BANKER Q&A
THE
MILLENNIAL MINUTE with Brandi Ray Commercial Loan Officer Farmers Bank & Trust Co., Malvern
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR THE YOUNGER GENERATION OF BANKERS TO GET INVOLVED IN THE GOINGS-ON IN OUR INDUSTRY? The younger generation of bankers will be the bankers of the future. They need to know the way things work, the way all things banking operate. There are so many things about banking that you don’t think about if you don’t work directly in the department that handles it. Banking changes every day and to keep up with it you must get involved and grow and change with the industry.
HOW DO YOU CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AS A BANKER AND LEADER? I never turn an opportunity down. If they asked me to go back and work the teller line for a while I would. I feel like I work for the bank not for a certain department of the bank. Every opportunity helps me grow as a banker and as a leader. I like to be able to connect with every department, every person I work with and for. Learning leads to leading. Jump in there and learn something new!
WHAT PROJECT HAS YOUR BANK PARTICIPATED IN THAT TOUCHED YOU THE MOST? Farmers created the Farmers Bank Foundation in 2021. Its priority is to support local nonprofits whose mission is to purposefully enrich the quality of life in the communities where Farmers Bank & Trust customers and employees live. We recently raised $105,000 for the Arkansas State Police Foundation with our annual golf tournament. We also raise money every year for the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation with our annual Trap Shoot Tournament which is near and dear to my daughter, Gracie. I have a very outdoorsy family.
IF YOU COULD INVITE ANYONE OVER FOR DINNER, WHO WOULD YOU INVITE? WHAT WOULD YOU COOK (OR ORDER)? I would invite my boss, Scott White. Show him we can cook a better steak than him. Just kidding!
“Every opportunity helps me grow as a banker and as a leader. I like to be able to connect with every department, every person I work with and for. Learning leads to leading. Jump in there and learn something new!”
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SUMMER 2022
