| Q: |
Tell me a bit about how you got into business banking. |
| A: |
My father owned his own businesses down in Kalamazoo, Michigan for years and years. I definitely get my work ethic from him. Right after college, I became a broker, and then returned to Kalamazoo to run one of my Dad's businesses. Working there was a ton of hours but it gave me a great appreciation for entrepreneurs and how to do what was necessary to get the job done and make customers happy.
As much as I enjoyed working for my dad, I knew it wasn’t the life for me forever. So after working for him for almost 4 years, I went to work for Citizens bank in their credit department. With Citizens, I was promoted into commercial lending and eventually worked my way up, holding positions in Flint, Charlevoix, Traverse City, and Gaylord. When I was approached by mBank for a Commercial Lending position, my wife and I went to see Marquette and fell in love with the town and the people. |
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| Q: |
What do you enjoy about your job? |
| A: |
I love helping people succeed in their business. As a community bank, we can help them secure financial resources so they’re able to meet their goals, whether it’s starting a business, putting up a new building, buying a new piece of equipment, or making their business more efficient by utilizing our technology. We’re helping them prosper and realize their dreams. |
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| Q: |
What makes mBank different from other banks? |
| A: |
Well, in our market, we truly have unique products and services, like our remote deposit capture and courier services. Our customers always tell me how much they appreciate these things, and our “No ATM Fees. Ever.” approach because it makes their lives so much simpler.
But in addition, it feels like we’re a very streamlined organization and, as a result, can get more accomplished for our customers. Our response times are fast and our people are just terrific. |
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| Q: |
Describe the customers in your region. |
| A: |
We have a great mix of customers, representing industries from logging to healthcare to hospitality to petroleum distribution. We also see a lot of real estate development, which brings with it commercial office space, contractors, and homeowners looking for mortgage loans. The small “mom & pop” businesses are some of my favorites, because they really need trusted advisors to help them make the most of their organization. I think I have that kind of relationship with my customers, and it comes from our shared experience and mutual trust. |
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| Q: |
How does mBank show flexibility and innovation to its customers? |
| A: |
Here’s an example: We have a customer who owns three businesses and wanted to physically expand one of their businesses and add new equipment. Because they wouldn’t be able to begin reaping the benefits of the additional space and equipment for several months (when the machinery arrived and their construction was completed), we were able to help them with an interest-only loan and then convert it to a traditional principal-plus-interest loan. They had never seen that approach with their previous banks.
A lot of banks don’t go out of their way to be that flexible; mBank gives customers every opportunity to make financially smart and successful decisions. |
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| Q: |
The latest mBank brochures have a “+ You” theme. Please tell me what that theme means to you and your customers. |
| A: |
To me, “+ You” means mBank plus our customers – we both need each other. And when we work together, we make a great team.
Another customer needed our help for a loan that required an SBA (Small Business Association) guarantee. We worked together to make this happen, so the customer was able to get the financing they needed and we were able to earn the loan. No other banks helped them go this route. When we work together to get things accomplished, everybody wins. |