Lake Saint Louis, Mo., March 11, 2021 – National Information Solutions Cooperative (NISC), a leading provider of technology and IT solutions to utility and telecommunications/broadband organizations, held its first ever virtual Annual Meeting March 11 to recap a year of adaptation and growth, and provide a look ahead to what’s next for NISC and its Membership.

The meeting, themed “Forward,” was also NISC’s first joint Annual Meeting of NISC Members from the telecommunications, utility and multi-service industries.

In his State of the Cooperative address, NISC President and CEO Dan Wilbanks reminisced that NISC closed its offices and shifted to working from home one year ago this week. And despite facing immense challenges, NISC and its Membership have adapted and overcame.

“We’ve learned to support our Members and employees remotely, and learned to collaborate effectively in this virtual environment by changing some of our business practices and taking advantage of the tools available to us,” Wilbanks said. “We’ve had a lot of success virtually in the last year, and I’m so proud of our team to seamlessly move to their home offices while keeping their focus on serving our Membership.”

Some successes in the past year include the implementation of 40 new Members virtually, holding nearly 500 virtual events—including THRIVE in October 2020, Member trainings and business process reviews—and taking nearly 130,000 support calls while maintaining a 98.4 percent Member satisfaction rating through the HDI survey.

“While we’ve done very well in this virtual environment, we miss having our employees together. The collaboration and camaraderie that comes with being together is something we really miss,” Wilbanks said. “We also miss seeing our Members face to face. We hope to get back to in-person visits later this year.”

Board Election Results

In additional business, the following directors were announced as elected to three-year terms on the NISC Board of Directors:

• District 1, Josh Winslow, CEO/general manager at Brunswick Electric Membership Corporation in Shallotte, N.C.
• District 5, Kirk Trede, CEO at Eastern Iowa Light & Power Cooperative in Wilton, Iowa
• District 7, Reginal Rudolph, general manager at San Isabel Electric Association in Pueblo West, Colo.
• District 9, Mark Grotbo, general manager at Ravalli Electric Cooperative in Victor, Mont.
• District 12, Darin LaCoursiere, president/CEO at Endeavor Communications in Cloverdale, Ind.
• District 13, Gary Johnson, CEO/general manager at Paul Bunyan Communications in Bemidji, Minn.

NISC also recognized the retirement of two directors: Jim Mangum, CEO/general manager of Wake EMC in North Carolina, and Harry Barnes, board director for 3 Rivers Communications in Montana.

Other announcements included the impending launch of NISC’s new website, which will provide a sleek and purposeful look at the people, products and services that make NISC not just a software vendor, but a true technology partner.

NISC’s next large-scale gathering of the Membership will be the return of the Member Information Conference (MIC), planned for Sept. 13-16 in Louisville, Ky.

“We have a lot happening at NISC, and our number one goal is to ensure we help our Members be successful,” Wilbanks said. “Today’s theme, ‘Forward’, is not only a direction, it’s a declaration. We miss seeing our Members in person, but we’re grateful to be able to engage with them virtually and know we’ll soon be able to visit again in person.”

About NISC
National Information Solutions Cooperative (NISC) is an information technology organization that develops, implements and supports software and hardware solutions for our Members. We deliver advanced solutions, services and support to 873 independent telecommunications/broadband companies, electric cooperatives and other public power entities. NISC is an industry leader providing information technology solutions including financial, service, operations and marketing as well as many other supporting platforms and business services. With facilities in Mandan, N.D., Lake Saint Louis, Mo., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Shawano, Wis., and Blacksburg, Va., NISC and its subsidiaries employ more than 1,200 professionals between the five locations and remotely throughout the United States.

Additional information about NISC can be found at www.nisc.coop.