Dara Macchi is senior vice president, marketing and data analytics at American Eagle Financial Credit Union.
Macchi serves as strategic partner to the chief strategy and revenue officer, delivering value by elevating American Eagle’s brand and identity through the utilization and advancement of its data capabilities.
She oversees the Credit Union’s marketing and philanthropic and community relations initiatives, in addition to maximizing new and existing revenue streams using data analytics.
She joined AEFCU in 2018 with more than 20 years of marketing experience, 12 of them in financial services. Her previous roles, concentrated in marketing communications and digital marketing, were in the insurance and medical device fields.
What have been your biggest professional accomplishments so far?
Throughout my career, I’ve built solid, trusting partnerships with my managers. They’ve known they could rely on me to deliver results, be accountable to do what I say I’ll do and maintain a ‘no surprises’ communication mantra.
As a result, I’ve had multiple instances where previous leaders have reached out with opportunities or brought me to new organizations with them. I’ve always taken pride in consistently demonstrating this competence, even as a young professional.
What’s the next big goal you want to accomplish professionally?
My responsibilities recently expanded to include oversight of data analytics. While data and customer information is always critical to marketing, delving into the technical side — infrastructure, governance, data warehouse and domains, etc. — was new for me.
The last year has been an incredible growth period for me, but there’s still a lot to learn. So my goal is to continue this journey of improving my technical skill knowledge.
What’s one of the biggest professional challenges you’ve overcome?
Early in my career, my focus was on the creative side. As my roles changed, I had to step back and let others take that responsibility. The look and feel of marketing materials is very personal to each individual.
So letting go of that creative director role was challenging. I’d make recommendations for edits and then realize it was based on preference and not because it was incorrect or ineffective. Once I understood that, I was able to overcome it.Â
What do you like to do outside of work?
I enjoy spending time with my family, though I wish we could be together collectively more often. My husband and I have to divide and conquer frequently as our children are very active in sports and activities.
However, I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s very rewarding to watch them do something they enjoy. Even when things don’t go well, they’re learning a lesson and when they do succeed, it’s an amazing feeling for all of us.