Former Arvest exec moves to Metropolitan National Bank

Michal Moss Early, who previously held an executive position at Arvest Bank and worked briefly at Morelock-Ross Builders Inc., started April 2 as Metropolitan National Bank's senior vice president of business development and marketing officer.

Early resigned as senior vice president of Arvest Bank in Springfield in May 2011 and took a position a month later as vice president of business development for Morelock-Ross.

Early, who was brought on to aid Morelock-Ross' efforts in Joplin, said she decided to take some time off in November after it was determined that much of the company's business in the city could be handled from Springfield. She noted she left Morelock-Ross on good terms.

With her new position at Metropolitan, Early is tasked with the bank's business development, marketing and premiere banking efforts.

"After a couple of months of just really thinking about what I wanted to do and what I wanted to get back to, it felt like it was the right fit for me. They have some fresh leadership, and that was exciting for me," Early said, pointing to Mark McFatridge, who was named interim president, CEO and director of Metropolitan in February.

McFatridge, who said he is waiting on regulatory approval by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to be named the permanent leader of Metropolitan, said Early's banking experience made her a good candidate for the position.

"What we need is somebody who has the professionalism and the drive and the integrity of Michal Moss Early," said McFatridge, the former executive vice president and chief operating officer at Guaranty Bank. "When that opportunity opened up, I jumped all over that."

Early said her position, which was newly created for her, incorporates some of the duties that Janet Weber, former vice president of private banking and marketing, held before vacating her position with Metropolitan in November. Early said her role is focused more on business development and less on marketing.

"It's not that we're leaning away from private banking, but we're deciding what we want to call it for our brand," Early said. "It's time to re-evaluate."

Weber exited the bank in the same month that Sterling Huff, former president, CEO and director of Metropolitan, resigned. John Paul VanDiggelen, president and CEO of the bank's holding company, Springfield-based Marshfield Investment Co., who declined to say why Huff stepped down, served in the interim until McFatridge joined the bank.

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