Speakers
Speakers:
Recognized as one of the 500 Leading U.S. Corporate Employment Lawyers by Lawdragon, John counsels and represents employers on labor and employment issues helping them achieve and maintain legal compliance, while improving employee engagement and workplace productivity. John has served as a guest lecturer at Albany Law School, the University at Albany, and the Lally School of Business at RPI and is a frequent speaker at national, regional, and state conferences, including the National SHRM Conference. He also serves as the General Counsel to the New York State Society of Human Resource Management.
John has been recognized by Human Resource Executive magazine as one of 200 of the Nation’s Most Powerful Employment Attorneys and is AV Preeminent Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He is also listed in New York Super Lawyers and has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America for labor and employment law since 2007, when he was the youngest attorney in New York State to be recognized.
In this key role, Amy works closely with our member credit unions, Association management, our Governmental Affairs Committee, FOCUS NY Trustees and the Association Board. She is supported by the full depth of knowledge and resources of Ostroff Associates, where she continues to serve as a Senior Vice President.
Previous to joining Ostroff Associates, Kramer was President-AT&T New York, where she led the company’s external and public affairs as well as regulatory and legislative agendas, strategic communications, sponsorship and foundation activities within the state of New York. In holding the top state legislative affairs position in New York State for 12 years, Kramer was responsible for developing strategies and plans for achieving AT&T’s legislative and community investment objectives, and led outreach to key elected officials and policymakers in the state to disseminate the company’s perspective on a range of issues. In addition, Kramer ensured that AT&T’s New York customers and public officials were always afforded the best possible service and partnership in the telecommunications and technology industries.
Prior to AT&T, Kramer was vice president, government affairs, at the Credit Union Association of New York, where for ten years she directed the organization’s political and grassroots programs, and led the association to achieve its legislative goals in New York and Washington, DC. In 1999, Kramer won a New York State Senate Graduate Fellowship, and served as a fellow and later as Legislative Coordinator.
Susan Landauer is a certified public accountant, with over 35 years of experience in the accounting and financial services industry, most recently focusing for 20 years on forensic investigations. These forensic investigations include the tracing of hidden assets, net worth evaluations, embezzlements, and marriage and partnership dissolutions. Her client base has included various industries such as banking, manufacturing, medical practices, construction companies and others. She has qualified and testified as an expert witness in both federal and local courts.
Susan began her career with a big four accounting firm, where she specialized in brokerage, banking, manufacturing, credit union and healthcare clients. She then worked for seven years at one of the nation's top ten banking institutions, where she functioned as the Vice President and Financial Controller of the Trust subsidiaries and Private Banking department. Susan was then the Senior Vice President of the New York State Credit Union League, where she oversaw the Audit Services, Strategic Consulting, Education and Training, Foundation, Business Partners, Member Services and District Relations divisions. She has also functioned in a consultant capacity as the CFO of publicly traded companies, start-up companies, and not-for profits.
Susan is a presenter of numerous fraud topics, financial statement interpretation, risk management, internal controls, compliance and board of director/supervisory committee responsibilities for various organizations, including CUNA, the Association of Credit Union Internal Auditors (ACUIA), various state leagues, various chapters of the Institute of Internal Auditors and Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and regional conferences for Board of Directors and Audit Committees. Most recently, she co-authored the curriculum and conducts a four-day course ad exam for participants to achieve a Certified Credit Union Internal Auditor certification, which has graduated more than 900 students.
Susan graduated from Siena College with honors, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting She is a licensed Certified Public Accountant. She is a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners and the Capital District chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. She serves as a financial expert to the Audit Committee of the New York State Teacher's Retirement System. She just retired from the chairperson position of a $5 billion credit union's Supervisory Committee, which she served on for 18 years.
Jeremy Newman is Vice President of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs at the New York Credit Union Association, where he leads the legislative, regulatory, and compliance support initiatives for credit unions across New York and provides compliance support to OwnersChoice Funding, a licensed mortgage banker and servicer.
Jeremy is an experienced attorney and compliance professional with a deep understanding of regulatory compliance, legislative advocacy, risk management, and business operations having previously served as the managing director of a compliance consulting firm and as in house counsel at a large federal credit union.
Jeremy takes a pragmatic and collaborative approach to his work and is known for his ability to break down complex legislative and regulatory issues into clear, actionable strategies that drive sustainable success. And while this is serious business, he firmly believes there’s always room for a little humor along the way.
Mitchell Pollack is the Association’s General Counsel. He comes to NYCUA through our alliance with Mitchell Pollack & Associates, PLLC. Mitch is the managing member/founder of Mitchell Pollack & Associates. He has practiced for more than 35 years in the areas of commercial, bankruptcy and real estate law and has been representing credit unions located across the country since 1989. Mitch has also served as lead counsel on complex litigation matters including: shareholder disputes, breach of contract actions, discrimination claims, defamation actions, regulatory matters, fidelity bond claims, the defense of claims asserted under various state and federal consumer statutes, and has tried numerous cases in both state and federal courts, as well as in alternative dispute resolution venues.
Mitch received his BA at the State University of New York, Cortland and his JD at the University of Buffalo.
Amy Wargo has spent almost three decades working with financial institutions to solve their compliance and operational challenges. She currently oversees the CU Risk Intelligence division of League InfoSight by supporting leagues in providing affordable high quality compliance solutions to their client credit unions. She is an experienced facilitator, compliance expert, auditor, and risk manager. She frequently works with leagues all over the U.S. as well as credit union executive teams and compliance professionals. Her expertise is deeply seated in financial institution operations, mortgage lending, process improvement, instructional design and compliance/examination assistance and support.
As a seasoned compliance expert in the credit union industry, she routinely speaks on industry challenges, hot topics/trends and reconciling examination/compliance deficiencies. As a sough-after and top-rated speaker, she has been featured at award-winning conferences including CUNA schools and league meetings. Her ability to communicate mobilizes audiences of all ages, from young professionals to seasoned board members.