Where Are the Emerging Leaders in Banking?

I spoke at a banking association’s workshop for emerging leaders and the event planner asked me a great question, “Where are the emerging leaders in banking?” We discussed the fact that banking associations work hard to offer quality educational programs for the young emerging leaders. But attendance is typically lower than they expect. We wondered why this phenomenon is a problem across the nation.

I believe there are several reasons why the emerging leaders in community banks don’t participate in these special leadership development programs as much as they should. Below are some of the reasons I observe from community bank clients under $5 billion in assets within the United States:

Emerging leaders are working.

They are running the banks behind the scenes and don’t have time to get away. They occupy entry level, supervisory, and some middle management jobs. They are starting their families and joggling work and family commitments.

There is no money in the budget.

Often there is no money in the budget to attend leadership development focused programs. They are an afterthought. While community banks budget for certain training to take place, they focus on the technical aspect of the employees’ jobs. The focus on the leadership development of emerging leaders comes second.

Perception that emerging leaders are not loyal.

Financial Institutions have been burnt before. They develop a specific emerging leader and just when the employee is ready to take the new job, he or she leaves. The bank is left with no one to occupy the position of an employee who just retired. There is no successor, and they find themselves starting all over again.

Legacy employees don’t leave.

Due to several reasons such as the current economic environment, living longer, cost of health insurance, and others, the legacy employees continue to occupy their jobs. I call “legacy employees” those who have been in the same job or same organization for over 20 years and are past the legal retirement age.

It starts at the top.

I recently spoke with a CEO who mentioned their institution’s board of directors is comprised of three directors over 60, one over 70, and three over 80 years old! If the Directors are not willing to leave their spots and allow a younger generation to take over, the rest of the institution will follow suit. Why do they not leave? In addition to the reasons stated above that apply to employees, the legacy directors may not fully trust the next generation to take over. In many instances, these are family-owned banks and the founders cannot let go because they don’t have successors—or at least successors they trust to take the organization into the future.

The lack of leadership development for the emerging leaders presents a critical risk to community banks today and something must be done to change this trend. Below are some ideas you can implement immediately to train the leaders of tomorrow:

Do implement a succession planning process.

The first step is to identify future leaders and successors of key positions in your institution.

Budget for leadership development.

Ensure you budget both for technical training as well as leadership development for the emerging leaders you identify through your succession planning process. In addition, budget for continued leadership development for your senior leadership.

Encourage emerging leaders.

The performance review process is the appropriate time to ask each employee if they aspire to positions of leadership in the future. They don’t necessarily have to desire a senior leadership role. Some of them may be happy to be a supervisor, team lead, or manager of a department. Others may aspire to a “C” level position (i.e., Chief Financial Officer, Chief Credit Officer, etc.).

Mentor future leaders.

Part of a strong Talent Management Program is to establish a formal or informal mentoring program both as you onboard new employees and then as you identify successors. Mentoring employees is part of leadership development.

Hold emerging leaders accountable.

It’s a two-way street. The current senior leadership who mentors and provides opportunities to the emerging leaders must hold them accountable too. The accountability comes in several ways. For example, ask them to share with others what they learned at workshops, seminars, and leadership development.

Send them to training.

If you are a senior leader, please send your emerging leaders to leadership development seminars, workshops, and conferences offered by your State Associations or other professional institutes. Also, as they grow into their leadership journey, provide executive coaching opportunities so they continue to grow as a leader and learn to deal with special situations.

If you are an emerging leader, go!

If you have been selected to be a successor to a key leadership role or aspire to lead throughout your journey, you must take the time to attend these leadership development opportunities when they present themselves. It is on you to prove and demonstrate to the legacy leaders and board of directors that you can and will take the organization to the next level. Part of demonstrating your desire to lead is to work hard and be loyal to the institution. This is hard to do when the trendy thing to do is to leave a company for the next best opportunity after only a few years of employment. You need to allow your employer time to develop you and to also prove to you that they want you in the organization for the long haul.

So, to answer the question, where are the emerging leaders in banking? If you are reading this article and are currently in leadership, I hope it inspires you to send your emerging leaders to leadership training. If you are an emerging leader, I hope it inspires you to go and attend every opportunity you get!

Marcia Malzahn is president and founder of Malzahn Strategic a management consulting firm for community financial institutions. If you enjoyed this blog, you can read more on the topics of Treasury Management, Enterprise Risk Management, Talent Management, Succession Planning, and Strategic Planning at Malzahn Strategic Blog page. If you’re looking for consulting help in these areas, feel free to contact us at [email protected].

Marcia is also an inspirational keynote speaker and published author of five books: A daily devotional – Devotions for Working Women, The Fire Within – to help you find your purpose, friendship poems in The Friendship Book, also in Spanish El Libro de la Amistad (poemas de Amistad), and Bring YOUR Shoes to help emerging leaders with tools on how to lead. In her latest grandma baby book, Inside Your Mama’s Tummy, Marcia inspires grandparents to form a bond with their grandchildren. You can contact Marcia for speaking engagements through her website at https://crowning-achievements.com/ or email her at [email protected].?