Latest / Black Fridays: Business Growth for Entrepreneurs, Creators & Professionals / How a Community Bank Became a Financial Powerhouse - Ep. 157 w/ Dimitrius Hutcherson

Transcript

How a Community Bank Became a Financial Powerhouse - Ep. 157 w/ Dimitrius Hutcherson · Black Fridays: Business Growth for Entrepreneurs, Creators & Professionals

0:00
[SPEAKER_00]: First, independent bank open its doors.
0:03
[SPEAKER_00]: a little over 55 years ago, in 1970, right after, it will be one of the positive outcomes of the 1967 civil unrest aka the riots.
0:16
[SPEAKER_00]: About 22 people wanted to have something different that would be really aligned for black people to provide them a sense of financial independence.
0:26
[SPEAKER_00]: And the bank opened its doors with that sole purpose.
0:29
[SPEAKER_00]: And over time, the bank evolved into a bank for everyone.
0:53
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1:54
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1:57
[SPEAKER_01]: With that being said, let's get into that episode.
1:59
[SPEAKER_01]: What up guys Black Friday family, welcome back to another installment of the Black Friday's podcast.
2:04
[SPEAKER_01]: Before we get into today's episode and I need you to go ahead, hit that like button, hit subscribe, drop a comment, share some videos with family friends and loved ones so that we can keep this thing going.
2:12
[SPEAKER_01]: Alright, now that we got that out of the way, I have a very special guest for you all today.
2:16
[SPEAKER_01]: I have the president of the historically Black On First Independence Bank, which the only Black on financial institution in the state of Michigan, Mr. Demetrius Hutcherson, how you doing today?
2:28
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm doing well.
2:28
[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for having me.
2:30
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm delighted to be on your podcast.
2:32
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
2:33
[SPEAKER_01]: And very happy to have you here.
2:35
[SPEAKER_01]: So the opportunity for me to be able to get connected with you recently at the top of the year had the great opportunity to join the first independent next year in board, which is a millennial focus board that it junior board for the bank that is able to
2:51
[SPEAKER_01]: be in place to provide some guidance as to where art mindsets are as millennials and in what it's like future thinking from where the bank and the financial institutions should be thinking about investing in this.
3:03
[SPEAKER_01]: So just wanted to be able to, that's what brought me to first in the
3:07
[SPEAKER_01]: And I have my own personal story, first independence from back way back in the day when I was younger, but I would love to first ask you what drew you to first independence bank because you have such an extensive career in finance in all types of different institutions, but why first independence bank for you?
3:24
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, before I go there, I want to first of all thank you for making the decision to join our next generation board.
3:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Your input, your guidance is really helping us to be relevant to individuals, your agent, and your cohort.
3:39
[SPEAKER_00]: So without your input, we're not gonna continue to be relevant and really meet the needs of individuals that look like and think like you and your age group.
3:50
[SPEAKER_00]: So for me, coming to first independent spank, I always knew about the bank, probably,
3:57
[SPEAKER_00]: as long as I knew what a bank was.
3:59
[SPEAKER_00]: Of course, he had the big banks that were always in town.
4:01
[SPEAKER_00]: But I moved back home in 2017 and I moved back from being on the East Coast for about 25 years.
4:09
[SPEAKER_00]: It was time to come back home.
4:12
[SPEAKER_00]: My wife and I were empty nesters at that juncture.
4:14
[SPEAKER_00]: And we just felt that there are a lot of great things going on.
4:18
[SPEAKER_00]: I initially ended up came back in a role at Comerica.
4:24
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was doing extremely well.
4:26
[SPEAKER_00]: I had some really solid relationships that had been nurtured over the years.
4:31
[SPEAKER_00]: And when Chairman Kelly called me to talk about first independence bank.
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[SPEAKER_00]: always had an affinity toward the bank.
4:39
[SPEAKER_00]: So I was anxious to speak with him and see what I could do to help him.
4:44
[SPEAKER_00]: And when he approached me about the prospect of working for him, I was a little surprised and I initially said, well,
4:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, not sure, uh, but let me try to help you in other ways and he came back to me again.
4:59
[SPEAKER_00]: And then we had a deeper dance discussion and he talked to me about what he really wanted to do to take the bank to the next level and as he spoke to me about that, it it really touched a lot of the things that I'm really about.
5:16
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to try kid, uh, grew up on the Lori side.
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[SPEAKER_00]: I've always wanted to be and have some type of impact and some type of legacy that will really really help my hometown and given where the city was at that specific juncture and tipping point.
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[SPEAKER_00]: Me coming to the bank as I was really evaluated it was probably the right time.
5:42
[SPEAKER_00]: because it allowed me to align my skill set, my transformation, my managerial skills with what Chairman Kelly was trying to do and what we are doing and transforming and growing the bank.
