10 HќќѠіђџȱ юћјђџ Ѣћђȱ2014 &29(5 6725< The values you mentioned sound similar to your bank values. “Yes, our values are integrity, respect, friendship, caring and loyalty. These values were constructed — not by me personally — in the late ’80s. At that time, I was going through a personality shift and adjusting my outlook on life. I was no longer as interested in growing the bank as big as possible, or making as much money as possible. “I shifted my thinking to more of a preservation type of philosophy, asking: ‘What is it that I want to be known for? What is it that I want to preserve?’ “Bank-wide, we re-examined our cultural value orientation. We gathered together about 100 people from all levels of the organization — about a third of the total employee base, and spent an intense afternoon in roundtable focus groups. “Associates looked at what the bank values were at that time, and what they should be in the future. I moderated as they shared ideas, and we came up with a set of values that we felt we could embrace for the long-term. “That was the start of the cultural revolution that took place at Centier Bank. Before that, I had exercised a strong, autocratic leadership style. It was not until that transformation that I started to grow what we call a servant’s heart — the belief that we have been placed here to help and to serve others. “It was a big transformation for me, and some people in the bank ȱȱȱȱȁȱ Ȃȱvs. ‘new ǯȂȱ ȱȱȱŗşŞŖǰȱ Ȃȱȱ anything to get to the top of the mountain, but those mountain tops ȱęǯ “I wanted to steer the future direction of the bank away from the materialism of success. So many people view success as being wealth, title, position, accolades, but it is in ȱȱ ȱęȱȱęȱ in life.” Was there a trigger to this transformation? “The trigger was that, in the early to mid ’80s, we went through a major depression here in northwest ǯȱ ȱěȱȱȱȱȱȱ ęǰȱȱ¢ȱ ȱȱȱ the bank. “So I had to rethink the importance of longevity and preparing longterm for the future, rather than maximizing current opportunities. ȱ ȱȱĜȱęȱȱ that made me realize that maybe I wasn’t on the best path to long-term ęǯȄ What prompted you to continue family tradition and join the bank? “Growing up in Whiting, I was the ¡ȱȱǯȱ ¢ȱȬ grandfather established the bank in the city of Whiting, and my grandfather was the mayor for three terms, so we were one of the founding families. “So as a child, I carried around that expectation, and it wasn’t always the greatest thing to carry around. Later, when I had the opportunity, I went away to Culver ¢ȱ ¢ǰȱȱ small, private school. We were 810 guys in ȱęȱȱ - ana, and it gave me a feeling of being part of something cohesive. “I spent a couple of summers working in the bank, which ȱȱȱǯȱ ¢ȱ¢ȱ ȱ ȱĴȱȱȱȱȱȱȱȱ loan processor. I started to steer away from banking and, midway through my college career in economics, I began to lean toward coaching. “Athletics was very big for me. One of my mentors was my high school wrestling coach at the Academy. I wanted to spend my life the same way, developing talented athletes – both for athletic prowess and for values. “When I got out of college, the choices were Vietnam, grad school for business, or look for a prep school to coach in, because I didn’t have enough courses to become a public school coach. I ended up applying for all three. “When I didn’t get drafted and the ȱȱěȱ ȂȱȱĴ- tive, I enrolled at the University of ȱȱ ȱȱȱ¢ȱ ȱ ȱęǯȱ ȱ ȱȱȱȱ ȱȱ ȱȱęȱȱȱ ȱȱ economics. ȱ ȃ ȱ ȱ ȱ¡ȱȱȱęȱ time to some exciting faculty and students in the banking, marketing and ęȱęǯȱ ȱȱȱǰȱ I made a decision that I would like to try banking. “I told my dad I would come in Continued from page 9. &RQWLQXHG RQ SDJH &HQWLHU·V ´'HFODUDWLRQ RI ,QGHSHQGHQFHµ OLVWV signatures of nearly 700 employees, with a promise to remain independently owned and operated for JHQHUDWLRQV WR FRPH &HQWLHU·V KHDGTXDUWHUV IHDWXUHV DQ DUFK UHSOLFD RI WKH EDQN·V RULJLQDO EXLOGLQJ HQWUDQFH
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