position of Business Development Manager at Affinity Credit Union where he currently manages branches in Birch Hills, Kinistino and Weldon. He is responsible for providing leadership to team members to foster a member centric culture, while achieving organizational goals. Kris entered his submission, with a bit of help and push from executive, on the changes that were undertaken in these three branches in order to implement a member centric culture, and the results that were achieved because of those changes. His presentation highlighted the key changes that were made that led to the personal and professional growth that his team underwent – both as individuals and more importantly as a team to move forward.

We asked Kris what he learned through this venture of earning Top 5 in the national credit union system. “I have learned a lot both about myself and the Credit Union system since I first submitted my name for this award. However, the one thing that sticks out in my mind is that I now have a better idea of how many great people and leaders we have in the Credit Union system in Canada today. From the individuals within my own Credit Union as well as from other Credit Unions that were willing to help, mentor and believe in me through this process, to the people I was fortunate enough to meet during my time in Ottawa. We in the Credit Union system are truly fortunate to have the ability to learn from and work with some individuals that no matter what path they had chosen in life, they would have been successful at it.”

Kris’ three keys to success:

1. Surrounding yourself with good people – I believe that as individuals we are a combination of all the people that we have crossed paths with in our lives. Some of those people will have made a more profound impact on us than others but at the end of the day we can learn something from everyone we meet. So why not try and spend time with and learn from people who are doing great things in their organizations and communities.
2. A desire to make a positive difference in the lives of others – No matter whom you are and what you do in life, if you care about the people around you and you work every day to make a positive difference in their lives, you are successful.
3. Understanding that there is a solution to every challenge – Some challenges just require hard work; others require altering the way we think or our behaviors. Some challenges require us to admit that we don’t know the solution, but in those situations we need to be willing to look to and learn from others. Every challenge presents an opportunity to learn.

“I contribute the success I have had so far in my career to everyone that has taken the time to try and make a positive difference in my life. I am fortunate to have parents who taught me the importance of hard work and community involvement among other things. I have also had the opportunity to have been able to work with, learn from and be inspired by great people both in and outside of the Credit Union system. To
those people I want to take this opportunity to say thank you and encourage anyone reading this to do the same thing for those people in your life.” – Kris Babbings

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t–you’re right.” – Henry Ford

Saskatchewan Young Leaders Committee