AKRON, Ohio – Long before he became president and CEO of 717 Credit Union in 2023, John Demmler learned the power of mentors and great leadership.
Demmler relayed some of his thoughts on leadership during Leadership Akron’s Signature 42 Business Innovation and Entrepreneurship program. The event was held Wednesday at the Duck Club at the recently renamed 717 Credit Union Field, home of the Akron Rubber Ducks.
Demmler and 717 Credit Union are expanding membership more into Portage, Summit and Stark counties.
Along with Abigail Cloutier, 717’s new director of communications and media relations, Demmler explained how his background shaped his interest in community banking and his leadership skills.
Demmler said he grew up in southeastern Ohio in a family with modest means, and when he bought his first home for $60,000, he was disappointed and angry that unexpected closing costs and fees ate away the savings he had planned to use to purchase his first bed and other furnishings.
“I’m sitting there thinking, this is crazy, and it wiped out my savings,” Demmler said, adding he decided he would do something about that if he ever got the chance. “And so today, 717 doesn’t charge closing fees when you get a mortgage – and not just the made up fees, right, the underwriting, processing and appraisal fees others charge.
He also overcame a lackluster high school GPA to push his way to four bachelor’s degrees and an MBA. And then he pursued his law degree after having a conversation with J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon while working for the company in Chicago. Dimon suggested the path as a way for Demmler to differentiate himself from others working at the company.
Demmler said he was further shaped by an internship in Washington, D.C., with then U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland, which led him to pursue public policy and economic development. He found his way to community banking and into credit unions, where he learned what an enormous impact he could make on the communities he served.
“We simply focus on value per member,” Demmler said, adding 717 is still far beyond the industry standard for profitability. “So I think if you just focus on doing right to people, it comes back to you.”
Demmler moved back to Ohio after the financial crisis in 2008, taught economics at Ohio University and worked in its budget office as a budget analyst. A local bank president near the university offered him a job because Demmler had the credentials regulators were requiring.
“There’s a saying: ‘Luck is a combination of preparation and opportunity.’ I will say I had a very lucky break,” Demmler said of his transition into the leadership team at the bank.
Demmler said he made some mistakes but honed his leadership skills in that position. Part of that is how to treat people as people and not just employees.
“Through my career, I’ve had amazing mentors, amazing bosses, and then I’ve had ones that weren’t so amazing. And you learn from that too,” Demmler said. “You learn the type of leader that you don’t want to be. … Having a leader that can connect with people and take a true interest in their career and their development, that makes all the difference in the world.”
He also learned the importance of hiring the most talented individual for a role and learning from the diverse perspectives and ideas that come from hiring people who reflect the community an organization serves.
Demmler also takes a lot from his life and the personal struggles he has had. He points to a credit card 717 offers that helps people get out of debt, encouraging them to transfer higher interest debt to a card with a 7.17% interest rate and giving them decades to pay it off if necessary.
“When we create products that can have a serious and positive impact on people’s lives, that’s the coolest part of this job,” Demmler said.
He said 717 gives back to community organizations by partnering with them to donate 7.17 cents per swipe of a credit card and having an option to donate additional dollars by rounding up.
In response to a question from the crowd, Demmler said 717 is helping a group of long-term renters become homeowners with a lower interest loan based on their steadfast rental payments over decades.
After his daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia, Demmler said he suddenly realized why he had struggled so hard to read while in school. He said though his daughter is doing amazing using tools and resources to help her overcome her obstacles, his undiagnosed dyslexia left him believing he couldn’t learn growing up.
“Overcoming that challenge made me very persistent,” Demmler said.
Because Leadership Akron events are sponsored, those in attendance often give to a charity of the speaker’s choice, and Demmler encouraged them to support the Northern Ohio branch of the International Dyslexia Association, which provides scholarships and resources to children and families.