5:57
[SPEAKER_01]: amazing and during that time frame if I'm not mistaken you joined in 2020 so I'm assuming that this was either just before or around the time of the pandemic so what was it like for you given that we all don't know what's going on in the world to be you know diving into that new row.
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[SPEAKER_00]: It was a lot of emotions, a lot of things that we were going through.
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[SPEAKER_00]: A, you have a new person coming into the bank, a lot of great ideas, a breath of fresh year, a lot of energy and desire to really take the bank forward.
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[SPEAKER_00]: And then in March we're on a shelter from home and we're living in a pandemic where we are limited in the things that we can do.
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[SPEAKER_00]: It was challenging to say the least, because we were actually going through a conversion to a new core banking platform, and we were undergoing that conversion remotely, which when you do any type of major conversion, you have to go through when I put my consulting hat on organizational change management, you have to convince the workforce to, hey, this is going to be okay,
7:04
[SPEAKER_00]: Normally when it's done, you know, in person, it's a lot easier in the process because your consultants that are working with you and your vendor, they bring a lot of OSM things and capabilities, but we were doing it remotely.
7:20
[SPEAKER_00]: So with the pandemic, with a lot of the uncertainties that were going on at the time,
7:26
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just a lot, but we, you know, it allowed me to really think introspectively and just try to figure out how do we make people on our team realize that we are going to be okay, we're going to get through this and we were successful in doing it.
7:43
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, very much so.
7:44
[SPEAKER_01]: And I got to ask you before I forget and then before we go to my next segment and we have a little bit of fun.
7:50
[SPEAKER_01]: Could you talk to people if they're not familiar with first independence bank?
7:53
[SPEAKER_01]: They're here in this podcast for the first time.
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[SPEAKER_01]: They don't know anything about it.
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[SPEAKER_01]: Could you talk to the essence of what the bank is and then also maybe some of those unique services and offer us that the bank has?
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[SPEAKER_00]: First independence bank, open its doors.
8:06
[SPEAKER_00]: a little over 55 years ago, in 1970, right after, it really one of the positive outcomes of the 1967 civil unrest aka the riots.
8:20
[SPEAKER_00]: Right, I don't like to use that term, but it was a lot of things going on at that time.
8:25
[SPEAKER_00]: So about 22 people wanted to have,
8:28
[SPEAKER_00]: something different that would be really alive for black people to provide them a sense of financial independence.
8:36
[SPEAKER_00]: And the bank opened its doors with that sole purpose, and over time, the bank evolved into a bank for everyone.
8:43
[SPEAKER_00]: It was initially started by about 22 people from the community and business owners.
8:47
[SPEAKER_00]: Two of those people were burdened to use who ultimately married a gentleman named Charles Wright.
8:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Charles A. Triton Museum, a gentleman named Barry Gordy, senior,
8:58
[SPEAKER_00]: the father of Barry Gordy, Jr. Maltaugh, a lot of connections with a lot of entities that went on.
9:04
[SPEAKER_00]: So I just, those are important facts to say.
9:07
[SPEAKER_00]: So bank opens its doors and a 1980 great guy named Don Davis, whose musical genius, great songwriter, studio musician, a record producer,
9:19
[SPEAKER_00]: He sees an opportunity to come in and recapitalize the bank, become a Jordi shareholder, and in recapitalizing it, he goes out and he recruits a very, very sharp young man to be come the president named Charles Allen.
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[SPEAKER_00]: The bank really takes off and gets steady footing.
9:36
[SPEAKER_00]: and over a period of years after child's left in 1988, succeeded by a number of other extraordinary lenders and business individuals in the, in the, in the, from the Metro Detroit community, the bank continues to grow on a wall, 2014, Don Davis passes and the family still maintains majority ownership of the bank.
9:57
[SPEAKER_00]: But Kenneth Kelly, who is an executive in the utility's business, and this is important.
10:03
[SPEAKER_00]: Kenneth Kelly is an engineer, but he has a cousin of Don Davis, but he steps in and becomes CEO on chairman, and during that time, he evaluates the bank and sees
10:18
[SPEAKER_00]: what I would say I would characterize as a sleepy bank that has a lot of potential to become a real real beacon of hope by just growing it and adding the right management team to what was already solid, but adding just some additional pieces.
10:34
[SPEAKER_00]: So the bank ultimately evolves.
10:37
[SPEAKER_00]: So we we are we have two thirds of a we own two thirds of a leasing company.
10:42
[SPEAKER_00]: which is doing extremely well.
10:44
[SPEAKER_00]: We expand into Minneapolis.
10:47
[SPEAKER_00]: He hires me, some other people, and add a lot of, you know, in bolsters, the management team, and has a vision and a plan to grow.
