SENIOR CREDIT ANALYST OFFICER

Position Overview

Responsible for conducting credit investigations and analyzing credit information pertaining to loans in order to determine the degree of risk involved in extending credit or ending money. Prepare credit reports for presentation to credit committees.

Essential Job Functions

• Analyze financial data regarding loan requests for new, renewal and existing loans. Investigate and analyze all available sources of credit and financial information, including reporting services, credit bureaus, other companies, main office files, and bank files in order to ensure the assembly of all pertinent information and reports.
• Process credit applications, including credit analysis, cash flow analysis, rating sheets and any other requested forms of information needed to complete a proper assessment of the customer or applicant.
• Prepare summaries, spreadsheets, reports, and presents facts; offer opinion concerning credit worthiness.
• Perform in-depth analysis of large and complex customer accounts and present recommendations to loan officers and credit committees.
• Assist loan officers with underwriting, collection and preparation of necessary information to set up and maintain loan files. Review credit documentation for deficiencies in order to ensure sound documentation procedures are maintained and, if necessary, the execution of corrective action to eliminate examination criticisms.

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MORTGAGE LOAN PROCESSOR

Position Overview

Provide administrative support to mortgage loan officers servicing First Western Bank & Trust’s new and existing mortgage loan customers.

Essential Job Functions

• Oversee the tracking, maintenance and updating of Real Estate tickler files
• Manage mortgage loan accounting, collection of fees and income calculations
• Process accounts payable for mortgage department including underwriting and title fees
• Process in-house real estate loan payables
• Balance Real Estate department checking account in order to appropriately manage mortgage activity finances
• Answer phones, greet customers and provide courteous customer service

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UNIVERSAL BANKER - RECEPTIONIST

Position Overview 

Lead in answering incoming telephone calls, direct and assist customers with bank products and process transactions in support of First Western Bank & Trust’s sales and service objectives while adhering to the bank’s culture of excellence in customer service to its patrons.  

Essential Job Functions

• Greet visitors and customers in a courteous manner and welcoming smile, inquire the nature of their business in order to provide direction
• Establish solid customer relationships through identifying needs, providing creative and best solutions for customers, and using cross-sell and referral opportunities
• Uphold confidentiality of customer and proprietary information
• Answer incoming phone calls and route appropriately
• Handle inquiries on Certificate of Deposit rates

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LOAN DOCUMENTATION SPECIALIST

Position Overview

Position is responsible for the completion of loan documentation. Responsibilities include entering information used for preparing and reviewing loan documentation for consumer and commercial loans for multiple states and locations, and uploading to the host accounting system utilizing LaserPro loan documentation software. Must maintain thorough knowledge of compliance regulations in order to complete all loan documentation. Provides customer service by responding to inquiries from loan originators in a timely manner. Maintains and seeks knowledge of operations systems/procedures.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Evaluates and prepares loan documents using LaserPro loan documentation software. Ensures timely, accurate information is available to allow for effective servicing of customer needs.
• Maintains knowledge of required compliance and regulations in order to properly document loans.
• Coordinates with necessary parties on issues concerning the timeline and progress of the loan file and discusses with them any problems or additional documentation needed
• Coordinates with team members and supervisor to ensure adequate backup coverage
• Maintains understanding of loan product attributes and knowledge of loan documentation processes

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PRIVATE BANKING OFFICER

Are you energized by connecting with others? Are you a disciplined leader driven to serve your customers and meet their needs? Do your get-‘er-done attitude, high ethical standards, and community involvement inspire others? If so, you may be an excellent fit at Starion Bank!

We are seeking a Private Banking Officer in Bismarck.

In this role, you will:

Start new banking relationships and grow existing ones through:

• Connecting Starion to new community members—both individuals and organizations
• Thoughtfully collaborating with retail and lending colleagues
• Providing service through frequent contact with existing customers

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First International Bank & Trust is proud to announce the winners of the Sixth Annual Live First Community Giving Campaign. A program record-breaking 134 community organizations applied for, attracting more than 100,000 interactions on Social Media.

