MAY/JUNE 2016
INSIDE: FOUR STRATEGIC BANK MARKETING PILLARS FOR PROFIT-MINDED CEOs
NEW ENGLAND
THE RESOURCE FOR NEW ENGLAND’S FINANCIAL LEADERS
Women in Banking Finding Sustainable Solutions
A PUB LICAT IO N O F TH E WA R RE N G R O U P
A P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E WAR R EN G R O U P
CONTENTS
NEW ENGLAND
THE RESOURCE FOR NEW ENGLAND’S FINANCIAL LEADERS
4
6
10
WHO’S NEXT?
Succession Planning: More Important than You Think
INNOVATIVE MARKETING
CLOSER LOOK
12
Your Brand is Your Biggest Asset
WOMEN IN BANKING
Four Strategic Bank Marketing Pillars For Profit-Minded CEOs
Does Your Institution Have Hidden Capital You Never Realized It Had?
22
16
CAUTIONARY CLUES
BANK PROFILE
Webster Aims at the Heart of the Hub with Citi Branch Acquisition
24
INDUSTRY NEWS
26
PERSONNEL FILE
28
COMMUNITY GOOD WORKS
Women in Banking Finding Sustainable Solutions
TWG STAFF CEO & PUBLISHER Timothy M. Warren Jr. PRESIDENT David B. Lovins EDITORIAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Cassidy Murphy ASSOCIATE EDITORS Joe Kourieh and Malea Ritz
www.thewarrengroup.com ©2016 The Warren Group Inc. All rights reserved. The Warren Group is a trademark of The Warren Group Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Advertising, editorial and production inquiries should be directed to: The Warren Group, 280 Summer Street, Boston, MA 02210
30
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SALES DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS MEDIA George Chateauneuf PUBLISHING GROUP SALES MANAGER Dave Janoff ADVERTISING ACCOUNT MANAGERS Claire Merritt, Bob Holzhacker and Michael Lydon ADVERTISING & SALES COORDINATOR Jennifer Burke CREATIVE/MARKETING DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & CREATIVE SERVICES John Bottini MARKETING COPYWRITER Mike Breed PUBLIC RELATIONS & SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Jeff Smith DESIGN PRODUCTION MANAGER Scott Ellison GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Amanda Martocchio, Tom Agostino and Tyler Grazio
PROTECTING WHO’S NEXT? VULNERABLE CLIENTS
Succession Planning: More Important than You Think Geri Forehand of Forehand Strategy Group is a certified professional consultant to management and a strategic partner with The Pacific Institute. He may be reached at gforehand@ thepacificinstitute.com.
BY GERI FOREHAND
T
hree factors have propelled a sudden interest in succession planning among community banks: • First is the demographic skew toward an aging population. Bank presidents and CEOs, like the population in general, are getting older. It’s time to think about who the next generation of leaders will be. • The second factor is the determination of many community banks to remain independent. A chain of unbroken leadership makes it more likely that a bank won’t have to be sold when the current leaders die, are incapacitated or leave for greener pastures. • Third, as more community banks engage in strategic planning, the need to identify the principal players who will guide the bank into the future becomes more obvious. Indeed, in banks that have not previously engaged in succession planning, most such efforts grow out of the strategic planning process.
Nevertheless, the fact remains that the majority of community banks still do not have a formal succession plan. The banking regulators do not require institutions to establish formal succession plans, although the examiners look at how banks deploy their human capital and sometimes suggest that a succession plan would be prudent. But there is no statutory or regulatory requirement that provides the push that may be needed. It is also a matter of mindset. Most bank presidents and CEOs are too busy steering the bank through choppy waters to worry about who will take over the helm when they leave. Indeed, a common characteristic of leaders is their desire to 4
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
retain command. Their natural inclination is not to think about succession. Prudent risk management principles, however, argue for a deliberate, ongoing succession planning process in every bank. But where do you begin? A succession plan starts with the board of directors. The board, or a committee of the board, determines the core competencies of the CEO and identifies the behavioral traits and leadership skills they would like to see in the individual who leads the bank. In turn, the CEO focuses on senior positions that report directly to him or her. The information developed by the board is then used to create job descriptions or profiles of the upper-end management positions in the bank. Behavioral assessment tools, such as Everything DiSC profile, may then be used to gauge the strengths and weaknesses of various individuals in the bank’s management organization. DiSC uses a series of questions to determine whether a given individual is dominant (“D”), influencing (“I”), steady (“S”) or conscientious (“C”). Based on a person’s answers to the questions, he or she is identified within one or more of the categories, and the traits are matched with various management rungs and working environments. Objective tools like this one help eliminate the intuitive element in career tracking and replace it with quantitative information. Once individuals are identified who fit the traits of a future leader, they should be interviewed to more fully explore their capabilities and ambitions. Inputs from the people they work with helps create a more complete picture. Finally, an education, training, compensation, and mentoring plan can be devised for those individuals named in the succession plan. Then, when the time comes, they will be ready. BNE
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PROTECTING VULNERABLE INNOVATIVE MARKETING CLIENTS
Four Strategic Bank Marketing Pillars For Profit-Minded CEOs Editor’s Note: This is the third
article of a three-part series; parts one and two appeared in the previous issues of Banking New England.
Scott McClymonds, founder of CEO Velocity consulting, has helped dozens of banks significantly improve profits and efficiency, grow key business units and transform employee performance. He is an expert at integrating leadership, marketing strategy and technology to develop competitive advantages. Subscribers to this magazine may reach Scott at scottm@ceovelocity. com, (479) 263-0774 or on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/ scottmcclymonds for a free one-hour strategic marketing consultation and assessment.
Scott McClymonds
BY SCOTT MCCLYMONDS
T
his is the third and final article in a series describing how the four pillars of strategic marketing can dramatically boost your bank’s profits and brand. In this article we will emphasize the final two pillars, which are Referrals and Leadership. Like the other two pillars, creating systems leading to excellence in these categories will add rocket fuel to your profitability.
Referral Strategy
Everyone wants customer referrals, but most believe they come randomly instead of through a systematic approach. Our existing loyal customers will readily, effectively and inexpensively do our marketing if we let them, and a referral system lets that occur. When my wife and I owned a small business we tried various marketing tactics, including radio, magazines, direct mail and newsletters. Most were expensive, and none generated the results we needed. Eventually we developed a referral strategy where our customers would regularly provide warm qualified leads. Here’s what we did: • Surveyed our customer population to determine satisfaction levels and willingness to make referrals. • Met monthly with each customer to determine additional needs and ask for three referrals. • Built a daily routine for our director to meet with one predetermined customer. This system yielded many new customers, and along with our website and digital newsletter became our primary source of marketing. It was cheap and effective – and it’s very easy to duplicate at your bank.
Referral Automation System
While the system was fairly simple, it still required tracking tools. Implementing a similar system at your bank requires an automated system that reminds employees who to contact and when. To create a simple system like this, begin with your most profitable customers. Make it worthwhile for them to bring their friends, family 6
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
members and centers of influence to your bank. Use social media, local sports events, theaters, dinner gatherings and mastermind groups to create high value communities where they can grow their networks and expand their horizons. Analyzing your results will determine which customers provided the most referrals and which produced the least. Next you can test tactics like limiting your referral strategy to customer types that refer the most to you, and reducing or eliminating the referral attempts you make with customer types who generate the least referrals. While this takes discipline and focus, implementing a systematic referral strategy along with analytics and automation and a strong brand promise will transform your bank.
