In Good Company (Fall 2024)

Company IN GOOD

FALL 2024 ISSUE

Executive Presence

Award-Winning Service

Embracing Community

Insights into leadership at the Spring Leadership Conference.

How United Community’s dedication to core principles led to prestigious recognition.

Why “community” defines this bank’s identity.

OUR FOOTPRINT

206

BANKING OFFICES PENSACOLA

DESTIN PANAMA CITY

6

STATES

3,151

TOTAL EMPLOYEES NAPLES

$26.9 BILLION IN ASSETS

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IN GOOD COMPANY

As we continue to grow, we find this magazine is a way to help us stay small and stay connected to each other and the communities we serve. By sharing the stories of United, we hope to show how we carry out our mission of building communities.

Inside this edition, you’ll learn about our roadmap to receiving our tenth JD Power award.

We looked at why our customers choose us again

FROM THE CEO

Welcome to the third issue of In Good Company, a magazine that tells the stories of the people and customers of United Community. and again as #1 in Customer Satisfaction in the Southeast and the most trusted bank, and we talked about the steps we’re taking to make sure we continue the trend.

You’ll read about one of our great technology partners, Greenlight, and how we work together to help our younger bankers get a jump start on learning to spend and save wisely. You’ll also find ways to protect your own business from the daily fraud battles that we all now constantly fight and the continued story of our brand refresh and how “community” defines our identity.

Finally, next year, we will celebrate the bank’s 75th anniversary. As we look forward to that, we look back at our roots and a beloved tradition—I hope you enjoy the story of ‘Tomato Day’ and how this event helped shape the United culture we’re so proud of.

United Community continues to have a great story to tell—and we’re so glad you’re with us on this journey. We are grateful to be In Good Company.

Lynn Harton, Chairman and CEO, United Community

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Company IN GOOD

In Good Company is a United Community publication

HOW TO REACH US Call 1-800-UCBANK1

Media Inquiries media – contact@ucbi.com

Mail 200 E. Camperdown Way Greenville, SC 29601 Read this entire magazine at ucbi.com/news

PUBLICATION CREDITS

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Magazine produced by

Kids can learn about money management through Greenlight Financial Technology’s app.

581 Perry Avenue, Greenville, SC 29611 Publisher Mark B. Johnston Editor Claire Billingsley Design Director Kristy M. Adair Copy Editors Pete Martin John Stevenson © 2024 In Good Company . Reproduction without written permission is prohibited. If you would like to reprint or reproduce any part of any issue, please contact us for written permission. Printed in the USA.

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IN GOOD COMPANY

TECHNOLOGY

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10

BUSINESS

PARTNERSHIP

Fighting the fraud epidemic with help from United Community’s Treasury Management Services.

Working in tandem with United Community, this long-time family business looks to the future.

CONTENTS

29 12

CUSTOMER PROGRAM A PATH to homeownership with United Community’s loan program.

EXECUTIVE PRESENCE Insights into leadership at the Spring Leadership Conference.

18

22

28

30

EMBRACING COMMUNITY

AWARD-WINNING SERVICE

COMMUNITY

CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS

Why “community” defines this bank’s identity.

How United Community’s dedication to core principles led to prestigious recognition.

A tasty tradition that brings a community together.

Business owners share how United Community meets their unique needs.

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Business

Fighting Fraud United Community’s Treasury Management Services offer protection to businesses against growing fraud epidemic

T

By Rick Spruill

hold until the business can review them. he numbers are staggering.

But United does not stop there, Townsend says.

Payments fraud topped $102 billion in the Americas “So much fraud prevention is rooted in a business’s internal in 2023, according to Nasdaq’s 2024 Global Financial controls that it can make serving them a challenge if those controls Crimes report. Check fraud topped $21 billion. are not there,” she says. “One customer is having to issue 20 to 50 The losses are so large that Nasdaq Chair and CEO Adena stop payments each month because checks are not making it to Friedman called financial crime an epidemic that feeds some their vendors. So, we’re working with them to validate the process, of society’s most insidious criminal enterprises, from human to ensure that the checks that are being written, are being cashed trafficking to the global drug trade to international terrorism. by the intended vendor.”

