Independent Banker - July 2019 - 58

" Just listening to [Gen Z and millennials]
is the most important thing. "
-Ben Varquez, Whistle Work
your community is another great way to compete for talent
in a low-unemployment environment.
WSFS Bank, headquartered in Wilmington, Del., has
been one of the top five employers in its market for 13
years in a row. The $12.2 billion-asset community bank is
also one of just 40 workplaces in the entire country to win
the 2019 Gallup Great Workplace Award.
WSFS Bank's employees like working there so much, they
often encourage their friends and family to apply for a job.
Employee referrals account for 30% of candidate interviews,
says Peggy H. Eddens, the bank's executive vice president
and chief associate and customer experience officer.
WSFS Bank offers competitive compensation and
benefits packages. It makes sure employees have clear
career paths and can turn a good idea into a passion project
that spurs innovation. And WSFS gives staff paid time off
to volunteer for their favorite cause or participate in the
bank's annual Take Your Children to the Community Day, a
community service day.
Most importantly, says Eddens, WSFS maintains a
culture that shows the bank not only cares about its
customers but its employees, too. " It's something that we
work at and have fun doing every day, making sure we
have an environment here that is inviting, challenging,
rewarding and fulfilling, " she adds.
Employees seem to agree. WSFS Bank recently
published a book, A Really Good Life: Work.
Play. Learn. Care., containing thoughts from
appreciative customers and employees.
An employee named John wrote, " I learned very quickly
that everyone is like a big family here. I cannot thank
everyone enough for giving me this opportunity to grow
as an individual and to be part of something much bigger
than myself. "
Katie Kuehner-Hebert is a writer in California.
Diversifying your bank's workforce
Having trouble finding enough
right talent? Consider partnering
with nonprofits like the Galt
Foundation that expand
employment opportunities for
people with disabilities.
" In this zero-unemployment
environment, this is a perfect
time for employees to think
creatively, and hiring people with
disabilities enables [banks] to
both find qualified talent and also
strengthen the diversity of their
workforce, " says Crosby Cromwell,
chief marketing officer for the
Salem, Ore.-based nonprofit.
The Galt Foundation's matching
process helps both employees
and employers find the right fit,
she says. The nonprofit's staff will
meet with a company's hiring
managers to learn about staffing
needs and to make
sure hiring managers
are comfortable
interviewing people
with disabilities.
" For example, if an
individual who is blind
walks into a hiring
manager's office, the
interview questions
should be exactly the same as
they would be for a person who is
not blind, " Cromwell says.
Galt Foundation staff helps
employers understand the
reality of providing reasonable
accommodations for employees
with disabilities. Just over
half of these workers need
accommodations, and those tend
to cost less than $600 a year
to implement, she says. Most
workplace accommodations don't
cost anything.
By considering people with
disabilities, employers should
understand that they aren't
making sacrifices, she says.
Cromwell adds: " They are going
to come in and add as much value
as anyone in the workplace. They
work as hard as their colleagues,
it's just some of them have
accommodations. "
56 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q July 2019
Independent Banker - July 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - July 2019