Leadership
Of the four strategic marketing pillars, leadership is the most underestimated component of financial services marketing. You won’t hear about it in business schools, and even the best banks hire for technical skill and functional knowledge rather than leadership capabilities. Most of the time, leadership is the missing link that hampers break out marketing success. Even the best systems, strategies and talent will never overcome a leader’s inability to lead the marketing function or recognize the critical nature it plays in their bank’s success. As John Maxwell says, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” Whether you are a CEO, retail director, CMO or vice president of sales, it is up to you to open your mind and dive into the new world of marketing, particularly the strategic concepts I have discussed in this series. No one expects you to understand all the technical details of the systems, or the quantitative techniques used to analyze and interpret the data. You don’t need to be a marketing expert. However, you must embrace what Peter Drucker said about marketing being one of the two main functions of a business. If you don’t emphasize these concepts your bank will be average at best, and out of business at worst. Your bank CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
With financial service pressures on the rise, gross profits diminishing, government regulations changing, and technology advancing rapidly, the demands on financial services are at an all time high. As each day passes, it becomes more difficult for you to stay on top of the daytoday servicing of your clients. Therefore, it is imperative that you not only have strong IT management in place, but also have established and implemented effective internal controls and operational processes to avoid misappropriation of assets, avoid fraudulent financial reporting, and reduce the risk of control deficiencies.
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INNOVATIVE MARKETING
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8
needs you to be a champion for its strategic marketing cause. If you don’t prioritize it, why will anyone else who’s title isn’t CMO or vice president of marketing? To be a success you must play a strong leadership role in each of the following: • Acquiring a top-level understanding of what the four pillars can do for you. • Development, implementation and continuous communication of your brand promise. • Formation of strategy as a result of the stories told by analytics. • Creation of a referral strategy. • Hiring internal or external strategic marketing experts; • Rallying your team around new insights, processes and procedures.
your marketing classes, but building them into your bank will set you apart and give you a distinct competitive advantage because they are so powerful. The importance of these four pillars is simple to understand, but they can be hard to implement. They are interdependent in that: • Successful execution of marketing analytics and automation depends on a strong brand promise; • A strong referral system is dependent on analytics and automation; • Implementing the brand promise is dependent on sound analytics, automation and referrals; • The entire system is dependent on strong, open-minded leadership.
As leaders, we are all extraordinarily busy. You know how quickly your calendar fills up. However, leaders like you and me ignore the strategic side of marketing to our great detriment. The people actually doing the marketing need our strong direction and support, and our careful attention enables them and our banks to thrive.
As a leader, you don’t have to have all the skills, expertise or technical know-how of a professional marketer. However, you do need commit to active participation in the process, get the help of big picture strategic experts who can make this entire process part of your bank’s DNA and engage your team in the changes you are making. So, what’s your next step? Are you ready to step up to the challenge and provide the vital strategic marketing leadership that will dramatically boost your profitability, improve employee performance, and powerfully differentiate your brand? I guarantee that if you bring the four strategic marketing pillars to life in your bank, you will see your profitability and market share soar. BNE
Conclusion
In this series we have discussed the importance of strategic marketing, and in particular the need to focus on the four pillars of brand promise, automation and analytics, referrals and leadership. These aren’t the four or seven Ps of marketing that you learned in
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PROTECTING CLOSER LOOKVULNERABLE CLIENTS
Does Your Institution Have Hidden Capital You Never Realized It Had? Richard Pilla is principal of Quincy, Massachusetts-based Paramount Partners LLC. He may be reached at rpilla@ paramountpartners.com. Joe Morrison is development manager at Paramount Partners. He can be reached at jmorrison@paramountpartners. com.
Richard Pilla
BY RICHARD PILLA AND JOSEPH MORRISON Joe Morrison
O
f the 6,800 banks in the U.S., 66 percent have been in business over 50 years and 40 percent have been in business over 100 years (1), and of the approximately 97,000 branches nationwide, it is easy to conclude that a very large percentage of these are too large and operationally inefficient. However, there just may be a silver lining. Bank executives know that the fastest way to grow is through mergers and acquisitions, and although there are the obvious benefits, so too are the not-so-obvious downsides. The ability to cherry pick when acquiring another institution is not an option, but having to absorb underperforming or overhead-intensive branches need not be the anvil they often are. Branches that were constructed 60, 40, 20, even fewer than 10 years ago, are much larger than what current branching models need be, given the impact of new technologies and delivery channels, combined with ever-changing consumer preferences. Bank branches built decades ago need not 10 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
be money pits. Rather, many branches within an institution’s network may very well have untapped value that could be converted into capital that can be used to add new branches, upgrade older branches, and free up funds that can be redeployed to offer customers new and better products and services, or even help to defray high compliance costs. These compliance costs, along with expensive branch locations, excessive staffing costs and inefficient and wasteful facilities, are sure to kill a bank’s earnings. Just as retailers have come to realize the need to make structural changes to their business model in order to stay viable in a hyper-competitive environment, banks need to do as well. The following are a few examples of how bank executives can not only maintain their profitability but increase it by unlocking capital that would otherwise just sit there. Successful businesses such as CVS Caremark, Steward Healthcare, Taco Bell and Jiffy Lube are just a few companies that have something
in common; they all have put their real estate assets to work. One method is saleleasebacks, but there are other means as well, as scores of companies that occupy office, industrial and retail space have used to unlock their capital. Even financial institutions have gotten in on the action. In 2008 when many banks were feeling the pressure of the subprime mortgage crises, they pursued saleleasebacks as a hedge against volatility. Cash was raised and surplus brick-and-mortar assets were removed from their balance sheets. Fast forward eight years into the current economy and the landscape looks and feels very different. We remain in a very low interest rate environment and triple net sale-leasebacks are an extremely popular asset purchase for all types of real estate investors. For many bankers, here are a few instances that may sound familiar:
A New Development
You’re the CFO of a community bank in suburban Boston. You have a dozen branches in your network, most of which are located in upper-middle class to affluent communities. Two-thirds of the bank’s branches are owned and one-third is leased. The branches were opened at various times and lack visual continuity. Physical renovations are needed to stay relevant with the competition and provide a customer experience today’s depositors are looking for. A local real estate developer, who also happens to be a great customer of your bank, has always expressed interest in owning one of your branches. He happens to own an abutting parcel to one of the branches and if he were to acquire the bank branch property he could merge the lots and meet the requisite zoning dimensional regulations necessary to develop the property. The developer offers to pay a 6.75 percent cap rate on what would be a market NNN rent for the bank branch and the bank is able to enter into a 20-year lease with six, five-year options to extend. The sale transaction nets a substantial amount of capital that will allow the bank to renovate its branches so they are uniform while still maintaining 50 years of control of its nowleased branch. You also have a very happy
developer client who needs a construction loan for his next-door project that just got off the ground.
Fast-Casual Dining
You’re the senior vice president of a regional bank with 45 branches that just acquired a small community bank with five branches. Four of the five acquired branches are in communities where previously the bank did not have a presence. The fifth branch is located within a community where your institution dominates. While this fifth branch is well-located, the physical plant leaves much to be desired. It does not make financial sense to continue operating this branch. The bank wants to divest of the asset but also insure that a competing bank does not purchase the real estate and build a new, more convenient and customer-friendly facility including a drive-thru, something the current property lacks. You determine through collecting market information that the site’s highest and best use is a fastcasual restaurant. You assemble a team of attorneys, civil engineers, architects and traffic engineers to permit the site. The civil engineer designs a site plan and building footprint that would be acceptable to the majority of fast-casual restaurants that are currently leasing space in the market. A fast-casual restaurant use requires a special permit from the Planning Board. The project also requires site plan review approval from the Planning Board. Once these approvals are obtained, the project is “shovel-ready.” Due to the lack of permitting risk, there are a dozen of local developers that are clamoring to purchase the project.