It’s why Alison Townsend, United Community’s Director of Another customer is battling a phishing scam that infiltrated its Treasury Management, says fraud prevention is not optional. accounting software, changed routing and accounting information, “Business customers can never just ignore the possibility of and got away with more than $1 million in a two-month period. fraud,” she says. “It’s not an ‘if,’ it’s a ‘when.’ Most of the data “That was a huge loss for that business,” Townsend says. “And suggests anywhere from 65% to 80% of American businesses that business even had a series of internal checks and balances in were affected by fraud in 2023. So, the risk is real no matter who place. But, by the time they notified us, the money was gone.” you are.”

It’s why Townsend and her team spend more and more time It’s where Townsend’s team comes in, helping businesses, educating their customers on the front end, teaching them how both large and small, protect themselves from what can be an to spot the fraudsters who are growing more existential threat. sophisticated by the day.

“From microbusinesses all the way up to “We’ve taken on a much stronger advisory publicly traded companies, we find that they’re role in treasury management than we ever have,” all equally affected by fraud,” she says. “And for she says. “Everything we do in our department small businesses that probably don’t carry the is customer-centric. We are United Community insurance of larger businesses, fraud can take — a community of banks — everything we do them down much, much faster.” is to deliver on our promise to be the bank that Townsend says United Community’s formula service built, leading conversations with fraud includes education, system controls, and prevention with every single customer. offering services and tools such as Positive Pay. “It used to be talking to new customers Positive Pay is a fraud-prevention tool about ACH and payroll services,” she says. designed to ensure physical checks are not “Now the conversation is more centered counterfeited. Through a process of comparison, ALISON TOWNSEND around the vulnerabilities.” discrepancies in checks are noted and put on

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75 Celebration Time!

75

Next year, United Community will mark its

th

ANNIVERSARY

We are proud of our story that began in 1950 in rural Northeast Georgia and over the years has grown into a company with the best customer service and most trusted bankers in the industry.

We have been providing our customers with a safe and secure place to bank since our origin, and we look forward to continuing to build on this legacy.

We are excited to share our story as we celebrate all year long in 2025!

United Community, building communities for 75 years.

UPCOMING EVENTS

MARCH: Celebrate the official opening of the bank, which first opened for business on March 1, 1950.

APRIL: Financial Literacy Month MAY 2: Customer Appreciation Day

Technology

Making Kids Financially Smart?

There’s an app for that, courtesy of Greenlight and United Community

By Jerry Salley

T

eaching financial literacy to kids and teens can be challenging in the age of debit cards and digital payments, as Keri Wise, head of retail sales for United Community, understands firsthand.

“Back when I was growing up, it was a little bit easier,” she said. “Mom gave you a $5 bill for your allowance, and you better have change. You had to manage that, because that’s all you had until next week.”

But instead of keeping track of the bills and coins flowing out of a piggy bank, Wise’s own children, ages 12 and 14, were used to services like PayByPhone and Apple Pay. “I realized I was probably failing when they said, ‘Mom, just give us your card,’” she said.

So, when United Community partnered with Greenlight last year to offer its financial-education services and debit card to families, Wise was eager to

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IN GOOD COMPANY

try it out at home. With the Greenlight app on a phone or tablet, parents can instantly send money, set up chores and allowances, and create savings goals. They can also monitor their child’s spending with real-time notifications, approve certain transactions, and set limits on where and how much they can spend.

The app has helped her kids think hard about where their money is going, said Wise — for instance, when her son used the Greenlight card to buy ice cream at a ballpark.

“He came back and said, ‘That was $6.50 for a serving of ice cream!’” Wise said. “He hadn’t cared about that before, but now he was thinking, ‘I only have $32; is it really worth it?’”

Level Up™, an in-app game, presents a series of small challenges made up of videos, minigames and quizzes to help instill real-life moneymanagement skills.

“It’s a key part of Greenlight’s financial

“

Technology

education strategy,” said Brandon Horne, general manager of partnerships for Greenlight.

“When we asked families where they were getting their financial-literacy information from, almost unanimously they said, ‘social media,’” Horne said.

“Not necessarily the most vetted, trusted resource for things like that. But they liked it because it was bite-sized, digestible, engaging content.”

With that in mind, Greenlight built Level Up™ to be a highly engaging, immersive experience, mapping the content to national financial literacy standards. It has helped Greenlight reach more than 6 million parents and kids nationwide, said Horne, adding that the Greenlight for Banks service has partnered with more than 75 financial institutions across the U.S., including United Community.

The Wall Street Journal and PCMag have both praised Greenlight, and the app consistently gets four-star ratings from end users.

