Hoosier Banker 19 Michael A. Renninger ;ϯϭϳͿ ϲϵϱͲϳϵϯϵ ŵƌĞŶŶŝŶŐĞƌΛƌĞŶŶŝŶŐĞƌůůĐ͘ ĐŽŵ ǡ Ǥǡ ͷͳͺ ǡ ǡ ͷʹͺͲ ȋͷ͵Ȍ͵ʹǦʹͲͶ ǣ ǡ Ǥ Ƭ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ͘ ǁǁǁ͘ ƌĞŶŶŝŶŐĞƌůůĐ͘ ĐŽŵ Η&Žƌ ĂŶ ObjecƟve Assessment ŽĨ zŽƵƌ Challenges ĂŶĚ Professional ExecuƟon ŽĨ zŽƵƌ OpportuniƟesΗ x ƵLJͲ^ŝĚĞ ĂŶĚ ^ĞůůͲƐŝĚĞ ZĞƉƌĞƐĞŶƚĂƟŽŶ ŝŶǀŽůǀŝŶŐ ǁŚŽůĞ ďĂŶŬƐ͕ ďƌĂŶĐŚĞƐ͕ ĂŶĚ ŶŽŶͲďĂŶŬ ĂĸůŝĂƚĞƐ x ^ƚŽĐŬ >ŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ͕ ĂƉŝƚĂů ĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ͕ ĂŶĚ ^ƚƌĂƚĞŐŝĐ WůĂŶŶŝŶŐ x ^ƚŽĐŬ sĂůƵĂƟŽŶƐ ĂŶĚ &ĂŝƌŶĞƐƐ KƉŝŶŝŽŶƐ Ǧ Ǧ Ǥ ǣ survive. From the beginning of time, even back in the Biblical days, there were bankers. There’s always been someone to facilitate the payment system, the exchange of coins or currency, and there always will be. “I don’t know if, 20 years from now, it will be called banking, but there will always be people in need of advice on how to manage and handle their finances. There will always be businesses that need financial and managerial advice. There will always be the need for some kind of payment exchange. Bankers provide those products efficiently, effectively and professionally. They always have, and they always will. It’s a great business to be in. “My advice to a young person coming into the banking business is to learn as many things as you can within the bank, try to be exposed to a variety of areas and then, once you figure out where your passion lies, communicate what your desires are. Everyone has to become their own best advocate for themselves. Whether you are in banking or anything else, if you’re not letting people know what you would like to do, then you’re forcing them to guess, and hoping that they get it right. “So communicate. It’s so important to communicate with those who have the power to provide you with that next opportunity. It starts with you.” Is there a piece of advice you received during your career that you considered particularly helpful? “I was blessed to have many mentors, and one was a gentleman named Merrill Clevenger, who retired from First Merchants Corporation in Muncie. Merrill always told me to learn my lessons well. It took me a long time to figure out what he meant, but once I got it figured out, I did try to make sure that I completely understood issues and what I was doing. I may not have always succeeded, but I certainly attempted to. “Another mentor was Steve Anderson, an amazing leader, who also was with First Merchants. He ingrained in me the importance of strategic planning, and his favorite saying was, ‘Plan the work, and work the plan.’ “Steve ran our organization that way, and when I left, I continued to do that. At both Community Bankers and Indiana Bankers, we have been strategic plan-oriented. We get people together every few years and develop a plan, and we work that plan on an ongoing basis. “Strategic planning is the foundation of an organization’s success. It may sound trite, but you wouldn’t take a vacation without knowing where you’re going, and mapping out how you’re going to get there. That’s essentially what a strategic plan is: deciding where to go, and mapping out how to get there. “Effective strategic planning is essential for an organization to grow and succeed. Those lessons that I learned early on from Steve Anderson have been a foundation to whatever success I’ve experienced.” HB
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==