10:57
[SPEAKER_00]: We expand into Minneapolis and the story where we are is we tripled in size.
11:03
[SPEAKER_00]: We now have an open technology banking platform.
11:07
[SPEAKER_00]: We are a bank for everyone.
11:09
[SPEAKER_00]: We are still black owned and controlled, but we're not black only.
11:13
[SPEAKER_00]: we are a bank for everybody we you can you can use your bank although we're limited to four branches to a Michigan to a Minnesota you can go to any about to about 55,000 branches because we are partnerships and you can use your ATM card and have no search hours because of the
11:29
[SPEAKER_00]: the partnerships that we've been able to develop.
11:32
[SPEAKER_00]: And we've expanded while we're adding a next generation board to allow us to think about and have products that are going to be meaningful to millennials, gen X individuals.
11:44
[SPEAKER_00]: And the story now is that we're bankrupt everybody.
11:47
[SPEAKER_00]: You can do anything that you want to do online.
11:49
[SPEAKER_00]: We have a digital banking platform and we're going to continue to try to be innovative and creative in the products that we offer.
11:57
[SPEAKER_01]: Very nice.
11:58
[SPEAKER_01]: That's that's perfect.
11:59
[SPEAKER_01]: The perfect way to say it way.
12:00
[SPEAKER_01]: So now that it has some fun on Black Friday's Introducing my favorite part with this freestyle Friday is
12:12
[SPEAKER_01]: Hey, listen, thank you all so much for listening to this episode and any episode of the Black Friday's podcast.
12:17
[SPEAKER_01]: But I got to be honest with you, I really think it's something missing and I hate to draw that and notice it.
12:22
[SPEAKER_01]: The thing that's missing is your podcast.
12:24
[SPEAKER_01]: Why am I not listening to your podcast?
12:27
[SPEAKER_01]: You talked about making one with your friends years ago.
12:29
[SPEAKER_01]: You know that you need one to better market and promote your business.
12:33
[SPEAKER_01]: But yet you still don't have one.
12:35
[SPEAKER_01]: This is why I created the pocket podcast and course to teach you how to be able to
12:42
[SPEAKER_01]: and tools that you have right into finger tips in order to create.
12:45
[SPEAKER_01]: And I create it two different ways in order for you to do that.
12:49
[SPEAKER_01]: You could join my digital, do it yourself, on-demand video recorded, pocket podcast and course, or I'll most literally step by step from idea on how you upload.
12:58
[SPEAKER_01]: your very first podcast episode.
12:59
[SPEAKER_01]: For my people who would like to have something a little bit more tangible, I have created a digital e-book that walks you through my podcast and journey.
13:06
[SPEAKER_01]: The things I've learned along the way, the tools and equipment that I use in order to create and elevate my show.
13:12
[SPEAKER_01]: Now look, I don't want to keep you too long, but I'm going to make this as simplest possible.
13:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Go ahead and head over to www.blackfrightax.com to learn more about the digital podcast course and also the podcast in e-book or you can hit the links in the show notes to take you directly to each of those resources.
13:30
[SPEAKER_01]: Alright, enough of that time to get back into that episode.
13:32
[SPEAKER_01]: So, yeah, credo.
13:36
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, so before we start recording, you were telling me, you know, you had a history of singing, so I'm going to need you to sing, rap, give us a poem.
13:44
[SPEAKER_01]: How do you what you would like to do this?
13:46
[SPEAKER_00]: What I will do as I will tell you is that.
13:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not prepared to see you, but what I would tell you is that I wanted to challenge show when I was in high school.
14:00
[SPEAKER_00]: I was in an upward bound program at Cranbert.
14:02
[SPEAKER_00]: Herodans, I would bond at Cranbert.
14:04
[SPEAKER_00]: I sang this must be heaven.
14:06
[SPEAKER_00]: I sang Ribbon in the sky to my wife in our wedding.
14:09
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not gonna do those songs now.
14:11
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't think we don't believe you unless you sing right now.
14:13
[SPEAKER_00]: I sang in the mail course.
14:16
[SPEAKER_00]: I
14:20
[SPEAKER_00]: We will come back to you, okay, I still have my jobs, but I have to think about something that I can say.
14:27
[SPEAKER_00]: There's not gonna embarrass my family or my daughter.
14:31
[SPEAKER_00]: It might cause she can sing.
14:34
[SPEAKER_00]: And my granddaughter sings in the Detroit youth choir.
14:37
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay, this music thing does come.
14:39
[SPEAKER_00]: It runs deep and it runs into my father's side as well.
14:42
[SPEAKER_01]: Very nice.
14:43
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, so lucky for you Freestyle Friday is actually not that.
14:46
[SPEAKER_01]: It's just a rapid fire question.
14:51
[SPEAKER_01]: The pressure is all right there we go.
