According to Jeffrey R. Skocik, vice
president and manager of commercial
lending for Brentwood Bank, the single most important tool a commercial banking officer can bring to the table is the ability
to understand the unique needs of each commercial customer.
“Five factors will ultimately determine just
how much of a difference a bank can make
for your growing business,” Skocik says.
The five factors are:
- Hands-on expertise, know-how
- Flexibility (custom-tailoring)
- Local servicing
- Fully integrated capabilities
- Lending capacity, strength and stability
Smart Business spoke to Skocik about the
five factors that separate mere commercial
loan originators from potential difference
makers.
When looking for a banker with hands-on
expertise, what should you look for?
More than anything, look for a bank that
gives you the ability to work with the same
commercial officer on an ongoing basis — a
hands-on relationship manager who can also
take a global, long-term view of your business relationship; someone who can both be
there for you throughout the entire loan
process and can familiarize himself or herself
with your overall business circumstances. It
stands to reason that you will get more out of
your banking experience when you work
with someone who takes the time to get to
know your business and can apply his or her
insight to your other business needs. All too
often, the larger, transaction-focused institution will simply hand you from one transaction specialist to the next. When that happens, you cannot possibly receive the full
benefit of the bank officer’s expertise.
How does custom tailoring help a business?
No matter what kind of business you run,
the day is going to come when you will need
to upgrade technology or make capital
improvements. Many up-and-coming business operators don’t realize that financing
terms can be designed around the unique
needs of their operations, which can be very
important when you’re looking to fund growth or expansion. Look for the bank that
can provide tailor-made terms and conditions to meet the needs of your specific operating circumstances.
In today’s business world, why is local servicing still important?
Growth and expansion is an ongoing series
of transitions for a business — not just financial transactions with defined timetables and
parameters. When the seamlessness and
smoothness of your business operations matter, loan servicing matters, not just during the
loan application process itself but also after
the loan docs are signed. The reason is simple: When any business grows and expands,
challenges occur. Your circumstances can
change in ways you’ll never expect or anticipate. Loan servicing that’s local and in-house
ensures your ability to have flexibility. You
deal with professionals you can ask for by
name — a back-office team that’s always
there for you to answer any questions or discuss any issues that may come up. This kind
of servicing is what makes it possible to custom-tailor loan terms and conditions and still
have an approval process that is accurate and
thorough.
How do you know your bank’s capabilities are
fully integrated?
While many banks promote ‘full-service’
capabilities, most typical business banking
interactions end up being with loan originators or ‘product pushers’ who must maintain
narrowly defined focuses. They tend to be
transaction-oriented. They may solve the situation at hand, but they deprive you of a fully
integrated approach — the ability to work
with someone ‘in the know’ who will develop an understanding of the unique circumstances that surround your business and
point you to the right resource. It pays to
work with someone who has broad hands-on experience, a full spectrum of integrated
business banking capabilities and the ability
to find just the right combination of product
and service solutions. Find out how the bank
officer’s role is defined within his or her
organization and what the bank officer and
his or her team can offer in the way of
deposit services, advisory services, realty
services and other specialized capabilities
that may be relevant to your specific growth-related issues.
Isn’t lending capacity really a function of the
bank’s size?
When it comes to commercial bank services — especially financing — size is not
everything. For the growing and expanding
business, smaller, more specialized institutions can provide a personal touch and one
of the most reliable sources of commercial
financing today. Of course, there are business operators who won’t even think to contact a community bank because it never
occurs to them that a community bank will
have the specialized lending expertise and
multimillion-dollar capacity they require.
The fact is, however, that today many community-based institutions do have those
capabilities. Combine the fact that the community bank sector is the real stabilizing
force in banking today and you can see why
a smaller, more specialized institution with
the right know-how is often in the best position to make the biggest difference.
JEFFREY R. SKOCIK is vice president, manager of commercial lending for Brentwood Bank. Reach him at (412) 409-9000 x228 or [email protected].