Your Own Condo
You’re the president and CEO of a community bank that was founded 150 years ago in an urban neighborhood. The bank’s original headquarters building is a magnificent building totaling 15,000 square feet, but looks nearly 30,000 square feet from street level. Despite its presence, the building is functionally obsolete. Single-pane windows, no insulation and dramatic high ceilings all make for poor working conditions for employees and the originally-constructed 12 teller stations are now staffed by two or three employees due to dwindling customer visits. The adjoining
surface parking lot that was once critical is now largely unused. The bank’s real estate at this location is just shy of an acre and with the changing demographics of the neighborhood, luxury residential rental and for-sale property is in great demand. The bank engages an investment sales broker to market the property to residential multi-unit developers. A condition of the sale is that the developer must deliver a 2,500-squarefoot, corner-position retail condo on the first floor. This position will be the most visible location on the to-be-developed project. A sale and permitting process is completed and the purchaser begins construction. The construction will be phased in two sections. The first phase is completed in what was the bank’s parking lot. This first phase also includes what will be the bank’s new corner branch. Since the project is phased, this allows the bank to relocate to its new branch without experiencing any down time. The substantial net proceeds of the sale allows the bank to create a new headquarters location that is more economical, functional and appealing to bank staff and customers.
Other Options
While some financial institutions had to complete sale-leasebacks out of necessity during “the Great Recession,” with the extreme demand for this type of product today, wouldn’t it be prudent to ask if your organization is currently sitting on a substantial amount of cash by unlocking the capital in your real estate assets that could be used to fund more loans for example. After all, fewer loans mean less growth. A sale/leaseback is only one option available to you. Others include perhaps a sale of your air rights, or entering into a long-term ground lease, or selling that large parcel of land to a developer who will then structure a condominium arrangement so you can continue to own your space, if that is important to you. However, what is important for community bankers in particular to keep in mind, is that to successfully operate your bank in the 21st century, one needs to be flexible and creative – and to do that, you must bank’s real estate portfolio to work for you. BNE (1) American Bankers Association, “The Business of Banking” BANKING NEW ENGLAND
11
PROTECTING CLUES CAUTIONARY VULNERABLE CLIENTS
Your Brand is Your Biggest Asset For Customer Conversion, Leverage Not Just the What, but Also the Why
Fred Bertino is co-founder and president of MMB, an award-winning independent creative agency that generates awareness and drives results with creative content that strategically, conceptually and technologically engages and resonates with people. For more information, please visit www.mmb580.com.
Fred Bertino
BY FRED BERTINO
I
magine waking up to an alert on your mobile device that Apple, one of the greatest and most powerful brands in the world, is entering the financial services industry. If you worked at a bank or credit union, managed stocks, IRAs or money market funds, you should be frightened by that news. Apple is known as a disruptor of the status quo and for far too long, the financial services industry has been lagging behind the rest of corporate America when it comes to establishing, articulating and maintaining an effective brand. The industry as a whole continues to struggle when it comes to winning the hearts and minds of consumers. The 2008 banking crisis has generated seismic changes in technology, regulation and demands of consumers. Yet very few financial service companies have found a way to harness the power of their brand that drives the customer experience and their loyalty. Before I get too critical, it’s important to note that building a differentiated brand on financial services isn’t easy. There are several reasons for this: when it comes to money, it’s an emotional decision that has far greater importance than other consumer decisions; it’s more difficult to talk about; finances are often complicated and most consumers don’t take the time to truly understand the implications of their financial decisions; outcomes are unpredictable and past performance is no guarantee of future success. 12 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
So how can today’s financial services professionals help elevate their brand to appeal to today’s consumers? Start with brand strategy. Smart marketers understand they need outside help to take an additive, objective look at their brands. Ask and answer the difficult questions: What is our brand’s sense of purpose (beyond making money)? How are we different from our competitive set? How do our customers view us relative to their other options? How can our brand’s voice and visual identity reinforce our brand differentiation? It’s not about digital marketing; it’s about marketing in a digital world. There’s a lot of talk about going digital with marketing, but ask yourself – what isn’t digital? According to the 2016 Digital Banking Report, “there is evidence that most financial executives understand the digital transformation occurring in banking … despite this understanding, many banks and credit unions have not made significant changes to their marketing strategies to adequately address the changing consumer and competitive landscape.” Institutions that succeed in today’s competitive landscape understand that despite all the new digital formats and data driven possibilities, storytelling is still the most powerful form of communication. CONTINUED ON PAGE 14
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PROTECTING CLUES CAUTIONARY VULNERABLE CLIENTSCONTINUED FROM PAGE 12
Understand the customer transformation taking place. According to Barrons, Millennials are responsible for $1.3 trillion in annual consumer spending accounting for 21 percent of total U.S. spending. Millennials want authenticity and upfront communications as a baseline, and often pride themselves on finding their own solutions. As one Millennial expert said, “If Millennials don’t feel you are adding value to their lives, you don’t enter their lives.” Maybe that’s why more than half of the wealthiest Millennial Americans do not use financial advisors. Taking a partnership approach – helping them find their own solutions through your products and services – and being more authentic with the benefits of your offerings would be an effective strategy with this group. And don’t forget that Generation Z is fast on the heels of Millennials with a whole new way of communicating – forget encrypted account passwords, think social networks, vloggers and biometrics. Gen Z knows nothing except an Internet-connected world and they pose the
greatest marketing challenge that will turn traditional advertising models on their head. Make them feel. In Singapore, DBS is taking the chore out of banking and has garnered a lot of international attention by developing a new tag line – “Live More, Bank Less” – an implied promise that if you bank with DBS you’re not going to have to spend a lot of time waiting in lines or being frustrated by a robotic telephone banking system that always takes you to the wrong place. The campaign is bold and authentic and also has an accompanying mini-series called Sparks that is based on real-life events. The first profiles a solar energy company that needed financing and grew into a multimillion-dollar company thanks to the help of DBS. These success stories are making people feel and are generating significant traction. And now DBS is taking it a step further by asking viewers for ideas and help in co-creating new episodes. Align with a relevant cause. Consumers feel good about brands that support causes they believe in. Most of the larger institutions have corporate philanthropy programs, but
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smaller banks can be equally effective by rallying around key issues in the communities they serve. Good neighbor programs, food bank drives and school supplies for needy children are all worthy undertakings that have the community welfare at heart. Last year TD Bank turned its attention hyper-locally and selected 24 customers in 24 different cities – one each day for 24 hours to undertake projects that would benefit their community. Each person was given $30,000 in the bank’s #MakeTodayMatter campaign. Esse quam videri (to be, rather than appear to be). It’s nice to have compelling marketing campaigns, but if you don’t deliver on your promises in terms of the customer experience, you won’t get customer loyalty because you’re not making your audience feel a connection to your brand. If they don’t value the relationship, then they won’t do business with you. Is my bank prepared to give me what I need and expect relative to other options I have? Do they understand who I am? Are they helping me reach my goals? Good brands today are multidimensional – it’s not just about what you buy – the usage, features, reality and value; it’s also about what you buy into – the attitudes, intangible benefits, myths, dreams and values that keep them engaged. Brands that encompass both the “what” and the “why” are far more effective with today’s discerning consumers. The key to effective marketing in today’s digital world is being open to change and using all the tools in toolbox, especially the power of your brand, and asking the right questions: How do we keep our brand meaningful when consumer behavior changes? How can we communicate our brand value to the new generation of consumers who are all digitally-focused? How can we move beyond marketing just our products and services to ensure that our brand gives customers not only the “what” but the “why” they should do business with us? How can we leverage the power of storytelling in our marketing to create an emotional connection? So who knows whether great brands like Apple or Google or Amazon will turn their attention toward the financial services sector, but having a well-developed and articulated brand that truly resonates with today’s consumers will ensure that if they do, you’ll at least have a fighting chance. BNE
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COVER
Women in Banking Finding Sustainable Solutions By (Dima) Neil Berdiev
16 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
“Women (in banking, generally) often have to work twice as hard to ever be noticed, and often train young men who get the promotion. We know we have to look like a girl, think like a man, act like a lady, and work like a dog to get ahead.” — Mary George Waite1
chairperson and president, Farmers National Bank of Centre, Alabama president of the Alabama Bankers Association
Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-part article; the second article will be in the next issue of Banking New England.
