A bank I audited as a young man had a bank president named Ron. Ron had one of the most profitable and respected banks in our system. Ron cared deeply for his team members, and for his community. Ron watched over each teammate, protecting them from verbally abusive customers and loving and serving them in their times of need. He ...
In this series, we’re talking about leadership lessons I learned from banking. One bank I examined had a bank president named Ken. While reviewing a past due loan report, I was surprised to discover a large loan that was one year past due but not listed on their problem loan list. When I asked Ken about it, he said he ...
In this series, we’re talking about leadership lessons I learned from banking. Mike was a bank president who I would label as a Squeezer. He had a bank that appeared very profitable, resulting in Mike being promoted to a bigger role. When we examined the bank after Mike’s promotion, however, we discovered that he had produced short-term profits by squeezing ...
As a young banker, I learned a lot about leadership by watching the many different styles of bank presidents I observed. In my role doing bank examinations at that time, I interacted with a lot of front-line people like tellers and loan clerks. The reactions and interactions these people had with the bank president were typically a truer reflection ...
There was a season when I was managing two loan officers who were very competitive with each other. There were times when I felt like a referee, often being asked to make decisions and choose between these two lenders. It was tempting to side with the one producing the most loan volume to keep her happy, even when it ...
Politicians are often criticized for making promises they know they can’t possibly keep. Unfortunately, politicians are not the only ones who struggle with deception. UBN once purchased software, based in part on their salesperson promising that their software was being fully integrated with another key software product we used. After purchasing this new software, their operational team informed me that ...
John Patterson is a little-known businessman who significantly raised the level of professionalism for sales professionals. In the 1880s, Patterson founded the National Cash Register business to sell high-quality cash registers. Patterson realized his product needed much more public awareness. So, he formed a team of sales professionals who were trained to dress professionally, overcome objections, and were provided sales ...
Walking into the conference room, I could tell my colleague was troubled. I couldn’t see her tear-filled eyes because her chin was almost on her chest. But I could tell something was wrong. Following my usual response to heavy situations, I made a joke. When she looked up – expressionless – I knew I had badly misread the situation. When ...
A study of the Gospel of Matthew by the Theology of Work Project notes that Matthew 6:21 is worded somewhat counter-intuitively. Jesus instructed his listeners to store up treasures in heaven instead of on earth, where those treasures are subject to loss. He then said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The authors call this ...
Business leaders prefer stability rather than uncertainty and chaos. It’s hard to make good decisions when the marketplace is changing rapidly. We started this year with prices in turmoil due to tariff increases; then the tariff rules constantly changed. Further, many employees have been impacted by new immigration policies. These changes can shake-up businesses significantly. Fortunately, we are, or can ...
Equipping Others to Do Work Differently