Due to the overwhelming response and overall quality of nominations, the decision was made to award two grand prize grant of $10,000, increasing the total dollar amount given away to $32,000.

Please join us in congratulating the following community groups selected as recipients for our 2020 Live First Community Grants!

$10,000 Grand Prize Award - Jessy’s Toy Box, Fargo, ND  Jessy's Toy Box is a non-profit that collects new toys, games blankets, and gift cards. With our monetary donations, we help provide children who are in the hospital or who are staying away from home activities, I-Pads, and other items to help make their stay a little easier. We are bringing smiles one toy at a time.

$10,000 Grand Prize Award – Ryan House, Phoenix, AZ  Ryan House embraces all children and their families as they navigate life-limiting or end-of-life journeys. Our goal is to provide coordinated care and improve the quality of life for medically fragile children and their families in Arizona. Ryan House serves families of all cultures, income levels, and family sizes each year. All services at Ryan House are provided at no cost to families.

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Happy 2021 everyone! I know this is going to be a great year and I hope it’s starting off that way for you and yours. Things in life are often relative and compared to a baseline. If 2020 is our baseline for evaluating 2021, then hallelujah! I like our chances for improvement. Covid cases are down and we’re seeing some light at the end of the tunnel with respect to this dastardly pandemic. I also know that 2021 will have its challenges, I just hope they aren’t the same challenges that we’ve faced the past almost year now.

Having said that, 2020 was a showcase year for the value proposition community banks provide. You all were front and center helping your friends, neighbors and communities deal with uncertainty and fallout from the pandemic. We might have even thought the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was behind us. If so, we were wrong because round two is in full swing and I know that you all are stepping up and doing your part. Thank you for that and for letting me be a small part in assisting you. And we may not be done given the high dollar stimulus package being proposed by President Biden.

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Compliance Professional

Vantage Point Solutions, with offices in Mitchell and Sioux Falls, SD, is seeking a full-time compliance professional in our growing Banking Division to work with financial institutions in the Upper Midwest.  We have an immediate opening for a Regulatory Compliance Professional. 

Summary/Objective

As a consultant in our Banking Division, the candidate will work with Vantage Point clients using your knowledge, expertise and talent to provide value added consulting services.  Responsibilities will vary with the needs of the organization but could include training and consulting on regulatory issues, policy preparation and review, compliance and operational audits and much more.  

Candidates should be self-motivated, resourceful, professional and exhibit good judgement.

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Part Time Credit Analyst

Vantage Point Solutions, headquartered in Mitchell, SD, is seeking a part-time credit analyst/consultant in our growing Banking Division to conduct independent credit reviews for financial institutions throughout the Upper Midwest.  This may be a perfect position for a retired or retiring banker who wants flexibility in a part-time schedule and is willing to travel. 

Summary/Objective

As a Credit Review Consultant in our Banking Division, the candidate will work with Vantage Point clients using your knowledge, experience and talent to provide value added consulting services.  Responsibilities will vary with the needs of the organization but could include credit analysis assessment, policy and portfolio review, risk rating assessment and accuracy, routine administration and monitoring, merger/acquisition due diligence assistance. training and much more.  

Candidates should be self-motivated, resourceful, professional and exhibit good judgement. In addition, this position will require travel if the client prefers an onsite engagement. 

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MORTGAGE OPERATIONS SPECIALIST

At Starion Bank, we’re looking for talented people who will put our customers at the center of everything we do. Join our diverse team where you’ll feel valued and inspired to contribute your unique skills and experience.

Starion Bank is seeking a Mortgage Operations Specialist in Mandan or Fargo, North Dakota; or Madison, Wisconsin. This position may be eligible for remote work.