M
any know firsthand or have heard for years that there is a shortage of women in commercial banking, particularly in senior management. There is a general sense of understanding that we need to do more. Yet for many of us – especially men – the details and true causes of the issue and challenges faced by women can be quite unclear. The lack of women at senior levels of banking organizations is particularly puzzling since more and more men in banking are supportive of the idea of employing more women at all levels. Undoubtedly, we have come a very long way from what was described in one 1967 article, “Womanpower’s Quiet Revolution,” as “Not only in Virginia but also along Main Street, U.S.A., the new face of banking is likely to be a pretty one.” 2 While the article offers a couple of gender-based stereotype remarks of the olden days that are disrespectful and unacceptable references to women today, it highlights the start of a trend of more women as banking customers, more women in control of household finances, and ultimately more women employed in banking. The efforts to see more women in banking has visibly accelerated in the last 10 to 15 years. They are represented by the work of the American Banker’s 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking annual event, Sallie Krawcheck’s latest venture Ellevest, WomenCorporateDirectors Education and Development Foundation, Catalyst, and a plethora of initiatives on by banks, states, academic, nonprofits, industry organizations and publications to bring more women into our industry at all levels. But is the tide turning fast enough? Why are we so challenged to build a sustainable solution beyond the rhetoric, after decades of concerted efforts to create gender and pay equality in commercial banking? Are we at risk of losing the rising generations of women, which will have detrimental effect for decades to come? This article aims to explore the issue, challenges and most importantly opportunities we are presented with in order to make commercial banking more appealing to employees of all backgrounds, including rising generations of women.
Some Helpful Data
As of 2014 U.S. Census data, women accounted for a 51 percent majority of the population, with individual state numbers ranging from 49 percent to 53 percent.3 Women also account for 51 percent of the population group ages 21 to 64, the majority of our workforce.4 How do these numbers compare to your company’s data of women and men, including breakdown within individual divisions?
CONTINUED ON PAGE 18
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
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PROTECTING WOMEN IN BANKING VULNERABLE CLIENTSCONTINUED FROM PAGE 17 Among “employed in civilian labor force” ages 25 to 64, women represent 47 percent of the total.5 Where the data starts to get more interesting is when we look at “employed females in labor force” to total women ages 25 to 64. It stands at 66 percent. This compares to 77 percent for the same data set among men.6 Lower employment numbers are likely due to women who take time off to have children and take care of their families, and struggle to return to the workforce after taking time off. Data by large occupation groupings (total of six groups) shows that women hold the majority of positions in roles that are most closely aligned with employment opportunities in commercial banking, as shown below.7 The data below appears to be impacted by the legacy issue of more women in banking historically holding clerical, secretarial and other administrative positions.
Women
Men
Management, Professional and Related Occupations
52%
48%
Service Occupations
56%
44%
Sales and Office Occupations
63%
37%
How do these numbers compare to your company’s data of women and men in senior and executive level roles? While no clear data exists for the percentage of women employed in commercial banking specifically, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that for 2014 women in broader “finance and insurance” group accounted for 56 percent, with “banking and related activities” taking 62 percent and “savings institutions, including credit unions” taking a sizeable 72 percent.8 How do these numbers compare to your company’s data for women on its board? By now you’ve probably noted that total women in banking appear to be represented quite well, above the national population levels and some other industries. Where problems persist is in progressing toward senior levels and board seats. In the top 50 largest banks in the U.S., only two are led by female CEOs (with CIT just missing the top 50 cut and one of the two being the CEO of Ally Bank but not Ally Group). This equates to only 4 percent of female CEOs in the top 50 largest banks in the U.S.! In the same group, female board members account on average for only 22 percent of total board seats. Women on executive teams (executive or operating committees) account for only 20 percent of total executive management. The data is comparable to 4.2 percent of women CEOs in the S&P 500, 19.2 percent holding board seats, and 25.1 percent as executive or senior level officials and managers.
Women on Boards
Women on Executive Teams
Mean Average
21.8%
Mean Average
19.9%
Median
21.4%
Median
18.3%
Minimum
7.1%
Minimum
0.00%
Maximum
43.8%
Maximum
66.7%
While there are several more women in the CFO, COO, CRO, subsidiary or divisional CEO and president roles, their numbers dwindle in comparison to senior management seats taken by men. A 18 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
number of women holding senior roles are in the traditional head of marketing or HR roles, as opposed to leading lines of business.
50 largest banks in the U.S. with 30 percent or greater female board member diversity: Bank of America First Republic HSBC Bank USA
Key Bank Umpqua Bank Wells Fargo
50 largest banks in the U.S. with 30 percent or greater female executive team member diversity: Bank of America East West Bank JPMorgan Chase
Northern Trust Synovus Bank
Although some organizations are doing a much better job in attracting and retaining women at executive and boards of directors levels, the overwhelming majority have a long way to go to make executive levels similar to the representation of women in our society and in our industry. Very few commercial banks have over 30 percent women on executive teams; even fewer have a matching board representation. Over 50 percent of our industry’s workforce is comprised of women. If we have so many women in the industry, why are there so few at senior and executive levels?
Key Challenges Legacy – The Past That’s Difficult to Shed It is not easy to eradicate centuries of cultural stereotypes and expectations for the role of women to be distinctly different from the role of men. Federal anti-discriminatory enforcement efforts under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (EEO) in the 1960s and 1970s marked a turning point for women, traditionally employed in customer service, back office operational, secretary and clerical roles. Mounting pressure of lawsuits also helped open doors for women into our industry and to create opportunities at different levels of banking organizations. The work of the Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity and other government agencies was to bring diversity into banking, especially into smaller institutions that seemingly lagged behind still meager managerial representation of women at large institutions at that time. Regulators played a critical role in starting to eliminate practices that were so ingrained in our industry and society, which largely accepted lower pay and lack of growth opportunities for women as a normal course of business. It is true that the inequality took centuries to flourish. Nevertheless, we can’t wait another 100 years until things change naturally, for a couple of reasons: 1) We will miss the next generation of female bankers who will never enter the industry because of its reputation for inequality. 2) The patience of women and some men is running out, and bankers just don’t want to wait until their grandchildren see the real benefits of their efforts.
