First Command announces leadership transition plan

First Command building on Hulen 

First Command Financial Services Inc. announced Nov. 4 that Mark Steffe, currently First Command’s president and chief operating officer, will succeed Scott Spiker as Chief Executive Officer while retaining his responsibilities as president, effective Jan. 1, 2020.

As part of the planned succession process, Spiker will serve as executive chairman of First Command through the end of 2020, at which point he will assume the role of non-executive chairman of the board, the company said in a news release.

“Since joining First Command in 2007, one of my greatest satisfactions has been the cultivation of new leaders who are equipped to carry forward our mission,” Spiker said in the release. “Mark Steffe is one of those leaders, and is the ideal person to bring the company to the highest levels of success in serving our mission, clients, advisors and their support staff, and employees well into the future,” Spiker said.

Steffe joined First Command in 2010 and, after serving in several leadership positions, was promoted to president in 2017 and COO in 2018.

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Steffe has been instrumental in leading First Command’s pursuit of its strategic priorities, including the advancement of the First Command brand and continuing adaptation to a rapidly evolving digital landscape, the news release said.

Before joining First Command, Steffe served in a number of leadership roles with major companies in the financial services industry, including TIAA (formerly TIAA-CREF) and UBS Financial Services (formerly PaineWebber).

“From its first day in existence in 1958, First Command has led the way in helping our nation’s military families pursue financial security, and it is an honor to have the opportunity to carry forward this legacy as CEO,” Steffe said.

“I look forward to working closely with Scott in the months ahead to continue the pursuit of our strategic objectives as the transition occurs, as well as with the outstanding leadership team we’ve put in place,” he said.

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Concurrent with the announcement of the CEO transition, First Command announced a significant outside hire to replace Steffe as COO, as well as several internal promotions.

Amy Doherty, who recently joined First Command after serving as the chief information officer for AARP, has been named executive vice president and chief operating officer effective immediately.

Doherty was selected after a rigorous search and selection process and brings to First Command years of successful leadership experience focused on technology, operations, digital and agile transformation, data security and privacy, and cloud operations. Doherty’s professional experience also includes tenures at Freddie Mac, C&F Financial Corp., American Financial Realty Trust and GMAC Commercial Mortgage.

First Command Chief Marketing Office Kellie Richter has been promoted to executive vice president and her portfolio has been expanded to include the newly created role of Chief Client Experience Officer (CXO).

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Richter has served as CMO since 2016, leading First Command’s brand strategy and its expansion into a client experience strategy. In her new position, Richter will continue to lead First Command’s efforts to bring the voice of the client to every decision that is made.

Additionally, First Command Vice President of Strategic Planning Tim Marling has been promoted to senior vice president and is joining the company’s Executive Leadership Team (ELT). In his new role, Marling will continue working with the ELT to develop strategies to navigate an increasingly complex market environment and execute the company’s plan for growth, the news release said.

First Command Financial Services and its subsidiaries, including First Command Financial Planning, First Command Advisory Services and First Command Bank, coach the nation’s military families in their pursuit of financial security. Since 1958, First Command Financial Advisors have been shaping positive financial behaviors through face-to-face coaching with hundreds of thousands of client families.

https://www.firstcommand.com

– FWBP Staff

For more on First Command:

www.fortworthbusiness.com/news/banking_finance/serving-those-who-serve-first-command-financial-services-focuses-on/article_b448beee-d0f3-11e9-afcf-e32906cddce8.html