The Greenlight for Banks program allows Greenlight to further its financial education mission without the usual subscription cost for the user, said Horne, “which is why we partner with folks like United Community that are mission-driven and deep in their community that can offer this as a value-added benefit for their customer base.”

“I love the tools,” said Wise. “My kids got to see for themselves how money works and start being able to make individual choices themselves. And for United Community to absorb the cost shows that we think it’s important for people in the community to learn that at a young age.”

For more information, visit ucbi.com/greenlight.

My kids got to see for themselves how money works and start being able to make individual choices themselves.

KERI WISE

– Keri Wise

”

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Partnership

Perfect Pairing Partnership with United helps family business continue generations of service

By Jerry Salley

W

operations. It just made sense that Ace Hardware would serve that ard Ragland always knew what his life’s work population well, from a convenience standpoint.” would be. After all, groceries had been the When Ragland was seeking a new bank in 2018, he didn’t have family business since 1935, when his grandfather to look far. One of his golfing companions was JEP Buchanan, an and great-uncles launched a wholesale supply executive at Huntsville’s Progress Bank and Trust, which would business servicing stores throughout the Southeast, eventually join the United Community family in 2022. diversifying into retail sales.

“We reviewed everything and acted quickly to move all his Now employing more than 200 people and running nine loans and deposits,” said Buchanan, now the Huntsville market groceries throughout the Tennessee Valley and northern Alabama, president for United. “I know people question if you can actually Ragland leads Ragland Bros. Retail Cos. from its Huntsville, do business on the golf course, and I say you can!”

Alabama, headquarters. His path to the top started at ground Ragland found that the attention he received from Buchanan, as level at age 16, bagging groceries in one of his family’s well as Progress founder and CEO David Nast—now stores in Signal Mountain, Tennessee.

United’s Alabama/Florida panhandle president— “I eventually worked in all the departments— and Scott Seeley, SVP and commercial relationship produce, meat, cashier, front office, store manager, was unprecedented in his 40-plus years of management,” Ragland said. “I was really drawn dealing with banks. to retail at that time. I enjoyed the customer “They were very anxious to support us and work interaction and then the marketing and operation of with us, and that’s not something you consistently the grocery business.” see,” Ragland said. “Large banks tend not to be as Ragland has continued a tradition of innovation interested in small, independent businesses. United passed down from his grandfather and father. Ragland is a substantial bank, but they don’t act like the larger Ward Ragland Bros. was the first wholesaler in the Southeast to chains, and that’s a real asset to small businesses and use computers for ordering and invoicing. Their our community.”

M&J Supermarkets were some of the first in the For its part, United is glad to help Ragland Bros.

Southeast to introduce scanners. And more recently, provide crucial services to smaller communities the company opened an Ace Hardware store within throughout the region, said Buchanan. one of its two Piggly Wiggly stores in north Alabama.

“They primarily operate in smaller markets Based on the store’s success, the company also where there is not a large chain supermarket,” opened a stand-alone Ace Hardware. he said. “I think it sends a great message to the “I thought it would be a great combination,” Ragland community that United supports these types of said. “In locations outside of major metropolitan areas, family-owned businesses in great communities. It JEP Buchanan we were several miles away from the large hardware is a great partnership.”

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Accelerating your business.

It takes a community.

To take your business to the next level, work with a bank that brings goal-focused solutions and personalized service to the table, so you can drive profitability and fuel growth. Let’s sit down and talk about your long-term plans.

Learn more at ucbi.com/why-united-business.

Member FDIC. © 2024 United Community Bank | ucbi.com

The Power of

EXECUTIVE PRESENCE United Community’s Spring Leadership Conference offers insight into leadership at every level Written by Evan Smith | Photos by Jack Robert

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ELIZABETH CHEVALIER (LEFT) AND HOLLY BERRY

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N

o one could take their eyes off of her.

She was just one more person in the bustling crowd that filled the halls of the Munich airport that day, and yet there was something about the way she walked, the way she carried herself. Total strangers found themselves pausing, turning, to watch as she sashayed by, parting through the busy crowds. The girl wore a backpack, and she was well-dressed, but it was more than that. She held her head high, confidently looking ahead, focused on where she was going. She was self-aware enough to notice the eyes that were upon her, and she embraced her audience.

Indeed, the girl relished it.