Stereotypes – A Major Roadblock Stereotypes – as well as discrimination and prejudice as a result of these stereotypes – are viewed as one of the greatest challenges in preventing women from advancing to senior levels of the industry.
Just ask some women who have worked in commercial banking for decades – like Marcia Honomichl. Honomichl was a 2008 awardee of North Western Financial Review’s Outstanding Women in Banking. When attending conferences and other events, she was often presumed to be a spouse of a banker and was often directed to events for spouses.9 Stereotypes abound and can be explicit, hidden and even subconscious. Here are a few most common stereotypes: • Women cannot be as effective as men in certain roles. • Women should stay at home and raise children. • It is risky to hire pregnant women because they’d want to become stayat-home moms and take care of their children. Why invest in developing them? • Women with children are not as focused on their work as men. • Women are too soft as bosses. • For a woman to be effective as a manager, she needs to become a …. (the b-word). When she becomes (that term), no one likes her for becoming what they expected. • Certain behavioral traits are not appropriate for a woman – but are fine for men. These stereotypes start very early in our childhood, even today. Just look at our commercial clients’ retails stores that carry blue and green clothes for boys, and pink and purple dresses for girls. Boys begin to socialize with boys and girls with girls. Girls should help their mothers in the kitchen while boys should focus building something or playing with cars. Girls are expected to be pretty and proper, and boys to be strong and confident. Consequently, even to this day, we are inheriting in the corporate world the societal mess of gender discrimination and stereotyping.
Tell Me Who Your Friends Are, and I’ll Tell You Who You Are One senior banker reminded me of the proverbial expression, “tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.” He mentioned it in the context of people’s tendency to relate to and hire individuals similar to them based on how they look, behave, think, speak and what
they value (called the “similarity-attraction phenomenon”). A simple look at a senior management team and a board of directors can reveal the composition of the pipeline for the next levels of talent in that organization (sadly, this stereotype tends to hold based on the data provided above). Executive teams that lack diversity will likely continue to pull through the next tier of managers who look like them and think like them. Furthermore, they are less likely to genuinely prioritize female diversity within their organizations, which impacts all subsequent layers of employees. If we have non-diverse teams, they won’t be able to relate to and attract young or rising professionals to our industry, relate to our clients, and be able to deal with a diverse range of critical situations commercial banking faces. The cycle repeats itself over again. This is why there is so much emphasis on women diversity as we risk losing younger generations of women.
Lack of Flexible Work Arrangements Many women in commercial banking leave the industry temporarily or permanently
to take care of their children. It is critical to understand how work environment needs to evolve in order to retain this important group of employees and become a familyfriendly industry. Below are some key ideas to consider: • Women will not be able to balance careers and families without the support of their spouses. Our family benefits and flexibilities needs to include both spouses. • Paid parental leaves for both parents are essential in the first 12 months of child’s birth. Consider paid leaves in the two- to four-month range, although progressive employers who want to retain top talent will push this range farther out. • Flexible work arrangements are a must in today’s environment, including reliable tech support. Flex arrangements can consist of work from home (fixed or floating days), work from a nearby office (separate from the primary office), adjusted hours, compressed work weeks, CONTINUED ON PAGE 20
Free money. First-come, first served. Really. For a limited time, we’re offering members zero-percent Classic Advances to create or preserve jobs in their communities. Our new program, Jobs for New England, will award up to $5 million in interest-rate subsidies every year through 2018. A maximum of $250,000 in subsidy is available per member each year. At current rates, $250,000 can leverage up to $30 million in one-year advances. To find out more about Jobs for New England, contact Fatima Razzaq at 617-425-9564, or fatima.razzaq@fhlbboston.com. But don’t delay. These funds won’t last forever.
See what your cooperative can do for you!
FHLBBoston Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston • 800 Boylston Street Boston, MA 02199 • www.fhlbboston.com
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
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PROTECTING WOMEN IN BANKING VULNERABLE CLIENTSCONTINUED FROM PAGE 19
CHART 1 Non-diverse boards and executive teams have a cascading effect through the rest of an organization
Mid-Career Managers and Line Colleagues
Rising Professional (Recent Hires)
Senior Managers
Executive Team
Board of Directors
CHART 2 Legacy cultural overhang
Stereotypes
Similarity-attraction side effects
Key Challenges for Women in Banking
Family unfriendly environment
part-time and job-sharing arrangements, seasonable work arrangements, voluntary reduced hours, and phased retirement. • Ability to move around in an organization to change the pace to meet one’s personal needs and professional aspirations. • Robust support network to stay in contact with and provide training and resources to help reintegrate for those who leave the industry for family and other personal reasons. In return, your organization gains one of the most loyal employee groups. Flexible 20 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
Not a real priority
Lack of mentoring and executive sponsorship
Excutives cannot relates
arrangements around an employee’s personal needs create “stickiness” in your relationship with them, an appreciation for doing something personal, and commitment to the company. This is akin to sticky, welldiversified banking relationships.
You Can’t Understand It if You Did Not Live It Dual income households with children account for 60 percent, compared to 31 percent with only father employed and 6 percent with only mother employed. The disparity between dual income families and families with only father employed
progressively increasing over the last 30 years.10 More and more people feel that dual-income is a must in order to maintain the desired living standard with mounting costs of living, student loans and expected retirement savings crisis. For a number of Baby Boomers in senior levels, the husband as “breadwinner” and wife as “homemaker” scenario was a reality of their lives. As more and more women maintain both careers and their roles as parents, it is tough for their bosses to truly understand the challenges and sacrifices they make. “They can’t relate to our challenges because they did not live them,” is a comment I have heard from a number of female bankers when discussing the topic of women in banking. This is not a criticism, merely a fact of life. With the lack of genuine understanding stemming from no personal experience can come the lack of commitment to create conditions under which working mothers will thrive. This is why we need more women in decisionmaking roles who may understand what other women may be going through. As a significant recent milestone, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, recently took a two-month paternity leave (a four-month leave is available to employees of Facebook, irrespective of their gender). His personal experience helped him relate and gain a better understanding for his colleagues’ reality. A CEO of a major company actually taking a sizable leave sends a strong message about the company’s priorities.
Shortage of Mentoring and Executive Sponsor Frameworks More and more organizations recognize the importance of mentoring and executive sponsorship to seek out, engage and promote talented women. Executive sponsorship is cited as a critical link that translates mentoring into actual senior appointments. A mentoring organizational culture, as opposed to forced mandates to mentor, is the foundation for mentoring upand-coming female leaders. Organization may wish to look beyond their own walls in the mentoring sphere, especially if there is a shortage of rising female leaders. Trade organizations and various women-focused events can offer additional opportunities to broaden your mentoring networks.
Properly Prioritizing the Lack of Women in Banking Challenge Diversity is one of the top talent development goals of many organizations. However, do you prioritize them on an enterprise level – or is it a divisional priority of your HR department that gets added to a long list of divisional priorities and gets lost in the shuffle? Given the lack of progress with bringing more female executives into our organizations’ ranks, we may not be prioritizing this issue enough. Naturally, there are many challenges on the minds of executive teams – but unless you make it a key priority, you won’t win the war for female talent. Phase one for women in banking was to raise awareness of the challenges and opportunities over the last 10 to 15 years. We are long overdue for phase two – from merely recognizing and celebrating the “Most Powerful Women in Banking” to producing more dramatic and sustainable changes. BNE (Dima) Neil Berdiev is managing partner and cofounder of DNB Advisory LLC, a Boston-based advisory firm. He is a career commercial banker gone entrepreneur, a credit guy with passion for sales and team development. He may be reached at dnb@dnbAdvisory.com or at (617) 233-1405.