Responsibilities:

• Accountable for bank-wide processing of government and conventional mortgage loans sold to secondary market or booked with the bank’s in-house conventional loan products
• Process and reviews government and conventional mortgage loan applications
• Complete verifications, review credit reports, and appraisals
• Prepares mortgage files for underwriting, analyzes credit documentation, and informs Mortgage Banking Officers of pre-underwriting decisions and conditions
• Completes self-employed income analysis
• Assists with funding loans, scanning loan packages, uploading files to our Secondary Market investors, completing investor purchases and final document submission
• Completes loan input, satisfies regulatory disclosure and reporting requirements
• Contacts mortgage customers and assists in obtaining items needed for loan approval
• Maintains bank-controlled real estate fee and general ledger account

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Politics, elections and pandemics, oh my! That’s kind of my take on the past several months and a less than articulate comparative reference to Dorothy’s infamous “lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my” quote from the Wizard of Oz. But just as those beasts struck fear in the hearts of Dorothy, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow as they skipped through the forest in that iconic 1939 film, today’s unknowns of a yet-to-be resolved pandemic, a new administration and an unknown US Senate makeup (the Georgia runoffs are at least one reminder that the election isn’t really over) have left us modern day citizens a bit skittish about what’s ahead of us.

While it might not be a great career move for someone whose job it is to advocate for a tremendous community banking organization, I promised myself I wasn’t going to drone on about politics, the recent election and certainly not the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic in this message. We’ve all had enough. I know I’ve had enough. A wise friend of mine asked me a few days ago if I could recall having recent conversations that didn’t involve politics or the pandemic. I couldn’t except for Stacey telling me that the dogs were tangled around the tree again. But I don’t think those count as “conversations” so I excluded them for the purposes of the exercise at hand.

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As I write this, it occurred to me that today is the first day of fall. Other than the leaves changing color, one might think it’s just another beautiful summer day as the temperature approaches 90 degrees in Bismarck. While 2020 has kind of been the year to forget, our summer weather was really quite delightful for the most part.

While our weather was pleasant, I can’t say it’s been a pleasant summer of clarity and direction for our bank members relative to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) forgiveness process. Community banks across the country including North Dakota stepped up to efficiently process PPP loans and distribute those much-needed funds to our business and ag customers. You accomplished what the federal government couldn’t. And now, in my opinion, you’ve sort of been left holding the bag. Even the General Accounting Office (GAO) recognized this in their report issued this week. As they reported, the complexity and lack of guidance surrounding PPP loan forgiveness could limit the effectiveness of future rounds of the program.

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Despite these very weird and unprecedented times, I hope you’ve had some time to safely enjoy some summertime activities. At least the weather has been pleasant! 

By the time you read this we will already be well into August. Normally, your ICBND staff would be in the home stretch of preparation for our annual convention. Sadly however, for the first time in 53 years, the Independent Community Banks of North Dakota will not be holding its annual convention this summer. As you know, your convention committee and board of directors made the difficult decision to cancel the convention in 2020 due to the ongoing pandemic. While the convention is off, we are moving forward to safely host a golf outing and social on Monday, August 17. I hope to see many of you later this month.

Politics, of course, are in the air again as well. Following the general election in November, the 67th Assembly of the North Dakota Legislature will hold its organizational session in early December in preparation for the 2021 legislative session which will be called to order on January 5^th.

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Usually I’m not at a loss for words…probably to the chagrin of many of your association’s board members and my coworkers! But I’ve literally stared at my screen for a few minutes wondering how to characterize these times since I last penned a president’s message to you a couple months ago. And yet, I haven’t really come up with anything very prophetic.

Here's what I do know. We live in a very dynamic world. And in that dynamic environment, we’re experiencing a plethora of situations economically, medically, politically, and socially that are affecting our communities, our state, our country and our planet. Some are unprecedented. Others not so much.

I’m not going to espouse an opinion on any of these dynamics. All I know is that these times have really made me think about what matters in this life. Faith, family and relationships rise to the top of the list.

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Who could have possibly guessed three weeks ago that we’d be in the situation we are today relative to the Covid-19 virus and its dramatic effects to the global health of humanity and the economy. To say these are unprecedented times (at least during my lifetime) would be a tremendous understatement.

The last few days have been quite a whirlwind with the rollout of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) on Friday, April 3rd. Much has been written and discussed about the rollout. And not much of it good. It was an unmitigated disaster. Most of your lenders lived it.

