The Team
James L. This,PhD President/CEO
Susan Girsch Chief Operating Officer
Susan Girsch Chief Operating Officer
James This is a nationally recognized consultant, facilitator and trainer in the areas of strategic planning, leadership development, interpersonal communication and marketing. Jim is one of the principals of James L. This and Associates. He is probably best known as a founding partner of The Paragon Group – one of the most respected cons
James This is a nationally recognized consultant, facilitator and trainer in the areas of strategic planning, leadership development, interpersonal communication and marketing. Jim is one of the principals of James L. This and Associates. He is probably best known as a founding partner of The Paragon Group – one of the most respected consulting firms in the credit union industry. Through these companies, Jim has helped credit unions for over thirty years.
Jim’s specialties include strategic planning, executive recruitment, leadership development and executive assessment. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and schools and one of the creators of the Volunteer Leadership Institute. The Institute is the premiere source of continuing education for credit union volunteers.
Jim earned his BA from Wake Forest University and his Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. He holds the title of Senior Professional in Human Resources from the Society for Human Resource Management.
Jim’s career has found him in three arenas—financial services, teaching and management consulting. During his long association with the Washington State Employees Credit Union he held key positions as Marketing Manager and Executive Vice President. He has taught at the University of Southern California, the University of Texas, Permian Basin, St. Martin’s College, South Puget Sound Community College and The Evergreen State College.
Jim served as a member of the Supervisory Committee for the Washington Share Guaranty Association. He is active in the community – having served on a number of volunteer boards over the past 45 years. On a personal note - Jim is an avid golfer and proud grandfather.
Susan Girsch Chief Operating Officer
Susan Girsch Chief Operating Officer
Susan Girsch Chief Operating Officer
Susan works with credit unions on various projects including board assessments, charter changes, and workforce recruitment. In addition, Sue manages The Volunteer Leadership Institute (presented by The Paragon Group).
Sue developed and managed The Paragon Group’s vendor management and enterprise risk management programs. Working with a so
Susan works with credit unions on various projects including board assessments, charter changes, and workforce recruitment. In addition, Sue manages The Volunteer Leadership Institute (presented by The Paragon Group).
Sue developed and managed The Paragon Group’s vendor management and enterprise risk management programs. Working with a software developer and legal team, the solution was developed to meet NCUA/FDIC guidelines for managing third-party vendors. The vendor management program is the premier solution in the industry. Asset size for clients range from $12 million to more than $10 billion.
Sue has worked with numerous credit unions and banks, small to large, facilitating workgroups as they developed, implemented and trained staff on overdraft protection programs.
As Paragon’s Training Manager, she developed and taught classes on MS Office software. She has spent many hours designing curriculum to meet the specific needs of her clients. In addition she has presented workshops to state agencies, credit unions and non-profits using the DISC (dominance, influence, steadiness, compliance) survey as a basis for developing improved team building within the organizations.
Prior to working at The Paragon Consulting Group, Sue worked as an instructor for South Puget Sound Community College and Kirkwood Community College.
Sue is a member of the Board of Directors of evergreenDIRECT Credit Union. She loves to travel and spend time with her family.