Footnotes 1. At the San Francisco convention of The American Bankers Association, October, 1971. Coverage provided by Banking (now ABA Banking Journal), Nov71, Vol. 64 Issue 5, p12. 1/6p. 2. Banking (now ABA Banking Journal), Apr67, Vol. 59 Issue 10, p71. 2p. 3. The Census Bureau’s March 2015 Current Population Survey. 4. 4 U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2012. Population by Age and Sex. 5. 6 U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2012. Labor Force and Employment Status of the Civilian Population 16 Years and Over by Sex and Age. 6. U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2012. 7. Occupation of the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and Over by Sex. 8. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey, 2014. Employed persons by detailed industry, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. 9. Humor, Hard Work Led Former Assistant to the Top, North Western Financial Review, 11/15/08. 10. 10 The Rise in Dual Income Households, Pew Research Center, 6/18/15.
The best things in life are free. Especially money. We’re offering members zero-percent Classic Advances, on a first-come, first-served basis, to create or preserve jobs in their communities. Our new program, Jobs for New England, will award up to $5 million in interest-rate subsidies every year through 2018. A maximum of $250,000 in subsidy is available per member each year. At current rates, $250,000 can leverage up to $30 million in one-year advances. To find out more about Jobs for New England, contact Fatima Razzaq at 617-425-9564, or fatima.razzaq@fhlbboston.com. But don’t delay. These funds won’t last forever.
See what your cooperative can do for you!
FHLBBoston Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston • 800 Boylston Street Boston, MA 02199 • www.fhlbboston.com
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
21
BANK PROFILE
Webster Aims at the Heart of the Hub with Citi Branch Acquisition
Webster bankers in Boston’s Downtown Crossing the morning of the 2016 Boston Marathon. From left: Jennifer Zhang, Sarah Smith, Downton Crossing Banking Center Manager Anthony Singleton, Tashana Rowe, Kathy Luria, Downton Crossing Assistant Banking Center Manager Haley Smith, Government Center Banking Center Manager Robert Torres, Charlotte Woit and Anais Cruz-Gonzalez.
BY LINDA GOODSPEED
Paul Mollica
David Miree
22 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
S
even years after opening a beachhead in Boston, Waterbury, Connecticut-based Webster Bank appears ready to stay with a dramatic expansion earlier this year into 17 new and highly visible locations in and around the city. “Webster’s goal is to be New England’s bank,” said Paul Mollica, president of the Boston regional office. “We had a business bank in Massachusetts, but nothing in Boston. To be New England’s bank, we needed something in Boston. It is the financial center of New England.” Beyond financial, noted Executive Vice President David Miree, Boston is also a culturally rich area with history, sports and entertainment. “It has so much to offer, so many opportunities,” Miree said. “If you want to be a player in New England, you have to be in Boston.” In fact, the biggest question in this whole deal might be what took Webster so long to get here. Webster, a $24.9 billion regional bank, was founded in Waterbury in 1935 by Harold Webster Smith. Over the years, Webster expanded its scope and reach to include a full range of banking products and services for consumers and businesses
in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York. Its HSA Bank division is the nation’s largest custodian of health savings accounts, serving consumers and businesses in all 50 states. Today, Webster is the 35th largest bank in the nation by asset size, and has 180 banking centers. Still, Boston remained a major hole in its footprint and the bank’s goal of being New England’s premiere homegrown bank. Everything Webster liked about the Hub – “The area is rich in education, high technology, the medical field, biotech. It is a very vibrant economy, by far, the highest producing economy in New England,” Mollica said – other banks liked as well. In short, it is a very competitive banking environment.
‘A Rare Opportunity’
Webster did have a small, one-man commercial real estate production office near South Station, but no retail banking presence. In 2009, as part of the bank’s overall strategy to grow commercial loans and expand into contiguous metropolitan markets, Webster opened a banking center at 100 Franklin St. in the heart of the Financial District in the space
“Webster’s goal is to be New England’s bank.” — Paul Mollica president of the Boston regional office once occupied by the Boston Stock Exchange. The lone employee from the commercial real estate office and about $200 million in assets moved to the new location, and Webster hired another seven employees. Initially the bank focused on middle market businesses. Since then, Webster has expanded its scope to include a full range of commercial banking services, private banking, government and institutional banking and small business banking. It grew its staff to 46. By the end of the first quarter 2016, new deposits in Boston surpassed $100 million. Since opening that foothold in 2009, Webster began exploring expansion opportunities, including buying another bank, but “the economics did not work out well,” Miree said. In September 2015, Citibank announced it was leaving the Boston market, and Webster saw an opportunity. Webster assumed the leases of 14 Citibank locations and added three more sites, bringing its total Boston presence to 18 offices. Webster did not buy any Citibank deposit accounts or loans. It simply assumed Citibank’s leases and fixtures, and recruited 80 percent of its employees. Overnight, Webster gained critical mass in the economic heart of New England with a minimal capital investment, and moved a step closer to its goal. Mollica said the bank estimates the Boston offices will deliver an additional $1 billion in deposits and more than $500 million in loans over the next five years. “Our announcement was greeted as proof positive Webster Bank is here to stay in Massachusetts and Boston,” Mollica said. Miree said the new locations give Webster the opportunity to expand its mortgage business in Boston, as well as its investment business, financial consultants and business banking.
“It’s a rare opportunity for Webster to expand its business on the retail side in a market where we haven’t been before. It’s a great opportunity for us to show what we can do,” he said. “It’s very exciting.” Webster now has eight locations in Boston, three in Cambridge, and single offices in Quincy, Brookline, Burlington, Lexington, Needham, Newton and Wellesley. It employs 54 people on the commercial side and 110 in the new community banking centers. Looking ahead, Mollica said Webster is concentrating on immersing itself into
its new communities and working hard to make the expansion successful. “We’re just trying to execute at a high level, and show why Webster can make this be a successful expansion,” he said. “The work is just beginning,” Miree added. “Our expectations are number one, to wow our new prospective customers, begin to penetrate all our new markets, and really push our marketing efforts and initiatives and show how our products and services add value to our customers’ lives.” BNE
There’s no such thing as a free lunch. But money, that’s a different story. We’re offering members zero-percent Classic Advances, on a first-come, first-served basis, to create or preserve jobs in their communities. Our new program, Jobs for New England, will award up to $5 million in interest-rate subsidies every year through 2018. A maximum of $250,000 in subsidy is available per member each year. At current rates, $250,000 can leverage up to $30 million in one-year advances. To find out more about Jobs for New England, contact Fatima Razzaq at 617-425-9564, or fatima.razzaq@fhlbboston.com. But don’t delay. Zero-percent funds won’t last forever.
See what your cooperative can do for you!
