Nobody knows CUSOs better than the team at NACUSO. We get asked to speak on innovation, collaboration and the power of cooperation all over the world. We’re pretty proud of our line-up too. The CUSO Guru, former President of USAA Bank, an avid Philadelphia Eagle’s fan and an author of two books on branding. We offer a discounted fee structure for our loyal NACUSO members. If you’re not a member, well, you should join….but if you just want to hire us, we can negotiate a fee that is mutually beneficial.
Check Out Our Line-up
Ronaldo Hardy
President & CEO of NACUSO
Ronaldo is a dynamic powerhouse of an executive with the personal mission “to change the world by building the people who will change the world.”
Ronaldo most recently led CU Strategic Planning’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Accessibility services, which include the full range of DEIBA assessments, training, and consulting. He has proven that an effective and comprehensive DEIBA strategy can improve innovation, staff retention, job satisfaction, and profitability. During his time as the purpose-driven, high-results CEO of Southwest Louisiana CU Ronaldo led his credit union to CDFI certification and an FA award with CU Strategic Planning and developed an executive team capable of maintaining the phenomenal 1.22% ROA, 7% yield on average loans and more than 10% annual loan growth left in their hands.
He is a highly sought-after speaker, having presented to CUNA Management School, CUES, and the NCUA’s Inaugural Diversity Summit to name just a few, and has been published in the Credit Union Journal, CU Times, CU Insight, Credit Union Magazine and CU Today.
Ronaldo holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Science in Human Resource Education with a concentration in Leadership Development. He is an alumnus of the Urban Leadership Development Institute and CUES CEO Institute at the Wharton School of Business.
He is defined first and foremost by his faith in God and love of his family. He is the founder and lead pastor of the Love Alive Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Ronaldo is a father to four beautiful children with his wife Cristian.
Guy Messick
The CUSO Guru
Guy is a nationally known speaker and author on a wide range of credit union and CUSO topics and started his time with NACUSO in 1984, so he has seen it all. He retired in 2021 and was an attorney with the law firm of Messick Lauer & Smith, PC in Media, Pennsylvania. Messick Lauer & Smith PC has provided services to hundreds of credit unions and CUSOs nationwide and is known for its work with CUSOs, Incidental Powers, regulatory compliance, loan participation agreements, vendor contract reviews, business lending, mortgage lending, governance issues, mergers, and regulatory advocacy.
The Firm enjoys a unique perspective of being at the cross-roads of credit unions, regulators, and private sector innovation that has enabled it to assist in the creation of forward thinking collaboration opportunities that generate significant income and cost savings for credit unions. Guy can be reached at Guy@nacuso.org.
Brian Lauer
Eagles Fan, NACUSO General Counsel and Partner at Messick Lauer & Smith PC
For more than ten years, credit unions have contacted Brian to help find effective ways to better serve their members. To that end, Brian has helped credit unions and innovators form 100’s of CUSOs providing new and innovative products and services. These projects have helped credit unions to generate more net income and to collaborate to reduce operating costs.
This experience has lead to Brian speaking at many conferences and seminars as well as facilitating strategic planning sessions throughout the country. Brian became NACUSO’s General Counsel in 2021. Brian received his Juris Doctorate from Temple University’s Beasley School of Law, where he also served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Science, Technology and Environmental Law. He is a member of the Bar in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Brian can be reached at Blauer@cusolaw.com