What was good is that I got to witness firsthand the tenacity and perseverance of community bankers as they kept their heads up, battled through the challenges, and didn’t panic - all in the interests of assisting the small businesses in their beloved communities. In some cases, this PPP lifeline is more about saving these businesses – not just assisting.

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I hope this message finds you all enjoying a happy and prosperous 2020. Unfortunately, my Vikings will once again not be playing in the Super Bowl this weekend. But, I’m quite certain that next season is going to be our year. Oh, the curse of being a Vikings fan.

ICBND is excited about our 2020 education and advocacy sessions and encourage you to check them out at https://www.icbnd.com/ Our programming kicks off late next month in Grand Forks with the Emerging Leaders Winter meeting including the Green Room Experience and hockey at the Ralph. UND Hockey is having a fabulous year and the event should be very informational and entertaining.

We will be conducting the FDIC Bankers College on April 21 in Bismarck and April 23 in Fargo. Please plan on attending this event at either venue. The FDIC always comes with timely, germane information that helps us to be better bankers and directors. Similarly, we will be conducting the Women in Community Banking Summit in Fargo and Bismarck that same week with hopes that members can efficiently participate in both events if you’re so inclined. We are also adding a new twist to the Summit so please consider bringing one of your valued customers as well. Those are just a few of the nearly 20 live education sessions already scheduled for this year. So please keep an eye out for more information on all of these events.

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I hope this message finds you recovering from the Thanksgiving holiday. It’s truly my favorite holiday and such a wonderful time to spend with family and friends. My favorite part was spending several days with my two grandsons who make me think that I should have had them first (I hope my wife and three daughters don’t read this…and I’m pretty confident they don’t!) A close second on my favorite list is gravy and stuffing. Why don’t we have this stuff more often during the year? I suppose a regular diet of gravy probably isn’t a wise health move.

As I look back on 2019, I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to represent you all and the interests of community banking in North Dakota and nationally. And, I’m proud of our accomplishments this past year. The 66th Assembly of the North Dakota Legislature convened on January 3 this year and adjourned on April 26. It’s always a busy time during North Dakota’s statutorily-limited 80 day session and while we didn’t get everything we hoped for out of the session, community banking fared well. I often tell people that it’s more of a defensive battle than offensive at our state capitol. Don’t get me wrong, it’s always critical to advocate for our wants and needs. And, we do. But, often we spend more of our time educating and advocating against bad ideas. Sometimes those are bad ideas for community banking and sometimes they are just bad ideas for our communities. And, one thing I’ve learned is that bad ideas can come from anywhere! Much of 2020’s activities will be preparing again for the 2021 session so please stay tuned.

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Hello friends! I’d like to say it’s been a beautiful fall, but I’d be lying. Record rainfall and cold temperatures across much of the state are creating a tremendous hardship for our agricultural producers as they try to get crops off the field. After the rain event a couple weekends ago, I was visiting with a number of ag lenders from both member banks and non-member banks. One gentleman made the comment that there were significant challenges getting equipment TO the fields, much less getting IN the fields as several roads were washed out in that particular market area.

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I hope this message finds you enjoying a great North Dakota summer!

It’s hard to believe August is already here. Of course, that means your ICBND staff is in the home stretch of preparation for our 52nd annual convention. I hope you’re planning to attend. I promise it will be fun and informative! And, don’t forget to participate in Monday evening’s Superheroes them party which is sure to be entertaining.

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I think spring is finally here but it sure has taken its sweet time in arriving. Along with many across our great state, I’m crossing my fingers hoping for a growing season that can make up for the late field start that’s been encountered in much of the state. These are tough times in agriculture and producers need every bushel they can get. Mother Nature reminds us once again who is in charge!

Spring is a hopeful time as well. As the trees and grasses explode in response to a few long sunny days, we also hope for continued change on the regulatory relief front. And while we don’t have the same positive momentum at the federal level that we did a year ago with S. 2155 making its way to approval and signature, we continue to advocate as strongly as ever. In the waning days of April and the first day of May, twenty-six ICBND member bankers and guests converged again on Washington, DC along with community bankers from across the country for the 2019 ICBA Capital Summit.

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