GUEST ARTICLE Thank a Bank By Conor Smith, First Call Computer Solutions When the average person thinks of banking in Montana, words like checking, savings and loans come to mind. It is a commodity, transactional-based view. I feel incredibly grateful for experiencing the true nature of banking here in Montana. Seeing people and organizations navigate the macro landscape of too-big-to-fail, treasury yields, a mortgage crisis, pandemics, and droughts (to name a few) has been inspiring. Change has been a constant, and Montana’s banking “institutions” have been anything but institutional. Consumers and businesses alike need to take a moment away from the transactions and see Montana Independent Banks as integral to navigating the world in which we live and work. As I am writing, I did a Google search for “Thank a Bank.” Guess what? It is not a movement that is catching on, let alone even being brought to the surface on the internet or social media (#thankabank had extremely limited results on Google). I know you are shocked that this is not raging and trending anywhere and everywhere. The simple reality is people and businesses take the confidence, trust, services and relationships banks provide for granted. We are a bit spoiled, a bit entitled. Change is a constant, and more is on the horizon with rising interest rates, treasury yields, elections and even the federal government’s stance on cannabis. I do not know how all of that will settle, but I have confidence that the banks in Montana will navigate it not only for themselves but also for the people and organizations they serve. As an IT and cybersecurity vendor, I feel a bit of kinship with banks and bankers. We, too, are perceived transactionally in the form of service tickets, projects and audits. And certainly, there are commodities around computers, software, networks and data. But the true nature of IT is far from just transactional. Like banking, our work is highly relational to the people and organizations we serve. We must evolve our relationships with the large macro forces in technology, regulations and threats. The landscape is fluid. Like banks, we must be extremely diligent with every transaction, all while keeping the bigger picture and outcomes in mind for each client we serve. To many, what we do might seem mundane, disciplined and highly structured. And there is truth to that. Uptime, security and performance demand it. But there is also an art to what we do and to what banks and bankers do. You might not think there is art in our internal security audit methodology. But we do. You might not think there is art in our expanded 24/7 security operations center (SOC) and monitoring services. But we do. There is art in our help desk, field support, project delivery and in the way we work to understand each client over time and serve them. “Thank an IT Service Provider” or “#ThankITDepartment” is not going to trend in the real world or online any more than “Thank A Bank” is. But “Thanks” still needs to be said. Thank you, Montana banks and bankers, for the transactions, the commodities, the branches, the digital tools and more importantly, for all you do to help people navigate their lives and businesses in this great state of ours, both in good and tough times. We are proud to be part of your team and associated with the important work you do across all the sectors of Montana’s industries and livelihoods. The Community Banker 17
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