Building the Talent Pipeline

ELFA’s Emerging Talent Advisory Council is working today to cultivate tomorrow’s equipment finance leaders.

EVERY DAY, the professionals in the $1 trillion equipment leasing and finance industry are hard at work, serving customers, funding deals and supporting businesses. While they carry out those important roles, a group of 20 young professionals is also hard at work, ensuring that the industry has a steady pipeline of new leadership talent.   

The ELFA Emerging Talent Advisory Council (ETAC) was established in 2014 to help develop and engage the next generation of emerging industry leaders. Through events, networking and a variety of resources, they help involve early-career professionals in the industry and activities of the ELFA. Comprised of up-and-coming employees from ELFA member companies, the team’s overarching goal is a lofty one: attract the best and brightest professionals to careers in equipment leasing and financing.


“The equipment leasing industry serves a wide variety of businesses, nonprofits and government entities, but many of the people who work in it come to the industry by accident,” says Svetlana “Lana” Kralik, Credit Administration Officer, AVP, at U.S. Bank in Portland, Oregon and Chair of ETAC. “We are on a mission to help this next generation of leaders to succeed in the industry and connect them with ELFA so that the industry and the association can continue to be as robust as they are now.”

ETAC is engaged in a variety of activities, primarily focused on three areas. Here is how they are working to help future leaders in equipment finance succeed and thrive.

Emergence2023

Emergence is an annual leadership development event for emerging talent created by ETAC. This year, it will take place July 13-14 in Baltimore. The event began as a way for emerging leaders to learn and network, and this year it will offer many opportunities to do both, says Matt Vazzana, an ETAC member and leader of the Emergence2023 Taskforce, overseeing the conference’s development. Vazzana is a National Account Executive with Huntington Technology Finance headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. 

“What sets apart Emergence from other conferences is that it’s a leadership development event for emerging leaders by emerging leaders,” Vazzana says. “It’s got a diverse mix of people with a lot of different ideas and ELFA really empowers us to come up with an event based on content we want to see—not just for emerging leaders, but for the industry as a whole.”

While last year’s conference was one day, this year it will span two days in response to attendee feedback. Vazzana says that attendees in previous years enjoyed the event so much that they wanted an extra day. There will be some differences in content. This year’s event will bring back “fan favorite” sessions like “Ask a Leader,” where veteran industry professionals participate in a question-and-answer session for attendees, and the industry economic outlook. In addition, the event will feature sessions on leadership development and building your personal brand. 
 

One of the returning speakers is leadership expert Pierre Quinn, author of Leading While Scared: How to Find the Courage to Keep Going and Leading While Green: How Emerging Leaders Can Ripen into Effective Leaders. Quinn has been a speaker each year at Emergence since its inception. This year, he’ll be speaking about how to deal with workplace anxiety, especially for people at the beginning of their careers. Quinn says that the event is one of the highlights of his year. 

He notes that because equipment finance is an industry that many fall into by chance, “As we’re entering into the workspace for the first time, or transitioning industries, there are a lot of questions. How do I show up in this space, and how do I present myself? How do I connect with my colleagues? How do I navigate the culture?” he says. “We’re going to have some conversations around that during the time that we spend at Emergence23.”


In addition to six panel sessions, Emergence2023 will also feature a variety of opportunities to network with other industry members. These will include a networking lunch and cocktail hour on the first day. After the cocktail hour, attendees may choose to participate in a series of “dine arounds,” where small groups will head to various restaurants to sample Baltimore’s robust food scene. Early during the morning of the second day, the more adventurous can sign up for a morning walk up historic Federal Hill for breathtaking views of Charm City. Vazzana encourages attendees to sign up for these extra excursions, as they are important ways to get to know people in a more relaxed and individual setting. “The connections that you’re going to make at this event are going to serve you well as you continue to grow in your career,” he says.

Amanda Brubaken, ETAC member and Senior Program Manager for Mitsubishi HC Capital America, Inc. in Edina, Minnesota, is one example of that dynamic in action. “I have been working in equipment leasing for almost five years now. I can’t tell you what a difference simply attending Emergence has made. I was able to meet other people, including people on ETAC, who then helped me get experience and become a member of ETAC,” she says. “That’s what I want to keep doing—giving back to people who come to these events and are ready to learn from what I’ve experienced.”

Emerging Talent Networking Events

Brubaken is putting her experience to work already. She leads ETAC’s Regional Networking and Events Taskforce, which produces regional networking and education sessions held in conjunction with larger ELFA events. These sessions are free and allow attendees to meet up and make new connections. This year, the committee planned two events. One was held in March in conjunction with ELFA’s best practices roundtables and Funding Conference in Chicago (see photo) and another will be held on July 13 during Emergence2023 in Baltimore. Brubaken says these events can be an important way for those who are new to the industry to “break in” to the warm and welcoming network that ELFA event attendees often quickly establish. 

“The industry as a whole is really close, and so everybody really knows everybody. When you’re coming to an event as a new person, it’s nice to have that camaraderie with people who are also new,” Brubaken says. 


 But these events are also useful for more veteran industry professionals to attend for a variety of reasons, she adds. “There are also people that come to these events who are not new, who are able to help and guide you into the world of ELFA,” Brubaken says. “When you bring different generations together and different work experiences together, it’s collaborative and you learn from each other.”

Vazzana agrees, saying that it makes sense for experienced industry professionals to attend and encourage their staff to do so as well to build a network of emerging leaders. “There’s a war for talent, and now is a great time to invest in your employees by sending them to an event like this.” he says. “Research shows that employees who are engaged and developing tend to stick around.”

Career Development Resources

Another way that ETAC helps new equipment finance professionals develop is through a variety of content resources. ETAC member Camtu Vo, Manager of Product Development at DLL, leads ETAC’s Training & Professional Development Taskforce. The members of the taskforce publish a series of articles, infographics, videos and other pieces covering everything from career maps with input from industry veterans to pieces on how to “manage up,” and the popular “Ask a Leader” series. Vo says that the content is largely driven by the interests of emerging leaders but has proven to be popular among the broader ELFA membership, with many sharing new releases on their own social media channels. The committee currently has several projects in progress, including an update about new mothers juggling family and career responsibilities and a piece about new fathers doing the same. 

“We’re trying to create content that is applicable, relatable and inspirational to emerging talent,” Vo says. The committee also oversees a LinkedIn spotlight page that is accessible to the public.


Being involved in ETAC has also helped Vo strengthen her own skills and has provided her with important experience in communication, team building, project management and more. “I’ve been able to take what worked in the taskforce and apply it to my role,” she says. “I might have to tweak some things, but I use the same concepts in different ways for situations that arise,” she says. 

Together, these events and content programs provide important resources for professionals who are new to the industry, as well as those who have years or decades of experience in equipment finance. Kralik says they can serve an important role for many member companies. 

“[ETAC initiatives] help develop talent within the industry, especially if their companies don’t offer the same level of career development resources. But even if their companies do provide this kind of development, we provide important content along with building lifelong relationships with peers within the industry,” she says.