Remembering this day as she stood onstage at the United Community Spring Leadership Conference,

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EXECUTIVE PRESENCE AT A GLANCE: 250 MILLISECONDS: The time it takes colleagues to size up your likeability, trustworthiness and competence based on your appearance.

keynote speaker Elizabeth Chevalier said, “And that person in the airport, that young lady, happened to be my 5-year-old daughter.”

As laughter rippled through the crowd of United Community executives and leaders gathered inside the Peace Center’s Gunter Theatre in downtown Greenville, Chevalier took the moment to point out the lesson behind the story.

“What is it about presence that at the age of 5, we can command passers-by and strangers to notice us?” Chevalier asked.

The answer to that question drove the conversation during the conference, an annual retreat that brings together leaders from United Community’s footprint across the Southeast. This year was notable for the growing financial institution, which is celebrating not only a brand refresh but also the opening of its new $65 million, 200,000-square-foot headquarters at 200 E. Camperdown Way in downtown Greenville.

The conference began with a presentation from Holly Berry, chief human resources officer with United Community, who spoke about what she called “the tools and resources that enhance leadership capability.”

Key among these, Berry said, is The Predictive Index, an assessment tool that dates back to the 1950s, which uses a simple six-minute assessment of prospective or current employees to categorize them into one of 17 different reference profiles.

“And by the way, all profiles are good,” Berry was quick to note.

“There are no bad reference profiles —just different ones.”

Some profiles are more social, others more analytical. Some are more persistent and desiring of transformation, while others are focused more on stabilizing current operations.

The Predictive Index allows organizations like United Community to optimize talent, hire and onboard the bestfitting people, build teams effectively, improve communication and collaboration, and mitigate risk of interpersonal conflicts, according to Berry.

“The reason we use this tool, and we have been for several years now, is to really understand the behaviors of candidates for our jobs and of our current employees,” she said. “It’s one of the small handful of assessments that are scientifically validated, and that’s key — we don’t just want to throw anything out to our employees.”

The overlaps between science and a more instinctually driven leadership style were also at the heart of Chevalier’s keynote address.

As United Community continues to adapt to meet the challenges of the decades to come, Chevalier used her keynote address to home in on the elements that define what she called “executive presence” — that is, the combination of confidence, poise and authenticity that makes a great leader and drives a team toward success.

Backed by more than 20 years of experience in talentmanagement strategy, Chevalier said she wanted to dispel some of the more common myths she has encountered during her decades of coaching and training leaders, especially C-suite executives.

“

Leadership influence hinges heavily on how people feel when they are in your presence.

One of the hallmarks of a great leader is that people are doing what you want them to do when you’re not there.

”

– Elizabeth Chevalier

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Executive Presence FOUR PILLARS OF

APPEARANCE

COMMUNICATION

GRAVITAS

BRAND

The combined effect of one’s grooming, clothing, hair, height, posture and health.

One’s ability to command a room with clear, concise speaking, forcefulness, sense of humor, and ability to read a room and adapt accordingly.

The ability to take a stance and make confident, forceful decisions under pressure for the greater good.

The ability to accurately understand one’s current brand, identify the brand one wants, and identify the means by which one can align one’s communication and actions to realize that brand identity.

“Executive Presence” — that is, the combination of confidence, poise and authenticity that makes a great leader and drives a team toward success.

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“Who said you have to look grumpy to be powerful?” she said. “Who came up with that?

Forget it.”

She pointed to leaders like President Barack Obama, South African President Nelson Mandela, and former Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg as examples, all of whom, Chevalier noted, exuded warmth and attentiveness when engaging with their teams, rather than anger or malevolence.

“Leadership influence hinges heavily on how people feel when they are in your presence,” Chevalier said. “One of the hallmarks of a great

“

Emotional intelligence drives executive presence.

– Elizabeth Chevalier

”

leader is that people are doing what you want them to do when you’re not there.”

What may sound simple is actually one of the most foundational elements of great leadership, according to Chevalier, and it’s all guided by an understanding of the emotions and needs of the people with whom a leader works.

“Emotional intelligence drives executive presence,” she said.

The goal of the conference was to leverage that emotional intelligence to spur teams and communities beyond their own expectations of themselves, one of the key missions driving United Community in the years to come.

Executive presence, despite its name, can be found not only at the executive level, Chevalier said. There is a place for such emotional intelligence at every level of an organization, because the smallest of interactions, with the smallest of customers, can set the tone and change a life.

