Pub. 9 2020 Issue 2

11 s u mm e r | 2020 clock burning up the “Zoom-high- way” multiple times a day, effective- ly communicating to all concerned: teammates, customers, regulators, board members and stockholders, our objectives, performance and next steps. For those on the front line of this crisis, our operations teammates: our leadership provided tremendous daily and end-of-week encouragement videos to recap progress to set the tone and tempo looking forward. Steve Lambert, vice president, Crisis Management program manager, Atlantic Union Bank. • Integrity: In a crisis, values matter. Corporate integrity will be under a microscope and definitely be tested in a crisis scenario when levels of fear and uncertainty are heightened. These uneasy feelings not only impact your employees but spread throughout your customers and the overall community. This couldn’t be more true given the current pandem- ic. Steady leadership is needed now more than ever and your words and actions will have a lasting impact on the perception, trust and reputation of your organization. Tough times always reveal the true colors of the people around us. Stay true to your values, measure your words, and re- assure and support your employees, customers, and local communities. Matt McCrory, VP, Information security officer, MainStreet Bank. • Adaptable / Flexible: During the recent PPP loan offering from the SBA, we learned how willing our teams were to do whatever neces- sary to help our customers. We only had a few people that were set up to enter loans into the SBA system to secure the funds for our custom- ers. Several different areas came together to work around the clock in shifts to be able to get the requests for our customers before the money ran out. Our Information Technol- ogy (IT) staff adjusted operating hours to 24/7 and provided any technical support necessary. Once the approval was received, we had to get all these loans booked on the system. We had team members from other areas of the bank help with the process. It truly was an all hands on deck effort, regardless of what area of the bank was your primary responsibility. We also were able to apply all our lessons learned from round one for the second wave. We were able to quickly execute an agreement with our loan platform provider to input the informa- tion and push it to the SBA, thus eliminating the data entry duplica- tion. Lisa E. Kilgour, Senior vice presi- dent, Chief Information Officer, Main Street Bank • Vision: As we all wade through these rough, unchartered waters together, banks are essentially writing the playbook as they go. Without a clear vision of the future and what we wish to accomplish, we would all be hopelessly paddling. At Chesapeake Bank, we understand how critical our local businesses are to Community Banks and have always promoted and emphasized the importance of shopping local. As this health crisis continued and created the most severe economic crisis in decades, we have seen clear to continue to support not only our local businesses through the PPP program and social media but also our employees with creative com- munication and engagement. Sev- eral employees take part in regular ongoing meetings to determine the path forward. We reject the phrase “return to work,” as we have never stopped working. However, we do look to the future as we envision a return to a “new normal.” Barbara Bennett, Information Security Adminis- trator, Chesapeake Bank • Courage / Bravery: Courage is the mental strength to face fear or difficulty. Bravery is the quality that allows someone to do things that are frightening. Because our frontline is the face of our bank and essential to keep things going, BSV employees made the commitment to come to work every day. Our hours remained the same, our workforce remained intact and we maintained the same level of customer support. Only those who were at-risk left the office. Our lobbies are closed. Our employees follow the social distanc- ing guidelines, both in and away from work, are more diligent with cleaning efforts, cash handling, mail handling, and dealing with deliver- ies and vendors. We wear masks if we are face to face with anyone, not in our immediate workgroups. If anyone is not well, they do not report to work. In return, we have remained connected, worked in our offices every day, and have re - mained the norm for our customers, communities, and each other. One for all, we are in this together. Kim Branco, Retail Administrator-The Bank of Southside Virginia While we don’t know what the future brings, what we do know is that the Virginia1st Members and Strategic Partners are capable, prepared and resilient. We will do what we’ve done all along — continue to adapt and adjust to do what’s best for each other — and to keep our Members and Strategic Part- ners informed and safe. Wishing each of you and your respective organizations continued success during these difficult times. Welcome to the “New” normal. About Virginia1st — Virginia’s Re- sponse and Recovery Coalition Virginia1st (www.virginia1st.org) is a co- alition of banking and financial institu - tions, in cooperation with the Common- wealth of Virginia Bureau of Financial Institutions, the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the office of the Governor of Virginia, the Virginia Association of Community Bankers and the Virginia Bankers Association. Virginia1st is a non- profit organization with a mission to: • Address Homeland Security issues affecting the financial industry in Virginia. • Develop and maintain relation- ships with City, County, State and Federal Agencies, and private industries that have an impact on business continuity. • Enhance the financial industry’s capability to respond to and recover from disastrous situations. Virginia1st was formed in March 2008. Daily guidance is under the direction of a dedicated steering committee comprised of a group of individuals, representing many of the state’s financial institutions and the organizations that regulate and support the Commonwealth of Virginia Banking & Financial Community. F E A T U R E It makes sense. After all, “normal life” has changed dramatically in the last two months — and continues to change.