Jeff Disterhoft

Jeff Disterhoft

President

University of Iowa Community Credit Union

Iowa City

What was the last book you read?

“Too Big to Fail” by Andrew Ross Sorkin, a captivating play by play of the events leading up to the financial meltdown a few years ago. I thought it did a great job capturing the pervasive philosophical differences that unfortunately exist between Wall Street and Main Street.

Working in the financial sector I'd like to think that we shared many of the same values, which clearly wasn't the case.

Where is your favorite place to get away?

I really enjoy the outdoors and traveling, so the mountains followed by the beach are the first that come to mind. But as the years go by and the kids get older, I'm less concerned with location - any place we can get our family together at one place and time is more than enough for me.

What's the best day of the week to be in a meeting?

While I've no empirical data to support it, Tuesday's would be my first choice. Many folks are still shaking the dust off of the weekend on Monday, looking ahead to the weekend by Thursday, and more than a few worn down by the time Wednesday rolls around.

As far as the specific time, I'd have to say 10 a.m., for many of the same reasons that came to mind on the best day of the week.

What do you always have close at hand at your desk?

Family photos, my computer, landline and BlackBerry - each of which keeps me well connected in their own unique way.

Did you start out in this line of work? What did you think you'd be doing when you “grew up”?

I started out in public accounting, which in hindsight was an ideal place to start a career. It exposed me to a variety of industries and work environments as part of our annual audits, and over the years it really became evident that the financial sector was probably the best fit for the few talents I did bring to the table.

I knew fairly early on in life that I wanted a career in finance. I always told folks that I'd never work in public accounting and have children at the same time because the work-life balance was almost impossible during certain times of the year. I started at the credit union in May of 1995, and our first child was born just a few days later.

How did you happen to come to live and work in Eastern Iowa?

I was born and raised in Eastern Iowa, but always had aspirations to leave the area once I graduated from college. I got only as far as Omaha before family circumstances brought my wife and I back to the area.

While I was never able to break free of the Midwest, the opportunity to remain relatively close to our family's roots has been immensely rewarding, as the next generation is also much more able to remain connected with their family.

Did you have a job while you were in school?

My pre-graduate work was somewhat of an elongated episode of “dirty jobs.” As with many young men my age, I worked some road construction, detasseled corn and even spent some time working a printing press.

While each of these jobs paid well, the most important lesson learned was the value of simple, hard work, and the fine caliber of folks you find in many walks of life.