To demonstrate her point, Chevalier asked the crowd to think back to a great teacher from their childhood, someone who changed their lives for the better. In her case, growing up in an abusive household, the only person in her life who looked after her, who told her she was worth something, was a teacher she had when she was 10 years old named Mrs. Rypstraw.

“I remember everything about her: the color of her hair, the way she smiled at me, even the way she smelled,” Chevalier said. “I remember what I would feel like in her presence. I get teary-eyed even thinking about it. I get goosebumps. Because that woman was the foundation for me to start believing in myself.”

“This,” Chevalier said, “is the power of executive presence.”

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Embracing

COMMUNITY The surprising story behind United Community’s brand refresh

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W

hen United Community Bank was looking to update its branding by adjusting its name to the more simplified “United Community,” it hardly seemed like a massive change.

All they were doing was lopping off the word “bank,” after all, and for a brand as well-established as United Community, removing that one word seemed not so much a rebrand as it was a refresh.

But that simple change—coupled with a new logo—has signaled a new era for the bank, whose reputation had already been well-earned over more than 70 years, having grown to become one of the largest and most trusted full-service financial institutions in the Southeast.

Countless families in the region have been able to buy homes, start businesses, send their children to college and create generational wealth thanks to partnerships with United Community’s team.

The bank’s philanthropic efforts, led by the United Community Bank Foundation, have supported the region in ways big and small, providing hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in direct donations, as well as supporting programs and organizations that empower youth development, provide economic uplift to communities and help families find stable housing.

“To us, that’s really what the ‘community’ is about in our name,” said Abraham Cox, chief marketing officer with United Community.

But there was a challenge.

“In certain markets, people knew us as ‘United Community Bank,’ and in others it was more prevalent as the acronym ‘UCB,’ and there were also a fair amount of ‘Uniteds’ out there, so it created customer confusion and branding confusion,” Cox said.

That’s what led the bank to refresh under the “United Community” brand—a fresh name that also coincided with a new era for the bank, which just this year celebrated the opening of its new $65 million, 200,000-square-foot headquarters at 200 E. Camperdown Way in downtown Greenville.

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“It is open and it’s very welcoming,” said Michelle Seaver, president of United Community for Greenville, Spartanburg and Cherokee counties, as she walked through the new headquarters building during its grand opening last March. Sunlight poured through the expansive glass windows, illuminating the open halls and communal work areas, which had all been designed with a focus on air quality, light, comfort and mindfulness.

The headquarters and the refreshed brand are part of a pair, an effort to usher the bank ahead for the coming decades. Cox said the flexibility of the new office — with its adaptable work spaces, diverse styles of working environments and openness for collaboration — mirror the flexibility afforded by the updated branding and name.

“We felt like it provided additional versatility in a number of ways,” Cox said.

From a practical standpoint, shortening the name to “United Community” allowed for a cleaner look in the bank’s logo and signage, according to Cox. But it also expanded the

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umbrella of what the institution could do in the minds of its customers. Cox pointed to United Community’s wealth-management business, for instance, as well as its investment and insurance businesses, as examples of aspects of United Community that may not immediately come to mind when people consider services a bank offers.

The refresh was not without challenges, however.

First and foremost was ensuring the bank’s employees were on board.

“For us it was important that we connected what we were doing to our employees,” Cox said, “so our employees had an opportunity to give feedback from senior management on down.”

Then there was the due diligence on the side of the marketing team — months of research, garnering feedback and speaking with customers to ensure the refresh was on solid footing.

Lastly was the practical challenge of updating the branding in physical and digital spaces — putting up new signs on buildings, changing logos inside the offices, updating e-forms and online web pages,

buying new stationary, updating e-notifications, changing marketing materials, and on and on — work that is still ongoing and expected to be complete this autumn.

Ultimately, though, Cox sees the refresh as a necessary investment to ensure United Community’s branding remains relevant for its customer, its employees and its mission.

“At the end of the day why are we here? It’s because we’re helping individuals and businesses thrive and get started and become successful, which contributes to the overarching health and growth of the communities we’re a part of,” Cox said. “I think that’s really what the ‘community’ is about in terms of our name, and even though we’re a regional bank that has gotten larger, we always try to operate with a community approach to banking and a focus on people.”

He added, “That, more than anything else, is really what’s going to carry us into the future.”

We are for serving others.

We are for building businesses.

We are for improving our communities.

We are for inviting others who share our values to be a part of our community.

We are for being legendary in all that we do.

Because the customer has a need, we have an opportunity to serve.

