On March 9, Joe James joined BancorpSouth as senior vice president-commercial lender, moving to Springfield from North Kansas City’s Premier Bank, where he was market president. James has 28 years of experience and has a bachelor’s in business administration from University of Missouri-Columbia and a graduate degree through the Graduate School of Banking in Madison, Wis.
Q: You started your banking career at UMB bank in Kansas City, where you spent 16 years. Did you develop a certain philosophy there that you still follow today? A: Without a doubt. The philosophy that I learned there is to operate yourself with a high degree of integrity, and follow the principles of banking. Treat the customer with the utmost respect and do what you can to take care of them … consult with them, and determine what would be the best product for them and their needs, whether it be checking accounts or types of loans. That consultative-type situation, I have found, is the best approach, rather than trying to just fit a product into somebody’s situation.
Q: BancorpSouth President Rob Fulp played a key role in convincing you to take the position. How did he recruit you? A: I have known (Fulp) for a number of years. … His arguments were very compelling and made a lot of sense. I talked it over with my wife and it sounded like a wonderful opportunity. One of the (arguments) that really hooked me on the front end was that there is a lot of local decision-making here in this market. BancorpSouth is very stable and has a lot of financial strength in the organization, and that appealed to me as well.
Q: How has commercial lending changed in the past two years? A: Regulatory agencies have been more influential in how banks are operating. Technology has played a factor in lending as well. The world has become a more global marketplace, more so than it has been in the past. You have customers that have expanded their footprint on where they sell their products and where they do their business.
Q: What will 2010 look like, in terms of numbers of loans generated? A: You’re asking me to peer into a crystal ball, which always seems to be fuzzy over the last year and a half. … Overall, I don’t see a lot of growth occurring in the commercial lending arena. I think things will remain fairly flat, but I do think that there will be times later in the year where we’ll start to see demand start to peek its head out of the sand.
Q: Have you been in Springfield long enough to see any differences between Springfield and Kansas City? A: I’ve been to Springfield before, so it’s not a foreign community to me. I think the community spirit here is a little tighter and a little more widespread. … You get a great sense of it from all around. I’ve known people from around here, and they talk about the community, and the lifestyle and people, and those types of things. Surely Kansas City has those as well, but it’s a different dynamic here, and one that I like.[[In-content Ad]]
