Discover how collaboration, resilience, and empowering others have shaped one leader's journey from credit unions to entrepreneurship, revealing that true success is built through lifting people up.
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Influential Woman · Financial Services and Entrepreneurship
Nicole Cowan
AVP of Business Partnerships, Servicecorp/Diva Crown Co.
Indianapolis, IN 47250
1Article published
1Award received
Her Story
About Nicole
Nicole Cowan serves as AVP of Business Partnerships with the trade association for credit unions in Indiana, where she leads the operations of the Shared Branching Network for Indiana and Illinois. In this role, she oversees one of the largest cooperative financial service networks in the nation, supporting thousands of branch locations and expanding access to financial services across all fifty states and Puerto Rico through a nationwide shared branching network.
Nicole is also the Founder and CEO of Diva Crown Company, a purpose-driven luxury hair extension brand dedicated to empowering women through confidence, beauty, and entrepreneurship.
A graduate of Ball State University's Miller College of Business with a Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Nicole began her career through an internship at a community bank, launching a professional journey that has spanned more than two decades. Throughout her career, she has served in executive leadership positions, including Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Member Services, while also establishing herself as a respected credit union compliance expert. Her strategic approach to collaboration, operational excellence, and partnership development has made her a trusted leader within the credit union industry.
Beyond her corporate leadership, Nicole is a purpose-driven entrepreneur and author committed to creating opportunities for others. In 2025, she founded Diva Crown Company, a luxury hair extensions brand built on the mission of helping women feel confident and empowered, a vision inspired by her own experiences and her passion for uplifting others. She is also the forthcoming author of Defining the Diva's Dream, scheduled for release this year, further establishing her voice as a thought leader and advocate for women's leadership and personal growth. Her entrepreneurial ventures extend beyond business, reflecting a lifelong commitment to mentorship, service, and meaningful impact.
Nicole's leadership philosophy is grounded in five core values: integrity, trust, service, courage, and growth. These principles guide every aspect of her work, from executive leadership to entrepreneurship. She is passionate about mentoring emerging professionals, developing future leaders, and creating opportunities for others to advance, a legacy she proudly attributes to the mentors who invested in her own journey.
Recognized as one of Indiana's Influential Women for 2026, Nicole continues to make a lasting impact through servant leadership, innovation, and community engagement. A devoted wife and mother of two adult children, she balances her professional accomplishments with an unwavering commitment to family, resilience, and empowering others to achieve their fullest potential.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Nicole
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the power of collaboration and the incredible people who have supported, lifted, and believed in me throughout my career. Their guidance shaped who I am as a professional, and in turn, I am deeply committed to paying that forward — creating opportunities for those I lead and mentor and leaving a legacy of growth and empowerment for others.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I have ever received is to keep striving, keep learning, and never settle for where you are. Success is not a destination — it is a continuous journey of growth, adaptation, and execution. In today's rapidly evolving landscape, that includes embracing new tools and technologies, such as artificial intelligence, to remain relevant and effective.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to young women entering this industry is to commit to hard work and embrace every opportunity to learn. The road will not always be easy — there will be challenges and setbacks along the way — but I encourage you to see those moments not as failures, but as valuable lessons that build your resilience and sharpen your skills. Let every experience, good or difficult, fuel your growth and propel you forward.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the greatest challenges, and opportunities, in my field is leading with excellence while balancing multiple roles and responsibilities. As an executive responsible for building strategic partnerships across a multi-state cooperative network and as the founder of Diva Crown Co., I understand the realities of leading organizations while also investing in family and personal well-being.
Today's leaders are expected to be strategic, adaptable, and innovative in an environment that changes rapidly. I've learned that setbacks, missed deadlines, and unexpected obstacles are not failures. They are opportunities to learn, recalibrate, and emerge stronger. I believe resilience is one of the most valuable leadership skills we can develop.
At the same time, I see an incredible opportunity to build businesses and organizations that prioritize collaboration, mentorship, and empowering others. Whether I'm helping credit unions strengthen partnerships or building a company that empowers women to feel confident and beautiful, my goal is the same: create meaningful impact while helping others succeed alongside me.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that guide both my career and my personal life are integrity, trust, service, courage, and continuous growth. Integrity and trust are the foundation of every relationship I build. I believe your reputation is earned by consistently doing the right thing, especially when no one is watching.
Service has shaped my career from the very beginning. Whether I'm strengthening partnerships within the credit union movement or building a business that empowers women, my purpose is to create opportunities that help others succeed.
Courage means making principled decisions, even when they are difficult or unpopular. And growth is a lifelong commitment. I believe the best leaders never stop learning, challenging themselves, and inspiring others to become the best version of themselves.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Nicole
Success Is Not a Solo Achievement. It Is Built Through Collaboration.
How collaboration and mentorship shape meaningful success in business and leadership.
When people ask what has contributed most to my success, they often expect to hear about strategy, education, or determination. While those things certainly matter, my answer is much simpler.
People.
Every meaningful milestone in my career has been shaped by someone who believed in me, challenged me, encouraged me, or trusted me with an opportunity before I thought I was ready. Looking back, I have realized that success is rarely an individual accomplishment. It is built through collaboration.
Throughout my career in the credit union movement, I have had the privilege of working alongside leaders who understand that our greatest achievements come when we work together toward a common purpose. That philosophy has influenced every leadership role I have held and continues to guide me today as I build strategic partnerships across multiple states.
It has also shaped my journey as an entrepreneur.
When I founded Diva Crown Co., I was not simply creating another business. I wanted to create something that empowered women to feel confident while building a community where success is not viewed as competition, but as something we can multiply by supporting one another.
Leadership is really about asking better questions
Too often, we believe leadership means having all the answers. I have learned that leadership is really about asking better questions, listening more than speaking, and creating opportunities for others to succeed. The strongest leaders do not build followers; they build other leaders.
Those moments did not define my career
Of course, the journey is not always easy. Like many women, I have balanced demanding professional responsibilities with family life, entrepreneurship, community service, and the daily realities that rarely appear on a résumé. There have been setbacks, missed deadlines, difficult conversations, and moments of self-doubt.
Those moments did not define my career. They refined it.
Resilience is not about avoiding failure. It is about learning from it, adapting, and moving forward with greater wisdom than before.
Leave people better than you found them
Today, one of the greatest opportunities facing leaders is our ability to create cultures rooted in trust, collaboration, and continuous growth. Organizations thrive when people feel valued, heard, and empowered to contribute their unique strengths.
Whether I am helping strengthen partnerships within the credit union industry or mentoring the next generation of professionals and entrepreneurs, my purpose remains the same: leave people better than I found them.
If there is one lesson I hope others take from my journey, it is this:
Success becomes far more meaningful when you use it to create opportunities for someone else.
Because the most influential leaders are not remembered for the titles they held. They are remembered for the people they helped rise.
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