• Because the customer has a choice, we must earn their trust.

• Because the customer is unique, we must listen well.

• Because the customer has urgency, we must be responsive.

• Because the customer has high expectations, we must excel.

• Because the customer has influence, we have the potential of more customers.

• Because of the customer, we exist.

United Community

BY THE NUMBERS

3,151

total employees

6 states 207 banking offices $26.9 billion in assets

A LEGENDARY LEGACY How staying true to its mission has made United Community the highest-ranked in service 10 times over

By J. Morgan McCallum

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T

here are many measures of success for a business — and most are measured internally, by the business itself. What makes an external, objective measure of success — like the awards given by J.D. Power — so remarkable is that it validates the vision and hard work a team prides itself on, telegraphing their integrity to the world.

For United Community, that validation is affirmation of its unwavering commitment to the people it serves — and no team is more proud to once again top the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, ranking highest in Customer Satisfaction with Consumer Banking in the Southeast. This is the 10th time United Community has won the prestigious award.

Additionally, United also was recognized by customers as the most trusted bank in the Southeast.

“What I love about J.D. Power is that it really is a measure of our mission and culture. It helps us remember why the customer is hiring us,” says Lynn Harton, chairman and chief executive officer.

“Sure, we can look at metrics, new accounts opened, our balances. But we were founded to provide exceptional customer service first. People want you to understand them as a person. They want to be treated like individuals, treated quickly and treated with respect.”

The longest-running and most in-depth study of the retail banking industry, The J.D. Power U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study is far from a surface-level survey. As Americans’ banking needs have evolved in regard to technology and service, J.D. Power has evolved its metrics to reflect realworld demands and insights into why a brand wins both hearts and minds.

“J.D. Power tells us, do customers trust us? Do they recommend us? If we focus on what we need to do to win this award, what we’re really doing is reminding ourselves of why customers come in the door every day, rather than being overly focused on financial outcomes. If we do the right thing for our customers, the financial results will follow,” adds Harton.

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That trust is built on a breadth of things: From financial advisers offering straight talk and personalized wealth management; to expanding technology such as all-electronic loan processes that emphasize speed and convenience; to giving back to causes and groups that employees are involved in through the United Community Bank Foundation.

“We work really hard to develop that trust, and it means caring for and investing in the community,” says Rich Bradshaw, president and chief banking officer.

Having 400% growth in 10 years is certainly a good thing, but so is retaining the mission clarity that guides it. “This is a big part of what we’re doing every day: Even as we’ve grown bigger, we’re always trying to stay smaller,” adds Bradshaw.

That means still making personal phone calls to customers to thank them for their business, whether it’s $600 or $6,000. “If you want a loan, you’re going to actually meet your loan officer.

We’re in a new era of technology, but this is still a ‘people business.’ We want to hear your story and

“

What I love about J.D. Power is that it really is a measure of our mission and culture. It helps us remember why the customer is hiring us.

”

– Lynn Harton, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

make your future part of our future. We want you and your family to be successful.”

Headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, the Southern hospitality you feel when you walk through the doors also stems from United Community’s origins. “We were founded in Blairsville, Georgia, which is a really tight-knit community where everybody knows each other,”

Bank how you want, when you want.

With the bank the community trusts.

#1 in Customer Satisfaction for Consumer Banking in the Southeast Supporting you is what we do. See how at ucbi.com/why-united Member FDIC. © 2024 United Community Bank | ucbi.com. For J.D. Power 2024 award information visit jdpower.com/awards

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“

Sure, we can look at metrics, new accounts opened, our balances. But we were founded to provide exceptional customer service first. People want you to understand them as a person.

They want to be treated like individuals, treated quickly, and treated with respect.

”

– Lynn Harton, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

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reveals Harton. “We celebrate that, because we want to infuse that culture throughout all of our customer service,” he says. “It’s hard to be rude to someone if their kids are playing with your kids, or you’re going to have to sit beside them in church on a Sunday.

There’s a community feel here that you won’t find in a more impersonal bank.”

You can’t win an award of this caliber 10 times without those great employees, either. “The first of our four measures of success is to be a great place to work. Our second is to provide the best customer service we can—we intentionally start with our goal of bringing in great people and giving them a reason to stay, because it is our people that deliver for our customers,” adds Harton. “That means having the right culture, having the right strength and stability, having the right strategy and vision. People want to work in a place where they feel like they’re known, where they feel like their contributions are recognized and they make a difference.”

