Banking Strategies: Should We Look to Utah?
If you could build a bank that delivered a 2.49% ROA, twenty three percent deposit growth that is 100% core, and zero non-performing loans, would you do it? That is exactly what Salt Lake City’s Optum Bank delivered. Over four years ago I penned an American Banker article encouraging financial institutions to specialize to develop […]
A Practical Approach to Reducing Operating Expenses
In the present economic environment, revenue growth is becoming much more difficult to attain, net interest margins are under pressure, and compliance costs are on the rise. In these challenging times, it is imperative that community financial institutions control operating expenses without sacrificing service levels. Reducing costs can have an immediate impact on the bottom-line, […]
Too Much on the Dollar Menu?
I recently spoke at a NJ Bankers Association event about the things I learned this recession (see blog post regarding subject). Since writing that missive, I realized I left one out. My company does line of business and product profitability reporting for community banks. What I have learned from performing this service is that very […]
Ode to Bill Davis
On December 31st, a great banker retired: Bill Davis (pictured). I have known Bill for about 10 years and like him as a person very much. But also important is how much I admire his former employer, Norwood Financial (Nasdaq: NWFL) and bank, Wayne Bank. I wondered if others shared my admiration, so I searched […]
A little game of one-on-one?
I recently met with Frank Teas, CEO of The Nashua Bank in New Hampshire to discuss strategy (See photo. Frank is actually the person on the left). During the course of the discussion, he said that his marketing plan was one-on-one marketing. I have also heard of it referred to shoe-leather or face-to-face marketing. As […]
My Banking Lessons Learned this Recession
I attended a meeting the other day with a board committee of a client that is profitable and pro-active in charting their future. While others were talking, I jotted down what I thought were key lessons learned this recession for bankers. Here is what I came up with: 1. Never forget about economic cycles. When […]
Beware of the Yutes!
In the 1992 classic movie My Cousin Vinny, Joe Pesci referred to his clients as “yutes”. Fred Gwynn, who played the judge, asked for clarification, not understanding Pesci meant “youths”. Bear with me, I have a point. I was with a bank executive today that told me that 40% of OTS examiners had less than […]
Banks and Old Time Hockey
I went to see an AHL hockey game last night, the Hershey Bears versus the Albany River Rats. You are probably already thinking of how I’m going to build a bridge between hockey and banking, but bear with me. You, like me, probably think of hockey players as some version of the 1970’s movie Slap […]
About Jeff For Banks
Welcome to my new blog about community banking. I titled it “Jeff For Banks” because I tend to be pretty passionate about the long term sustainability of the community banking industry. As an industry consultant, I am constantly learning about success stories in our industry. But banking is undergoing tremendous sea changes, and I thought […]
Are you Steering by the Screws?
This past year I was invited to join the faculty of the ABA School of Bank Marketing and Management (SBMM). At first, I was a bit skeptical. I always believed myself to be a left brain thinker, one that processes information in an analytical and sequential way. Marketers, on the other hand, are thought to […]
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