In your own words, describe your role at the bank:
I am the Customer Service Training Manager at Union Bank & Trust Co. I have the privilege of leading an amazing team that is passionate about educating our frontline staff on how to serve our customers and deliver amazing service while helping our customers achieve their financial dreams.

How did you get into banking?
I was a young father looking for work after being laid off from my previous job. I applied for a teller opening with Union Bank & Trust at a branch just a few blocks from my childhood home. From there, I was blessed with opportunities and became a personal banker, assistant branch manager and then branch manager in the retail banking world. My passion for learning expanded beyond just learning new job roles, and I weighed a career in education. I took an opportunity to join the training department where I could exercise my passion and stay with UBT. After the previous manager was promoted, I was given the opportunity to lead the training team as manager in 2019.

Why is banking a great career?
Banking is a far more diverse industry than it might appear to be from the outside. As customers, we think of bankers as tellers and lenders, but there is so much more than that. There are tremendous opportunities in roles ranging from information technology to marketing, and as a learning professional who originated in the retail banking space, I am a perfect example of this. Bankers build a range of skills that are applicable across almost any industry and knowledge that supports a thriving everyday life. The "banker's hours" don't hurt either!

What is your favorite book, podcast or quote?
At this moment, "Atomic Habits" by James Clear is my favorite book.

In your own words, describe your role at the bank.
I have over 25 years of banking experience and am the Branch Manager at Arbor Bank. As a Branch Manager I am driven to motivate and inspire my team to be “The Jack of All Trades” as we are the first point of contact for communication, while being responsible for leading, developing & managing a team. I also coordinate and facilitate workshops for financial literacy.
 
How did you get into banking?
As a child I always had the desire to lead a team. At 16 years old I worked as a cashier, and I developed cash handling experience and customer service skills. As my eagerness grew at 18, I was looking for a career field and discovered banking while meeting with a recruiting agency. I begin my banking career working as a teller, lead, vault teller, call center, personal banker, loan officer and then advanced into management. My purpose and passion grew, as I parlayed these skills working at various financial institutions such as credit unions, banks, and community banking.
 
Why is banking a great career? 
Working in the banking industry was important to me as I begin my own financial journey. Learning how to manage, budget and make financial decisions that were not taught to me growing up. I found joy in helping everyone of all ages and walks of life. Building relationships are very important it allows bankers to be trusted and valuable advisors. There are so many career opportunities in banking for individuals with or without a degree, however I graduated from Kapalin University to enhance my education and further my career in banking.

Is there anything you'd like to add about your background or what Black History Month means to you?
As a minority I did not see individuals like myself in banking; however, I wanted to be an inspiration for those in the community and educate others in the field of banking that may not have had the exposure.
 
What is your favorite book, podcast or quote?
"Be patient when it seems like things are not going right and may never be right again. Accept that what is yours will come to you in the right way at just the right moment." - Iyanla Vanzant
 
This quote speaks to me as my father instilled in me at an early age to never give up and hard work and dedication pays off for itself.

In your own words, describe your role at the bank:
As a Compliance Specialist, I have many roles in this position. I monitor Large Cash Receipts for both Washington County Bank and Houghton State Bank which is cash transactions that $1,500 or more made at the banks on a daily basis. I check for Structuring and to see if any Currency Transaction Receipts need to be filed for transactions totaling more than $10,000 in a day. Once a week, I send Beneficial Owner updates to banks that we monitor from a report we received from FNBO to let them know about documentation that is missing and needs to be sent in to remove the alerted account from the report. Once every few weeks, I go to the Bank Secrecy Act website to download a list of people/entities that they have found activity on then I look through our system to make sure none of the people/entities match anyone that we have in our systems. Once a month, I create a report for banks that we monitor for International Wires that were sent out of the country to foreign countries to make there is nothing suspicious about the transactions going out. Once a month, I also monitor the Customer Information Program for people/entities who open a new account with the bank. Per the Patriot Act, any person who opens up a new account with a bank/financial institution must provide them with a valid government issued photo ID, a valid proof of address and their name is entered into the OFAC watchlist to make sure they're not on the list. For Business Entities, they must provide the necessary documentation for their business in order to be allowed to open a bank account. Any CTRs that were filed by the bank are sent to Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and once they are acknowledged, I add those documents to our records.

How did you get into banking?
I got a position with FNBO back in 2016 in Flood Compliance. After a few years of doing that, I got a promotion as a Business Associate I at FNBO headquarters. I wanted to get back into Compliance as it where I was able to accomplish the most in my professional career so when an opportunity as a Compliance Specialist came up with WCB I applied for it and got the position. I have been in this position with WCB for almost 4 years now.

Why is banking a great career?
For me, banking is a great career because I get the opportunity to help out people. Compliance gives me the opportunity to monitor transactions to help make sure that people who bank with us aren't being taken advantage of by those who want to do so.

Share your favorite book, podcast or quote. Why is it your favorite?
"Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time." - Barack Obama

I've been in Compliance for the better part of 13 years total. Compliance is very important for any financial institution as it is a means of regulating and monitoring day to day banking.