Looking back on your career, what’s the highlight? Looking back at my career in its entirety with the bank, it’s exciting to have been a part of the bank’s growth and success. I started working here in January 2003. We had five branch offices and around $160 million in assets. Here we are, 21 years later, with 11 branch offices, and the bank is getting ready to cross over that $1 billion asset threshold. The highlight for me has been implementing new technology at the bank to better interact and communicate with our customers. Two projects in particular come to mind: One was when we implemented ITMs or interactive teller machines. The second was enacting digital prescreening for loans. It’s been a very successful program for us. We’ve seen incremental increases year over year in our consumer lending book of business, better crossselling to deposit-only customers, and have leveraged the tool in customer acquisition efforts as well. What is your favorite part of working in a bank? I’ve always loved the community banking arena. Your job is not just your job; you’re going to wear many different hats on any given day because your resources are limited compared to what a larger bank would have. That might stress a lot of people out because they want to know their exact job. But not knowing is one of the things I’ve enjoyed. Every day holds something new: diversity in workload and a wide variety of experiences that can be applied in many different areas. If you had to pick three songs to describe your work ethic, what would they be? 1. “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor: To me, it’s about perseverance and determination. 2.“Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey: This song reminds me of someone I used to work with who would always say, “Tim, just keep doing the right thing, and the results will come.” 3. “The Final Countdown” by Europe: A lot of what I’ve done over the years is project management. It doesn’t matter if it’s a little project or a big conversion. You get to this point where it’s go-time. And I feel like I need to turn this song up in the background — this is the final countdown! What is your favorite way to relax outside of work? We’re crazy dog people. We have an 11-year-old golden retriever and a 1-year-old goldendoodle puppy. Our favorite thing to do is to travel and vacation with the dogs. We usually go to Hilton Head Island once or twice a year. It’s very pet-friendly and a wonderful place to visit. Who is the most influential person in your life, how have they influenced you and why is he or she important? My maternal grandfather, Neil Bruynis, was a very hard worker and that left a lasting impression on me. My grandparents immigrated from the Netherlands in 1955, soon after they were married. They were sponsored by a hog farmer in Illinois and spent their first few years in the state there working on his farm. In 1958, they moved to Goshen, Ohio, right outside of Cincinnati. Through the years, my grandfather continued to work in agriculture and farming, and over time, was able to purchase three 8 West Virginia Banker
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