Think of the biggest national banks you know, down to the smallest community credit unions and every institution in between. What makes the J.D. Power award so remarkable is that it is awarded to the No. 1 service bank in the Southeast—and that is a lot of competition to beat. “We asked J.D. Power: How many do you have to win to become legendary? They said 10—and we just won the 10th. So that’s very exciting,” says Bradshaw with a smile. “When we get the J.D. Power results, we celebrate for a day and then ask, ‘OK, what do we do to be better next time?’”

As United Community approaches its 75th birthday in 2025, the award-winning team looks forward to another year of legendary service for their customers, neighbors and friends.

“

People want to work in a place where they feel like they’re known, where they feel like their contributions are recognized and they make a difference.

– Lynn Harton

”

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Community Events

I A Tasty Tradition Growing community—and a bunch of tomatoes—from hometown roots

By Jerry Salley

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ts official title is United Community Customer Appreciation Day. But most folks in the town of Blairsville in northern Georgia know it as Tomato Day. The annual event, held the first Friday in May, was the brainchild of former United Community CEO Jimmy C. Tallent, during the expansion from a single location in Blairsville (then known as Union County Bank) to a network of institutions across the Southeast. Prompted by the bank’s slogan, “Come Grow With Us,” Tallent launched the tradition of giving free tomato plants, sourced from nurseries in the Blairsville area, as tokens of appreciation.

Customers always show up early for the celebration at the Blairsville branch on state Highway 515, anticipating not just the plants but also the hot dogs, popcorn, cake, music and other entertainment the bank provides, says Tonya Kimsey, senior vice president and senior director of community banks support at United Community.

“It’s an event the employees looked forward to as much as the customers,” says Kimsey, who came to work in Blairsville in 1996. “It’s a big party. It looks like a family cookout. There are people eating absolutely everywhere.”

For a small town (population 616, according to the latest U.S. Census), Blairsville has a big appetite, says Lucas Phillips, United Community vice president and director of operations improvement and support.

“I remember one year the bank ordered 6,000 hot dogs to be cooked on that day,” says Phillips, who, like Kimsey, now works in United Community’s operations center in Blairsville.

“Getting there early to cook and get prepared is always a good memory. We would always make bets as to who would show up at what time to receive the first hot dog.”

United Community has always tended to its roots in Blairsville, nestled in the Chattahoochee National Forest at the southern edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains near the Appalachian Trail, says Kimsey, beginning with the founding of Union County Bank in 1950.

“We’ve always been extremely supportive of customers starting up new businesses and involved in the community in general,” she says. “When I first came to work here, you just had to say, ‘I work at the bank’—you wouldn’t have to preface it with the name. Our bank was considered as the only bank.”

Sure enough, in keeping with the motto that inspired Tallent, as the bank grew, so did the town—and the plants.

“We had a lot of customers saying, ‘Oh, my gosh, you wouldn’t believe the tomatoes we grew from those plants,’” Kimsey says. “And so we went from that to having a contest for the largest tomatoes.”

But even after all the tomato plants are handed out, the hot dogs are gone and the music has faded, what remains is a deep connection between United Community and the community where it was planted, says Phillips.

“Customer Appreciation Day is a time that you’re able to connect with your customers, because it seems like you get to see all of them in one day,” he says. “It’s just good interaction with the people you don’t always get to see.”

Banker Profile

Help toward Homeownership United Community’s PATH loan program makes the dream of owning a home a reality

By Rick Spruill

B

to borrow through the PATH program to take responsibility for uying a home has never been harder for a lot of their financial future.

Americans, particularly in America’s largest metro areas.

“I call them my three dirty words,” she jokes. “Budget.

Barriers to homeownership are not only higher Accountability. Responsibility.” interest rates, low inventories and record-breaking “Everyone wants to step into a five-bedroom, three-bathroom prices, but borrower habits, says Jennine Hunter, an assistant vice home but that’s not realistic, not in this market,” she says. “And, president with United Community who has closed dozens of loans based on their spending habits, they’ll never save the money to get under the bank’s PATH program. where they want to be.”

PATH (Possibilities Achieved Through But it is worth the effort.

