Five Questions: Shelly Titus

Shelly Titus hasn’t left her employer, but in the past four months she’s made a big career change. After 10 years in retail management at Empire Bank, she moved south from the Plaza Shopping Center to work as vice president and financial adviser through Empire’s InvestorServices, 3212 S. Glenstone Ave. Married to banker Jay Titus, Springfield market president for BancorpSouth, she says the power couple are passionate about their careers but prefer to keep work at work. After making the move from consumer banking this spring, Shelly Titus has since received her securities licenses.

The Great Transfer
“One of the reasons I had a specific interest in making a change now was that there is going to be one of the greatest transfers of wealth over the next 30 to 40 years from the baby boomer generation to their heirs – something in the estimation of around $30 trillion in assets in just the United States alone. Another fact I found interesting as I did research on investments is that typically only four in 10 retirees in the United States has a financial adviser. When you think about the significant amount of assets that will be transferred, (it) really made me feel like the time was right to make a change.”

Back to School
“There are a series of licenses that you need to obtain to become a well-rounded financial adviser. There is the Series 7, which is a general securities license. There is the Series 66 license that I have … used for more sophisticated money management needs. … And there is also the life and health license, because there are a lot of new financial and investment solutions that require a life insurance license. It is a vigorous process.  … The thing I feel good about is that I have a solid bank management and bank financial services background, so I can provide clients with a well-rounded perspective in terms of not only their investments but also their whole financial picture.”

Banking and Marriage
“(Jay) has worked with a different element in the banking industry than what I have typically done. For instance, when I was in retail and consumer banking, he was more on the side of commercial lending. … He made his career change last fall, and then I made my career change. Now, we are in two totally different areas. While we both work in the same industry, there are so many facets to it, it is easy to be in the same industry and still be working in two totally different worlds.  And while we are both passionate about our work, when we get home, we are ready to be home. It’s good to separate work from your home life.”

After Wal-Mart
“We actually met in college. We worked at Sam’s Club at the time. We both left college and went into Wal-Mart Supercenter store management. … My father worked for Wal-Mart for over 28 years. He started when there were only 15 stores. It was kind of a family expectation that we would go into Wal-Mart store management. … We had moved to Amarillo, Texas, for a short time out of college with Wal-Mart management after we’d gone through the training program. We were working 80 hours a week every week, and one quarter of every year overnight. We just wanted a better quality of life. … My husband actually took a position in banking first when we moved back. Then, I had a former college professor at MSU call me up one day. My first banking employer – where I spent almost 10 years there – had an HR person call him and said they were looking for someone to come into banking and asked if he knew anyone. … My husband’s move was intentional, but mine was by accident.”

One on One
“My job before was a lot about strategic planning, problem solving, operations and human resources, as well as sales and building our client business. Now, my job has evolved into being more independent. I meet with clients and prospects one on one. … The great thing about Empire Bank is they are flexible with the goals and objectives that you set. … So, I don’t have any specific numbers per se, but my goal is to talk to as many people as I can.”