Atifa Aguirre

Atifa Aguirre is a Senior Consultant with Samaha & Associates, LLC. With a career spanning 20-plus years in the financial services industry, Atifa possesses a unique blend of leadership, operational expertise, and passion for helping organizations succeed. Serving in leadership positions at U.S. Bank, Patelco Credit Union, Cabrillo Credit Union, and Mission Federal Credit Union, among others, she has remained focused on developing a deep understanding of member service, team development, and operational excellence.

As a Branch Manager, she was responsible for daily operations, including lending, product sales, member service, security, as well as ensuring safety and compliance with federal, state, and respective credit union regulations. Additionally, she has piloted and championed enterprise-wide sales and coaching program to promote growth and increase member engagement and has served as program manager for the credit union’s Net Promoter Score (NPS) program.

Prior to joining Samaha & Associates, Atifa worked as a Project Manager at Corelation where she led core implementation projects for credit unions nationwide. Among career highlights was serving as the Co-Project Manager for a core conversion project at the $22 billion Mountain America Credit Union. When the platform successfully went live in 2026, it marked one of the largest core conversions in the industry’s esteemed history.

Passionate about solving problems, building meaningful connections, and finding ways to make even the most complex projects feel manageable, Atifa is a team player who believes that expertise, a positive attitude, a little humor, and plenty of coffee go a long way.

Earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and Management from California State University at San Marcos, Atifa participates in mentoring programs and believes the best work happens when people enjoy what they do. Along with cherishing time with family and friends, she is always eager to plan her next great travel adventure because organized chaos keeps life interesting.