President of American Prudential Capital, Brenda Standlee spoke at the Bank CEO Network recently.
The Bank CEO Network has been helping Community Bank CEOs improve their banks’ performance for 17 years. The information and ideas gained from industry experts and other CEOs can be especially useful in difficult times. If you are a community bank CEO, we invite you to contact us to see whether The Bank CEO Network might be a good option for you.
Bankers speak candidly about the Services of The Bank Advisory Group
“We have used The Bank Advisory Group for over ten years to analyze bank purchases, review overall bank performance and do ESOP valuations. Our board and senior management have always respected their professionalism, financial review and candid remarks. As a result, we believe we are getting a thorough analysis, whether it be for a merger or a financial review of our bank.”
Robert A. Hulsey, President and CEO
American National Bank of Texas, Terrell, Texas
($1.5 billion total assets)
Long Long Ago in a city a lot like Houston, Texas I learned a valuable lesson. Paraphrased it sounds a lot like “Seek more to serve than to be served.”
Well, at least I thought I had learned that lesson. Yesterday, I met a very beautiful lady with years of experience and loads of very important friends. Sitting in the room with her I felt like the grandmother that I am. That is I felt like that until…
Until I asked myself how I could help this beautiful, successful, lovely lady. You see, servant leadership only counts when you actually apply it.
On the surface it would seem that she needed nothing from me. She had it all. But I managed to quit comparing myself to her and her enormous success. I actually managed to think of her and not ME, though admittedly it took a while. I began to listen with the purpose of finding out how I could help her.
In the end I learned that she has a tremendous responsibility to put on a conference and she needs some breakout sessions of real interest to the attendees. I introduced her to the work of the I-Opt Survey of Information Processing Styles and explained that I would be glad to teach a session on it to her attendees.
I don’t know if she will actually decide to use me in that role but in the process I had introduced her to a valuable tool she can use in her own business. I had helped her.
That is how simple Servant Leadership is. Seek more to serve than to be served. It isn’t all about me. And it isn’t about you either. It is about how we can help each other.
Friends,
Mercy Ships has indicated that they are receiving donations to fund a medical mission to Haiti.
As they have years and years of experience and well equipped ships to meet medical needs in third world areas, I recommend them to you as a trustworthy place to give to help Haiti.
To contact them regarding their plans for a medical mission email them at www.info@mercyships.org
To donate you can go to http://www.mercyships.org/HaitiRelief
In a recent email Don Stephens, the founder of Mercy Ships said:
“Sam Smith, CEO of Mercy Ships, emailed me regarding the most powerful earthquake to strike Haiti in more than 200 years: “The impact of this tragedy is ten times that of any hurricane. Please lift up the people of Haiti in prayer.”
Our Disaster Relief teams are working to provide relief to those in greatest need. Your financial support can help us bring hope and healing to the people of Haiti where it is so desperately needed.”
Please prayerfully consider a donation at this time:
http://www.mercyships.org/HaitiRelief
As we receive more information about the conditions in Haiti, we will provide more detailed reports about Mercy Ships’ response.
On behalf of the people of Haiti, we thank you for your prayers and financial support.
– Don Stephens
Founder/ President
Mercy Ships
Don’t Factor If…
1. Don’t factor if you don’t need the money… It may seem a little silly to say this but factoring your accounts only to have the money sit in your bank account unused is not wise. By the same token, do not use a factoring company that requires you to factor all your receivables all the time. The result of that relationship will be that you have costly money sitting in your bank account unutilized.
2. Don’t factor if you will be required to pay a termination fee…Some firms require an application fee, audit fee, and termination fee. So, no matter what the rate is that you get quoted, the actual cost is much more. Imagine if you went to the hardware store and a man at the door required you to pay to enter the store. Then, imagine he required you to pay to leave the store. You would think this was pretty silly.
3. Don’t factor if you don’t understand what all the charges are…The reason we ALL hate to buy a car is that we always feel like we are being taken advantage of on some level that we know we do not understand. If you don’t know what it will cost you to factor a certain invoice for a certain number of days and no one can explain it to you in terms you can understand…leave.
4. Don’t factor if you have selected the lowest bidder off the Internet…You usually get what you pay for. Talk to your banker. Get a referral from someone who knows what they are talking about. Ask people you trust. I just read an article about a guy who was selling fake Picasso prints on eBay. Like you, I am pretty upset with the crook selling the prints. BUT, I am also upset with the folks who bought the prints. Why do we make it so easy for people to dupe us? If it seems too good to be true…well you know the rest.
Because we serve small businesses when they most need working capital, other business and financial professionals frequently call us to ask what is happening with the economy.
We are not economists, not accountants and not futurists. We are more accurately compared to a barometer. We know when the pressure is rising. In 2009 there was a confluence of decreased capital along with decreased demand.
Usually, when there is a tightening of credit or capital there will be an increased demand for our funding to meet working capital needs. In general, this was not true in 2009 because simultaneous with the freeze in the capital markets, there was a sudden drop in demand.
Our seasoned and stable clients were able to weather the storm because they were not heavily laden with long term debt. They used our services to meet payroll and fill existing orders. Then, the “great wait and see” began.
There was a collective “breath-holding” among the major large companies who use the goods and services of our clients.
Well, we now think there has been a collective sigh. It is not a strong wind but a noticeable sigh. It seems like our clients are experiencing an up tick in demand for their goods and services.
I know this is not scientific evidence of a turn in the economy. It is simply the result of over 20 years of watching from the ground level how our economy actually works. So, be encouraged.
