How Servant Leadership Shapes Team Culture at Alliant Credit Union
In the workplace, Adam Lewis believes that “everything begins and ends with people.”
Rather than seeing himself as the driver of his team’s success, he lets his direct reports take the wheel, encouraging them to become the “CEOs of their space.”
Lewis, who serves as deputy chief information security officer at Alliant Credit Union, shared that he finds opportunities for his team members to take on challenging tasks while helping them navigate their new responsibilities, all in an effort to cultivate a team culture rooted in autonomy and impact.
“Ultimately, trust and servant leadership creates an environment where everyone is empowered to grow, own their success and contribute meaningfully to the team’s mission,” he said.
According to Lewis, every aspect of Alliant Credit Union’s business is rooted in the idea of “people helping people.” That’s why he empowers his team members to see themselves as true leaders.
“Our work here directly improves the lives of our members, and employees are empowered to make a difference every day,” Lewis said.
Read on to see what else Lewis had to say about his leadership philosophy, how he fosters team culture and what he considers the greatest aspects of working at Alliant Credit Union.
About Alliant Credit Union
Headquartered in Chicago, Alliant Credit Union is a digital credit union guided by its mission of “boldly disrupting banking norms to do good for our members, employees and communities.” The company offers its members financial services related to checking and savings accounts, credit cards, loans, retirement and investments.
What It’s Like to Work on Adam Lewis’s Team at Alliant Credit Union
What’s your vision for leading your team?
Servant leadership and trust inspire each person to fully own their domain and shape outcomes as the CEO of their space, from the most senior managers through entry-level individual contributors.
How do you build team culture, and why is that important for the work that you do?
Building team culture starts with modeling servant leadership — putting the needs of the team first, listening actively and removing obstacles so everyone can thrive. Trust and empowerment are key: Each team member is challenged to fully own their domain, make as many autonomous decisions as possible and innovate as if they were the CEO of their space. Recognition, feedback and celebrating wins — big or small — are regular parts of our rhythm. When team members feel trusted and empowered, amazing things happen.
“Recognition, feedback and celebrating wins — big or small — are regular parts of our rhythm.”
How Alliant Credit Union Supports Career Growth and Leadership Development
How do you help your team members grow their careers?
Everything begins and ends with people, and this is where servant leadership and trust give way to delegation and empowerment. Every leader is expected to delegate anything down the chain of command that can be handled down the chain of command. This has a twofold benefit to growing careers: The first is that it gives team members receiving the delegation the opportunity to take on bigger, more challenging tasks, stretching their skills and providing them with new growth opportunities. Through coaching and support, leaders help their teams navigate these new responsibilities, fostering both confidence and capability. Second, by delegating more, it frees each leader to focus on doing things that only they can do: defining strategic priorities, investing in coaching and building the next generation of leaders. Ultimately, trust and servant leadership creates an environment where everyone is empowered to grow, own their success and contribute meaningfully to the team’s mission.
What Alliant Employees Are Working on — and What’s Coming Next
What is something exciting that you are currently working on with your team, and what are you most excited about accomplishing with your team in the next year?
What excites me most about the work we’re doing as a team is seeing people step into new challenges and truly own their space, and seeing individual growth fueling our collective success. Looking ahead, I’m most excited to see what our people accomplish when given the freedom and support to lead, innovate and shape the future — not just for themselves, but for our organization as a whole.
Why Jobseekers Choose Alliant Credit Union
What is the employee value proposition for those thinking about joining Alliant Credit Union? What impact does working there have on someone’s career?
At Alliant, the employee value proposition is rooted in the philosophy of people helping people. When you join our team, you become part of an organization that puts people before profits, where every decision is guided by the impact it has on our employees, our members and our community. Our work here directly improves the lives of our members, and employees are empowered to make a difference every day. Speaking as an employee myself, the impact on your career is profound: You’ll gain experience in purpose-driven work, build lasting relationships and help shape the future of financial services for the betterment of our members and communities.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the leadership style like at Alliant Credit Union?
Alliant embraces a servant-leadership philosophy, where leaders put the needs of their teams first, remove obstacles and empower each person to “own their domain” as the CEO of their space.
How does Alliant support employee career growth?
Career growth is driven by trust and delegation — leaders give employees increasingly challenging tasks, coach them through new responsibilities and free up space for individuals to build confidence, capability and long-term leadership skills.
What is the team culture like under the Deputy CISO?
The culture centers on trust, autonomy and celebration. Employees are encouraged to make their own decisions, innovate, and participate in a rhythm of ongoing feedback, recognition and celebrating wins both big and small.
What kind of impact can employees make at Alliant?
Employees directly improve the lives of Alliant’s members and are empowered to make a difference every day through purpose-driven work that aligns with the organization’s mission of “people helping people.”
Why do jobseekers choose Alliant Credit Union as an employer?
Alliant offers a people-first, mission-driven environment where individuals build meaningful relationships, gain leadership experience, and help shape the future of financial services — all while being part of a supportive and empowering workplace.
