The Risk Management Association's CEO William F. Githens to Retire in 2017

PHILADELPHIA, March 13, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Risk Management Association (RMA) today announced that President and CEO William F. Githens, 69, informed the Board of Directors of his plans to retire after 20 years of service with the Association. Helga Houston, Board Chair, announced that a search for his successor will commence shortly and that Githens will remain CEO through December 2017.

Houston said that the Board of Directors has formed a committee to undertake a search.

"Bill Githens has had an extraordinarily distinguished career, working tirelessly on behalf of RMA's members and the financial services industry. Throughout his tenure, Bill has been the face of RMA to its members, chapters, and the industry in general, as well as the industry regulators. He has shaped the Association's strategic plan and led strategic execution to ensure that as the industry changed, the Association remained relevant to its members," said Houston.

Under his leadership, RMA has become widely known as the premier risk management association for financial institutions, with recognizable expertise and a leadership position in risk disciplines across the financial services industry spectrum, namely enterprise risk, credit risk, operational risk, regulatory affairs, and market risk.

Starting his career in banking at First Pennsylvania Bank, Githens was employed for more than 28 years in various leadership roles in financial services. He was President and CEO of SynapQuest Inc., a subsidiary of CoreStates Financial Corporation, and managed various credit and noncredit functions in CoreStates for six years and in its predecessor institution, First Pennsylvania Bank, for 22 years.

Githens became the eighth CEO in RMA's 103-year history on January 26, 2010. He joined RMA in 1997. Prior to his appointment as President and CEO, he was responsible for establishing and organizing the Member Relations functions to serve all of RMA's members globally, including community banks, mid-tier banks, large banks, global banks, and the 120-chapter network.

Houston noted that Githens has been at the helm during one of the most demanding and turbulent times in the financial services industry. "Not only did Bill's unwavering stewardship steer the Association and its members through continual development of valuable products and services while adjusting to the ever-changing industry landscape, but he also spearheaded initiatives to attract young talent to the industry," Houston said. "He led a new academic program for RMA to partner with universities to provide materials for their banking curricula as well as the launching of a new Foundation that provides scholarships and training activities to support the Association's goal of advancing sound risk management principles in the financial services industry—now and for years to come." The Risk Management Association Foundation provides selected business school students with scholarships, RMA membership and—through RMA member institutions—mentoring and internship programs.

At the time of the Foundation's launch Githens said, "The need to secure well-trained talent for risk management both now and in the future is one of the top issues facing the industry."

About RMA

The Risk Management Association is a not-for-profit, member-driven professional association whose sole purpose is to advance the use of sound risk management principles in the financial services industry. RMA promotes an enterprise approach to risk management that focuses on credit risk, market risk, and operational risk. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, RMA has 2,500 institutional members that include banks of all sizes as well as nonbank financial institutions. They are represented in the Association by more than 18,000 risk management professionals who are chapter members in financial centers throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia/Pacific.

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SOURCE The Risk Management Association