YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY

Springfield, MO

Log in Subscribe

SBJ photo by Wes Hamilton

A Conversation With … Janieca Hancock

Mid-Missouri Bank Bolivar Community President

Posted online

When did you start your new role as president for Mid-Missouri Bank’s branch in Bolivar?
The first of December. I’ve been with Mid-Missouri Bank, which was Polk County Bank when I started, since 1997.

What was your career path to get where you are today?
I started in June of ’97, after I got out of high school, as a janitor because I was able to get hours in over the summer. With my school schedule, that worked really well. My sophomore year of college, I did an internship through the bank while still being janitor. I was a teller, as well. I really liked that work and ended up staying on after college in the loan department as a loan assistant, and then progressed from there as a junior lender and lender, and now community president.

How would you describe the current state of the banking industry?
Changing. It’s constantly changing. The regulations change, the industries change, the economy changes – that’s all influencing where we’re at in each of our branches and where we’re at within the economy.

As someone who’s been at the same bank branch your entire career, how have you adapted to changes, and what do you do to maintain a personal touch when so much of banking has gone online?
It’s a challenge for sure. Social media is important to keep in contact with our community, but we also have people engaged in the community. Our employees are engaged in our community on every level. That’s one way we keep our personal touch. Technology has changed a lot, so our app has changed to adapt to those customer requirements – which presents challenges to the bank, as well. But I think mobile banking is going to continue to improve and increase in use, so we have to adapt and find ways to engage our customers with our branch.

What are some of those ways your employees stay engaged?
We do the backpack program through Care to Learn, which does help fund our Bolivar school backpack program and Care to Learn program. We are involved in local civic organizations, and each of us has different organizations – kind of whatever we have a passion for, we try to be involved in. Fridays are casual days, so each employee pays $2 to wear jeans, and then we donate the money to the organization we choose or a family in need. If someone has a house fire, we’ll donate some funds. So it’s a very different, wide range of opportunity.

Your bank offers Kasasa. How is this program implemented with your customers and how does it work logistically for the bank?
Kasasa is a special account that offers customers a little better return on their money. Interest rates have been so low for so long that it kind of allows for them, in their checking account, to get paid for using the account. If they meet certain criteria, then they get a cash bonus or a higher interest rate on their deposit account. It’s a partnership with the Kasasa brand. We started that last May or June in 2017.

Where does the Bolivar branch rank among Mid-Missouri’s 14 branches? What is your current total in deposits and loans?
We’re third in loans and second in deposit accounts. Bolivar loans are just at $70 million and total deposits at $86 million.

What’s the total for the banking system as a whole?
We have total loans at $490 million, a total asset size of $567 million and total deposits of $525 million.

Mid-Missouri recently redesigned branches in Springfield and Willard, and it’s also consolidating the Mount Vernon branches in a renovation. All 14 banks are slated for redesigns. When is Bolivar’s turn?
We haven’t yet, but we are hoping to do that very soon. I think we’re slated for the project when Mount Vernon is complete. Mount Vernon has a move-in date tentatively in June.

Janieca Hancock can be reached at jhancock@midmobank.com.

Comments

No comments on this story |
Please log in to add your comment
Editors' Pick
Open for Business: The Kebab Shack

The Kebab Shack opened; Hitch Goods launched; and The War Zone Springfield moved.

Most Read
Update cookies preferences