Homeownership) does exactly what the acronym “It’s my mission,” she says. “It’s what I was suggests — providing low- to moderate-income put on earth to do. I helped a mother who was borrowers a way to own a home. in Section 8 housing, who’d grown up in Section “Real estate is always the main vehicle 8 housing, whose whole family was in Section to wealth generation in the United States,” 8 housing. We got her a loan through the PATH Hunter says. “And as a community lender, I am program, and it changed her life.” always educating, always counseling, always And statistics support the transformational finding ways to help owners not only obtain, effect of homeownership. but keep, their homes.”

According to a 2019 Federal Reserve study, Now that she’s closed more than 50 PATH homeowners have an average net worth of loans, Hunter says the biggest challenge is in $255,000 versus $6,300 for renters. making sure borrowers come to the table with And with every PATH loan closed, realistic expectations, and good financial habits.

JENNINE HUNTER communities gain equity, and that equity “The PATH product is actually an affordable provides underserved communities with a housing product,” Hunter says. “But the issue is foundation of building wealth, and income. that the people PATH was designed to serve often have But, again, expectations must be grounded in a strong sense of debt-to-income situations that make it a challenge.” reality.

Hunter says she measures a potential borrower’s lifestyle by “People are wanting what their friends and family got 30 years their bank statements. ago, but that’s not the case,” she says. “And it does not matter “Car notes that average between $700 and $900 a month, whether it’s Greenville, Atlanta, Charleston, Charlotte, a lot of student loans payments between $75 and $100 a month, anywhere lower-priced housing has been gobbled up by investors who are now from $5,000 to $10,000 in credit card debt,” she says. liquidating them, leaving buyers to bear the higher costs.”

In other words, Hunter is a realist who expects those who want FALL 2024

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Customer Testimonial

A P O W E R F U L PA R T N E R S H I P These business owners share how United Community meets their needs

DR. EMILY HOWELL Owner of Howell Orthodontics in Jefferson, Georgia Dr. Emily Howell is passionate about helping her patients improve their smiles, but more importantly, she says, is seeing how a new smile can transform their self-esteem and confidence.

Howell believes the best way to serve her patients is by getting to know each one personally. So, when she set out to open Howell Orthodontics in 2007, Howell wanted to find a bank that valued relationships like she did.

“You’re going to find those banks that are more of a corporate kind of thing, where they’re all just about the numbers, but United Community truly is about the customer and about that community, built on building relationships, built on service,” Howell shared during a panel at United’s Spring Leadership Conference in May. “That’s what I believed in, and they believed in me.”

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IN GOOD COMPANY

Howell’s core beliefs of hard work, service and relationship-building can be traced back to when she entered the Miss Georgia pageant to help pay for dental school. She won Miss Georgia and went on to compete in the Miss America Pageant. Howell spent a year traveling across the state to promote “Connecting Character to Careers,” a program that inspires leaders to foster positive character traits in children. Today, Howell continues connecting with her community of Jefferson, Georgia, by speaking to local youth and to business gatherings.

“Seventeen years ago, (United Community) had no stock in giving me a loan for my home and for my practice and the things I was asking for, but they believed in me,” Howell said. “United Community figured out what my needs were and all the people there have been just incredible.”

“

United Community figured out what my needs were and all the people there have been just incredible.

”

Customer Testimonial

“

To have a place where I can have a relationship with the bank, that’s made it so much easier for us.

”

RYLAN MILLER CEO, Zenith Investment Group in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina To say Rylan Miller is a busy man is an understatement. Miller owns and operates more than 40 Tropical Smoothie Cafés across five states, an 810 Billiards and Bowling location in Greenville, South Carolina, and he’s partnering with a boutique barber shop for franchise opportunities.

Miller — a U.S. Navy veteran — honed his business acumen as a tactical surveillance element operator and pilot for the Department of Defense. He oversaw programs and platforms valued at over $100 million and was deployed nearly a dozen times overseas.

As the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina-based entrepreneur continued to acquire new cafés, he realized he needed one financial institution to manage all of his needs. “I wanted to find one place where I could be at home and say, ‘Hey, set up a line of credit; we’re going to build up,’ Miller said. “Where it would be easy to do that without a bunch of prep work.”

For Miller, that place was United Community. “To have a place where I can have a relationship with the bank, that’s made it so much easier for us,” he said.

Miller’s success has been recognized through accolades like being named the “Tropical Smoothie Café Multi-Unit Franchisee of the Year” and nominations to boards including the International Association Franchisee Forum.

Even with the scale of his success, Miller remains connected to his local community. He’s currently the treasurer of his neighborhood homeowner’s association.

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TEAM

TRUTH

TRUST

CARING