FHLBBoston Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston • 800 Boylston Street Boston, MA 02199 • www.fhlbboston.com
BANKING NEW ENGLAND
23
PROTECTING INDUSTRY NEWS VULNERABLE CLIENTS
Optima Bank & Trust Announces 2015 Results, 2016 Outlook
Optima Bank & Trust announced record results for 2015 and an outlook for 2016 at its recent annual shareholder meeting. Daniel Morrison, chairman, president and CEO of Optima Bank, reported in a statement that 2015 was the best year for the bank so far. He attributed the growth in assets and earnings to the full-service branches, which allowed for increased market penetration. The 2015 net income was $2.07 million, up from $1.6 million from 2014. Total assets grew by 16 percent to $369 million from $318 million at Dec. 31, 2014. Total loans increased in 2015 by 19 percent from $264 million to $315 million and total deposits increased by 16 percent from $294 million to $342 million. Net interest income was $11 million in 2015, up 9 percent from 2014 and non-interest income was $2 million, up 78 percent. Total regulatory capital grew 9 percent to $29 million to 2015. Morrison reported in a statement that first quarter earnings in 2016 were up 32 percent from a year ago, and asset growth continues to be very strong. The bank also celebrated its eighth anniversary on Jan. 28 of this year. Morrison said the bank also plans to add additional new branches.
Enterprise Bank Opening, Expanding Branches in New Hampshire By Laura Alix In an age when “consolidation” seems to be the banking industry’s watchword, Enterprise Bank is looking forward to opening its 17th branch in as many years. The Lowell-based bank announced this week that it would open a branch in Windham,
24 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
New Hampshire in the spring of 2017 and that it would relocate its Salem, New Hampshire branch to a larger site. Earlier this year, Enterprise Bank opened its second location in Nashua, New Hampshire, its 16th in 16 years. The Windham branch will be its 24th branch in total. CEO Jack Clancy said that those recent moves reflect the bank’s organic growth, as well as its overall branching strategy. Enterprise had already surrounded the town of Windham with branches in Derry, Salem and Pelham, he said. This branch will be its seventh in the state of New Hampshire. Enterprise Bank’s coming Windham location will feature cash recycling machines, video conferencing capabilities and intelligent ATMs, in addition to drive-up lanes. Its new Salem location, which is slated to open in the early half of 2017, will offer the same. The latter location, Clancy said, was necessary because Enterprise Bank effectively outgrew its first Salem branch.
Needham Bank, The Bulfinch Group Partner for Resource Sharing
Needham Bank and The Bulfinch Group recently joined in a strategic alliance to share product resources with each other’s customer base. Needham Bank now offers full retirement planning and wealth management capabilities with The Bulfinch Group. The Bulfinch Group, in turn, now offers new banking products and services through Needham Bank. BNE
GETTING A BIOPHARMA STARTUP OFF TO A GREAT START. WAY TO GROW.
Berkshire Sterile Manufacturing needed funds to buy and renovate a 116,000 square-foot building in Lee and acquire new manufacturing equipment. We issued a $4,083,000 bond on the company’s behalf, enhancing it with mortgage and insurance guarantees. The bond, purchased by Berkshire Bank, enabled the startup to create the ideal facility for growth in western Massachusetts. For more information, call 800.445.8030 or visit MassDevelopment.com.
PROTECTINGFILE VULNERABLE CLIENTS PERSONNEL
Career achievers in banks across New England are constantly on the move, with their professional journeys reflecting a combination of mobility and longstanding service. In this space, we acknowledge them, and welcome readers to submit news of their own banks’ efforts and endeavors to Editorial Director Cassidy Murphy at cmurphy@thewarrengroup.com.
Featured Banks • Berkshire Bank • Beverly Bank
Appointments and Elections Citizens Bank Citizens Bank announced the appointment of Jack Murphy as head of business banking sales. Murphy previously served as managing director of business banking for Santander. In his new role, he will be responsible for managing sales and service to small and medium business customers. He will oversee approximately 400 sales colleagues, including eight business banking regional directors. Prior to his role at Santander, Murphy held a number of executive positions at the bank in global banking, auto finance and small business and business banking. He also held leadership positions at TD Bank, JPMorgan Chase and American Express.
Dedham Savings Bank
• Blue Hills Bank • Bristol County Savings Bank • Citizens Bank • Dedham Savings Bank • Merrimack County Savings Bank
Carol Lewis
• New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp • Rollstone Bank
Dedham Savings Bank recently appointed Carol Lewis as vice president and compliance officer. Lewis spent 16 years with the Federal Reserve Bank of
Boston in various positions and most recently established C.S. Lewis Consulting, a firm specialized in serving community banks by advising on banking regulations and financial education.
Rollstone Bank Rollstone Bank & Trust (RBT) has appointed Michael E. Montuori as its newest chairman of the board. The Michael E. Montuori bank’s Governance and Nominating Committee elected Montuori at a recent board meeting. Montuori joined the board of directors at RBT in February of 2000, and has served on the Audit and Executive committees for several years. Montuori is the successor to Noel Bartsch. “We are proud to have Mike as our newest chairman. His strong leadership, keen business sense and community commitment will ensure RBT’s continued success,” Martin F. Connors Jr., president and CEO, said in a statement.
Promotions
• Savings Bank of Walpole • TD Bank
Beverly Bank
Beverly Bank announced the following promotions: Katherine Gilfeather to vice president and residential loan officer. She previously held the position of assistant vice president and residential loan officer and has been a member of the residential lending team at Beverly Bank since 2011. Patrick Langmaid to assistant vice president and residential loan officer. He joined Beverly Bank as residential loan officer in Katherine Gilfeather Patrick Langmaid November of 2014. Previously, Langmaid was a senior loan officer at GoldCoast Mortgage Service Inc. in Beverly. He has held positions at Prospect Mortgage and the Archer Group, Keller Williams Realty, both located in Beverly.
Bristol County Savings Bank
Bristol County Savings Bank (BCSB) announced the following promotions: Thomas Keogh to audit manager. In his new role, Keogh is responsible for directing the ongoing activities of the audit department. He is a member of the Massachusetts Bank Internal Auditors and The Institute of Internal Auditors. Mark Moreira to secondary market officer. In his new role, Thomas Keogh Mark Moreira he is responsible for calculating and distributing mortgage rates, supervising the rate locks of residential mortgage loans, managing loan sale functions, making loan commitments with secondary market investors and delivering loan packages for sale. 26 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
Promotions Sharon Patton to Prime Time manager for the bank. She will oversee all activities relating to BCSB’s relationship product, Prime Time, and act as a personal banker for its members. Patton’s responsibilities include Sharon Patton Patrick Quinn planning, organizing and arranging the details for all Prime Time Travel events. Patrick Quinn to BSA officer. In his new role, he will maintain compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the Office of Foreign Assets Control and ensure timely and accurate submission of required regulatory reports.
New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp
New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp (NHMB) announced the following promotions: Danielle Wakefield to corporate reporting officer. Wakefield’s responsibilities include regulatory reporting, financial reporting and budgeting for NHMB and its subsidiaries Wakefield began her career at MVSB in 1999 Danielle Wakefield as a proof operator. Deborah Flanders to assistant vice president, learning and development officer. Flanders continues to oversee organization-wide
Deborah Flanders
training and development for all employees of NHMB and its subsidiaries. Flanders joined the bank in 1992 as a part-time teller. Sara Lauze to digital banking officer. Lauze will manage the digital banking department, oversee online banking for consumers and small businesses and manage the cash management program. Lauze joined the Merrimack in 2005 as an ATM deposit services analyst.
Watertown Savings Bank
Watertown savings Bank has announced the following promotions: Lisa K. Nichols to senior vice president of operations. Nichols has been with the bank for 32 years and now oversees the bank’s operations, BSA and customer support departments and acts as the bank’s liaison with Fiserv. Lisa K. Nichols Robert A. Kelly to senior vice president of retail banking. Under the umbrella of retail banking, Kelly will continue to oversee branch administration, along with the security, Club 50 and facilities. Kelly has been with the bank for 17 years. Vicky Giannakas to assistant vice president. Giannakas is the market manager for the bank’s Arlington branch office and has worked at the bank for five years. She has 22 years of banking experience.
