Independent Banker - June 2023 - 52

3.
man, his wife was a pharmacist, his family was
well-known in the community and he was very
involved in their children's school activities, " says
Kennedy, who is also an ICBA past chairman. " For a
community bank, all that means something. "
Realizing Marionneaux's potential, Kennedy hired
him as a lender, expanding duties throughout the
years with the goal of him eventually becoming the
bank's next leader.
You may well have a rising star who can be
groomed for the top job. But don't be afraid to look
outside of the bank's current emerging leaders.
" Just having the right people is tough, because
a lot of community banks are having difficulties
these days in attracting and retaining talent, " says
Greyson E. Tuck, president of Gerrish Smith Tuck
Consultants and Attorneys in Memphis. " It's not
uncommon for a community bank to go outside the
bank for a successor. "
ASSESS POTENTIAL
CANDIDATES
" I believe really strongly that strategy
informs profile, " Kaplan says. " Where the
bank is heading determines the profile of
the next CEO of the company. "
While your board may desire to " clone "
the existing CEO, that person's skill set
may not necessarily include the skills
needed to take the bank to the next level,
he says. For example, a bank furthering
its digitization strategy may need a more
tech-savvy leader. In addition, all banks
increasingly need someone well-versed
in enterprise risk management, a more
holistic view of mitigating risk across the
entire organization.
2. DECIDE THE FUTURE
OF THE BANK
" The first thing I would say to people [is], 'What's
the business plan and the timeline for succession?' "
Kaplan says. " The decision of whether or not to sell
the bank needs to be put in context of the strategy
for the next few years. "
If your community bank decides to remain
independent, choose a consultant who has a track
record of providing a way for banks to do so, Bolton
recommends. " Board and management must think
and meet with consultants who are there to support
the bank for the long term, not just to meet to
advocate to sell the bank, " he says.
Then boards should consider establishing an
employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), KSOP (a
401(k) combined with an ESOP) or some other
mechanism that can reward current leaders while
setting up future leaders with a potential path for
ownership interest, Bolton says.
When assessing potential would-be
successors internally, bank boards often
run a search for professionals outside
their institution to have candidates for
comparative purposes, Kaplan says.
Having industry experience and
ties to the local community are always
desirable traits for a CEO, but any next
leader should be " sincere, reliable,
compassionate and holistically caring-
more interested in the group than they
are in themselves, " or else the bank's
future could suffer, says C. Phillip
Buffington Jr., community bank team
leader and partner at the Jackson, Miss.,
office of Adams and Reese LLP.
WHAT ABOUT
SUCCESSION
PLANNING
FOR FAMILYOWNED
BANKS?
52
// ICBA Independent Banker // June 2023
Independent Banker - June 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - June 2023
