Regions Bank 2015 Annual Report Download - page 15

We recognize that a strong culture is fundamental to
achieving our financial and operational goals, and to
creating shared value that benefits all our stakehold-
ers. Today we are finding new ways to make a strong
culture even stronger – progress that is evident by the
Gallup Organization’s selection of Regions as one of
the Top 40 Places to Work in 2015.
Strengthening associate engagement is the work of
every leader at every level at Regions, and no one is
more successful at that responsibility than Amanda
DeGreen, senior vice president and loan operations
manager. Amanda and her five department manag-
ers lead a team of nearly 300 associates responsible for
closing, processing and servicing of loans – consumer,
business banking and commercial – as well as credit
card operations and relationship awards. Metrics
indicate that associate engagement in the department is
exceptionally high. A strong commitment to training and
development, and to empowering each associate to ful-
fill their potential, is a big reason for the team’s success.
Amanda began her Regions career 14 years ago as
a data entry clerk in consumer collections and pro-
gressed through increasingly responsible positions
in bank operations. When she began her current
role she found that the department was operating
effectively, but there was more that could be done to
elevate engagement. “The first thing I did was to meet
with people in every area to talk about what could
be better. The common thing I heard over and over
again was, ‘I want to do more than I’m doing today
but I don’t know how to get there.’ There were a
number of people that wanted to stretch and grow
and achieve their career goals. It was a good, solid
operations department with good quality metrics,
but it was clear that a stronger focus on associate
development was needed,” Amanda recalls.
Amanda and her department managers mapped out a
plan to improve development opportunities at every
level. Monthly meetings of managers, and quarterly
meetings of managers and supervisors, were initiated
to focus on engagement and career development.
“As a leadership team, the first question we asked
ourselves was: What would help us grow? And once
we have a handle on that, the next step is to ask
What would help our associates grow?” Development
programs for the leadership team began with pre-
sentations from internal Regions experts, including
the bank’s chief economist and a finance team leader,
to gain a more holistic understanding of the entire
enterprise and its priorities. Department leaders also
From le to right: Judy Roberts, Doug Holloway,
Amanda DeGreen, June Pridmore, Vicky Sparks,
Ben Morgan, Loan Operations
Loan Operations
Regions 2015 Annual Review15 Perspective Regions
You’re always going to catch our managers doing the right thing. They’re
passionate about providing support, guidance and opportunity to the
associates they lead.”
“