Creating Meaningful Client Relationships in the Age of COVID-19
How a small community bank in Oklahoma is driving value to its users in a time of uncertainty
When individuals familiar with Financial services hear of Citizens Bank, they probably think of the large American bank headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island that trades on the New York Stock Exchange with a market cap of eight billion dollars. Little do they know there is a small community bank in central Oklahoma that is answering the call, both literally and figuratively, of uncertainty in the time of coronavirus. By providing 1 to 1 support to thousands of its clients, from individuals to main street’s small businesses, The Citizens Bank of Edmond is exemplifying a core competency that has been lost by many larger banks in the space over time — humanity.
According to USbanklocations.com, Citizens Bank of Edmond currently holds around $300 million dollars in total assets, which is not something you typically associate with a 60-person operation (Glassdoor). However, when you read between the lines, there is more than just numbers and that is exactly what the bank’s CEO Jill Castilla wants her customers to feel and understand. What appears to drive Castilla, who was recently voted Community Banker of the year by American Banker and one of the “Most Innovative CEOs in Banking” by Bank Innovation to not force her bank to close down in the face of the current COVID-19 pandemic, but rather extend the operation outside of the bank’s walls to create a drive-thru-esque service for bank customers to be able to continue managing their finances? Perhaps it’s her background in the US Army and public service that pushes Castilla to stand in the face of uncertainty, but it’s likely just as driven by a sense of purpose and reason for why she got into community banking in the first place. Her leadership and enthusiasm for clients doesn’t sit alone at the top either; it appears to filter down throughout the bank. From the Bank’s Director of Retail Banking;
Now the bank is meeting another customer need. To date, they’ve already helped small business owners fill out, submit and fund 232 CARES Act PPP applications for a total of $15.5m as of April 16th (and much more since). As the bank receives a massive influx of applications, her team is finding it difficult to submit at scale and assist her clients, old and new, with getting the funds they need to survive this economic downturn. For the latest round of SBA funding, Citizens Bank of Edmond has turned to data ingestion and aggregation/analysis platform MX to launch a new SBA loan application portal for small businesses across Oklahoma. “We are so thrilled to be able to stand with [Jill] & [her] team of economic first responders” said Jane Barratt, Chief Advocacy Officer at MX via Twitter. With a centralized portal and application for submitting SBA loan applications, MX’s technology should help the bank significantly automate the loan application process for its clients.
In times of economic uncertainty, there will always be certain leaders who rise to the occasion. You typically see them in the form of a talking head pontificating on one of a variety of daytime business programs, while their staff attempt to drive their mission forward — but for every one of them, there’s several folks like Jill Castilla who are in the trenches making things happen for their customers.
Author’s note: Until this point, I never realized how much of my time is actually spent outside. This is my first post on Medium, and I would love to get your feedback. I am by no means a trained writer, however I have thick skin and believe that honesty is the best teacher, so let it whirl. Thanks!
Regarding the story; please note that I have never met Jill Castilla formally, and have only interacted with her on Twitter and followed closely the stories about how she and Citizens Edmond are helping the Small Business Community in America during the pandemic and resulting economic downturn. I was inspired by Jill’s work and story, and decided to put some observations on paper and then to digital. I hope you enjoyed.
Lastly, if you are a small business owner I know it’s tough out there. Please feel free to reach out to myself if you are feeling stuck with little or no resources. I am not a financial advisor, but due to where I sit in the space have built many relationships in the space. I would be more than happy to direct you in a number of directions based on your financial situation, and I expect nothing in return. There are numerous financial platforms, organizations and banks that are putting their time out there for Small Businesses in the country and are doing great work. I am always happy to help where I can. -Gillette
