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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 29 N OV E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 9 F O C U S B A N K I N G / F I N A N C E MB: You come to the bank from a much larger regional bank. What in your banking background informs your goals at Skowhegan? AC: I have had the opportunity to work in leadership roles in both retail and commercial banking at larger regional banks in my career and those past experiences will be very important to draw on in this role with Skowhegan Savings. In my most recent role, I was responsible for business bank- ing operations in the state of Maine and was in charge of leading a team of commercial lenders, collaborating on strategic planning for the com- pany, responsible for the oversight of the portfolio and also working across business lines to grow the organiza- tion. e skill set I was able to develop in that role, and in previous roles, will provide great working knowledge to draw on in this new role. MB: Part of your job description is growing relationships in southern Maine. Can you elaborate on why the southern Maine market is im- portant to Skowhegan Savings? AC: We already have well established connections and customers in greater Cumberland County. As the bank looked to continue to expand and grow, it made strategic and business sense to look to grow in a market where a lot of those connections already existed. It also made logical sense as the business com- munity in Portland continues to succeed and grow that we have a presence. MB: In a crowded banking atmo- sphere, where a lot of banks are looking to have a greater Portland presence, how will Skowhegan stand out? AC: We will look to stand out by holding true to our mission of making our communities a better place to live and work while providing a custom- ized approach to each of our clients. I often see banking conversations are led with talks about product and services, but what is really important is being able to understand needs and provide solutions to help solve a problem. We will look to increase our clients' probability of success by pro- viding custom solutions centered on our clients needs and tailoring them with the feedback and advice of their other trusted advisors. We also plan to be heavily active and visible in the community through volunteer work. MB: How has banking changed since you first got into the industry? AC: One of the first projects I worked on in banking was a roll out of a text banking platform and that was pretty advanced from a technology stand- point at the time. I remember finding it so interesting and convenient that you could check you bank balance at any time from your phone. Within a few years, that had already become outdated and old technology and a lot of banks do not even offer that service today as a result. You can now not only check your balance but you can deposit a check, transfer money to a friend and open an account all from your phone while in line for a coffee. e core of banking has not changed, but technol- ogy certainly has shaped and will con- tinue to shape the transactional piece of the industry going forward. MB: What changes to you see in the future, both for banking and for Skowhegan Savings in general? AC: I see a lot of changes in the future, both for the industry and Skowhegan Savings, and most of that will be cen- tered on technology and the establish- ment of new industries. We have seen a lot of that in the last decade and I feel we will see dramatically more in the next decade. It is critical for any organization to remain forward think- ing so that you can easily adapt to the future as opposed to be reactive. I feel being able to embrace change is strength of the bank. MB: Is there anything about Maine that makes doing business as part of its banking community special? AC: Maine is such a close-knit commu- nity even though geographically we are a large state. I have spent time in previous roles working in New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts and know firsthand that in Maine it very much has more of a community feel than other places. I often talk to friends of mine that work in banking in New York, Boston and Toronto and it reminds me just how special Maine is as a community from the interactions we experience. 866.782.0200 | www.connectivitypoint.com Call cabling vendor Call securi vendor Call AV vendor Call phone system vendor Call sound masking vendor 6. Call cell amplificaon vendor Call Connecvi Point! 207-854-6000 • infinityfcu.com Westbrook • Portland • Scarborough • Bangor • Arundel We do banking differently to keep you a step ahead in life As the bank looked to expand and grow, it made strategic and business sense to look to a market where a lot of those connections already existed.

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