New Arrivals Berkshire Bank
Jamison Flora recently joined Berkshire Bank as vice president and business banking leader/SBA liason. Flora brings over 16 years of industry experience to his newly acquired position. His responsibilities in this new position include fostering the business banking footprint in the state of New York as well as growing the SBA Lending program bank-wide. Prior to joining Berkshire Bank, Flora served as vice president, business banking senior SBA relationship manager with KeyBank, focusing on the SBA loan program for the Central New York and Capital Region territories, with attention on acquisition, expansion and startup financing.
Blue Hills Bank
Dave Dion
Dave Dion has joined Blue Hills Bank as vice president and senior loan officer for its new Franklin, Massachusetts loan office at 470 King St. Dion has spent the last 25 years working for NE Moves
Mortgage as a senior loan officer and began his career working for DeWolfe Mortgage as a loan officer.
Merrimack County Savings Bank
Kyle Schneck has joined Merrimack County Savings Bank as vice president and commercial loan officer. Schneck is based out of Kyle Schneck the Merrimack’s Nashua office located at 101 Broad St., and oversees the bank’s commercial lending efforts in Southern New Hampshire. Schneck brings more than eight years of banking experience to his new role. Prior to joining the Merrimack, he was vice president of business banking at People’s United Bank. He also serves on the loan committee for the Mill Cities Community Investment Fund in Nashua.
Savings Bank of Walpole
Stephanie Huestis has joined Savings Bank of Walpole as vice president and commercial
loan officer. Huestis brings over 20 years of experience within the finance industry to her new position and has a broad understanding of relationship management, commercial lending, Stephanie Huestis sales and new business development. Previously, she held a number of positions at Peoples United Bank in Brattleboro, Vermont. Huestis is also a board member of the United Way of Windham County.
TD Bank
TD Bank has named Kathy Ells as the Massachusetts and Rhode Island health care specialist for TD Bank’s Health Care Practice Solutions Group. In her new role, Kathy Ells she will source new to bank practice finance business, focusing on independent dental, veterinary, medical and eye care practices. BNE BANKING NEW ENGLAND
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PROTECTING GOOD VULNERABLE COMMUNITY WORKS CLIENTS
Financial institutions large and small have been making a difference in their communities for years. In this space, we acknowledge them, and welcome readers to submit news of their own banks’ efforts and endeavors to Editorial Director Cassidy Murphy at cmurphy@thewarrengroup.com.
Featured Banks
Androscoggin Bank Androscoggin Bank’s MainStreet Foundation announced the distribution of a total of $10,000 in quarterly grants to Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine, Girl Scouts of Maine and Trinity Jubilee Center.
Bank of America Bank of America auctioned art from its own collection to benefit young residents of Boston’s inner-city neighborhoods, raising nearly $1.6 million.
Berkshire Bank Berkshire Bank Foundation provided $38,000 to Habitat for Humanity affiliates as part of its Hockey4Housing partnership with NESN’s coverage of the Boston Bruins.
Berkshire Bank contributed $225,895 to local United Way organizations as part of its 2016 workplace campaign.
• Androscoggin Bank • Bank of America
Bristol County Savings Bank
• Berkshire Bank • Bristol County Savings Bank • Country Bank • Lake Sunapee Bank • Norway Savings Bank • People’s United Bank
Bristol County Savings Bank recently presented a $13,000 grant to the Friends of Acushnet Public Library.
28 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
Bristol County Savings Bank awarded grants totaling $45,000 to six nonprofits in the New Bedford/Dartmouth, Massachusetts area.
Bristol County Savings Bank recently presented a $10,000 grant to the Boys & Girls Club of Taunton.
Bristol County Savings Bank recently presented a $5,000 grant to Old Colony Habitat for Humanity.
Bristol County Savings Bank presented $80,000 to 12 Pawtucket, Rhode Island-area nonprofit organizations.
Country Bank
Country Bank presented the Palmer 300th Anniversary Committee and the Celebrate Palmer Committee with $5,000 in donations.
Country Bank sponsored its first Financial Literacy fair for college students at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
Lake Sunapee Bank Lake Sunapee Bank pledged to purchase business tax credits from the New Hampshire Community Development Finance Authority to the Strong Foundation, Stronger Future Campaign of the YMCA of Greater Nashua.
Norway Savings Bank Norway Savings Bank announced it has collected and processed over 176,000 pounds of paper for recycling in the last six years.
Country Bank recently presented Rachel’s Table with a donation of $2,800 as part of its Employee Charitable Giving Program.
People’s United Bank People’s United Bank recently joined Cradles to Crayons to present their leadership team with a $6,000 donation to support their Gear Up for Winter program. Peoples United Bank recently donated $7,500 for Massachusetts Access and Success Programs and $5,000 to Bridge Over Troubled Waters.
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Needham Bank Expands in Natick
• Lake Sunapee Bank • Needham Bank • Northern Bank & Trust • OneUnited
lifecycle banking products, services and technology,” Stephen R. Theroux, president and CEO of Lake Sunapee Bank, said in a statement. “This office is meant to satisfy our growing customer base in the Capital region; helping them in ways that fit their needs and financial goals.” The branch will also feature local art, product specials and free giveaways.
Northern Bank & Trust Co. Branches out in Sudbury Needham Bank recently opened its newest office on 17 West Central St. in Natick, Massachusetts. The bank celebrated with family-friendly activities and hosted New England Patriots Defensive Captain and World Champion Devin McCourty. “Natick is a fantastic town. We’re delighted to be able to join the community and become an active participant in the many worthwhile causes which are so important to the very fabric of why so many folks enjoy living and working in Natick,” Needham Bank CEO Mark Whalen said in a statement.
Lake Sunapee Bank Celebrates the Opening of Its Newest Branch
Northern Bank & Trust Co. recently kicked off the opening of its new office in Sudbury, Massachusetts. The new branch at 430 Boston Post Road marks the bank’s 13th full-service location. The bank’s charitable foundation also awarded $10,500 in grants to local nonprofits. “This new office offers business and personal banking, mortgages and investment services all under one roof, allowing us to keep pace with the needs of our customers. The new branch aims at deepening relationships and attracting new customers, thus strengthening the bank’s commitment to serving businesses and residents across Middlesex County,” Kathleen Murphy, senior vice president of retail banking, said in a statement.
OneUnited to Seek New Boston HQ
Lake Sunapee Bank recently celebrated the opening of its first full-service branch in Concord, New Hampshire with a ribbon-cutting. The new 3,500-square-foot branch at 8 Loudon Road offers mortgage lending, financial planning, business banking, insurance services and retail banking services. A night-depository, ATM and full-service drive-through window will also be available. “This is a real milestone for Lake Sunapee Bank in our continued commitment of providing 30 BANKING NEW ENGLAND
OneUnited Bank is closing two of its Los Angeles branches and seeking a new location for its Boston headquarters, the bank said recently. The Ladera and Pasadena branches the bank is seeking to eliminate make up a quarter of its total branch network. OneUnited said in a statement that it would maintain its Miami branch and its Crenshaw Boulevard branch in Los Angeles. In addition to its Financial District headquarters, OneUnited also maintains branches in Roxbury and Dorchester. In a statement, bank leadership framed the reconfiguration as banking “for the future,” citing declining foot traffic and a desire to increase its digital presence as reasons for the move. BNE
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