14:53
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, so first I'll start with what would you say is the most random job you ever had?
14:58
[SPEAKER_00]: I was a shoe shine boy at Count's Barbershop on Mac and Pennsylvania at 10 years old.
15:05
[SPEAKER_00]: I was a porter, I dusted people off at the barbershop, and I shine shoes and got chips.
15:11
[SPEAKER_00]: Wow.
15:12
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, at 10 years old.
15:13
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
15:14
[SPEAKER_00]: Nice.
15:14
[SPEAKER_01]: So you got, yeah, you got to it early.
15:15
[SPEAKER_00]: I got to it early.
15:16
[SPEAKER_01]: Very nice.
15:17
[SPEAKER_01]: So I know that you went to more house, and if you did not attend more house that there any other HBCU or university that you wouldn't went to.
15:26
[SPEAKER_00]: OK, I'm glad you're asking me that question because I applied.
15:32
[SPEAKER_00]: So I was at Kenya College, my freshman year, grade school, LeBlanc School, all the private liberal arts school in Ohio, and I transferred.
15:40
[SPEAKER_00]: I sent an application to Howard.
15:42
[SPEAKER_00]: I requested an application from Howard University.
15:46
[SPEAKER_00]: A lot of my friends, some of them know this door, never received the application from Howard.
15:52
[SPEAKER_00]: So Howard was the other school that I was looking at.
15:55
[SPEAKER_00]: When I was in high school and contemplating an HPCU, I was thinking about attending Fisk University.
16:01
[SPEAKER_00]: they didn't have the kind of money that I needed.
16:03
[SPEAKER_00]: I was, I was on financial aid.
16:05
[SPEAKER_00]: More house had financial aid, and I know how it did at the time.
16:08
[SPEAKER_00]: So, but how it was the other school that I would have up.
16:12
[SPEAKER_01]: That I was contemplating transferring to at the time got you and because you talked about your musical history and your family and yourself What do you listen to was what was some stuff you have in your playlist on repeat right now?
16:25
[SPEAKER_00]: What what you listen to the guy so I have over 3000 songs my playlist.
16:29
[SPEAKER_00]: I also played an instrument.
16:30
[SPEAKER_00]: I played the baritone on
16:32
[SPEAKER_00]: in elementary and in a jazz band, but the music that I listen to is so eclectic, I listen to hip hop rap when I'm saying more 80s, you know, the sugar hill gang, most staff.
16:47
[SPEAKER_00]: L.O.
16:48
[SPEAKER_00]: Kooj, some Tupac, some DMX, I monitor it because I have four grand artists, so I immediately go to the next song because it's a shuttle.
17:01
[SPEAKER_00]: It's a lot of different songs, I have classical, I have country, I have a lot of old mainstream jazz and obviously fusion.
17:11
[SPEAKER_00]: I've seen a number of jazz artists perform over the years, some of the greats.
17:15
[SPEAKER_00]: uh... back at bakers and in the seventies and i met people like kinyborel all guys trials are all in uh... marlene a shawl some of the greats and so but yet but into some some of them are i mean everybody the modern day like naji and even more uh... to cast is a woman at my daughter like so
17:37
[SPEAKER_00]: I listen to this by, you know, I'm using Jill Scott, you name it, I listen to it.
17:41
[SPEAKER_00]: I like that.
17:41
[SPEAKER_00]: I like everything.
17:42
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
17:43
[SPEAKER_00]: I like the wire range of the elections.
17:46
[SPEAKER_01]: So if someone was coming out of town, they never been betrayed before, they ask you, could you take me somewhere, could you show me around, what's the first place you take them to?
17:54
[SPEAKER_00]: The first place that I would take them to would probably be,
18:00
[SPEAKER_00]: I see if I can get them in the Motown Museum.
18:03
[SPEAKER_00]: And I think I have a pretty good connection because my wife works there.
18:07
[SPEAKER_00]: I would also take them.
18:08
[SPEAKER_00]: if they were, if they were open to it, I'd take them to get a colony island, hot dog, and I'd probably take them to Greek town to get a euro.
18:18
[SPEAKER_01]: That's perfect, yeah, that's the perfect day.
18:21
[SPEAKER_00]: Mm-hmm.
18:21
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't know, and I would also make sure that they got a bag of better mate.
18:27
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, man, it's on the east side, so that's the one.
18:30
[SPEAKER_00]: That's mandatory, it's pretty extreme, for sure.
18:32
[SPEAKER_01]: And then last one, this should be a layup.
18:34
[SPEAKER_01]: What's the best high school in the city of Detroit
18:39
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay, let me think about that.
18:42
[SPEAKER_00]: Actually, I can tell you that in my sleep.
18:45
[SPEAKER_00]: This cast technical high school.
18:47
[SPEAKER_00]: I agree.
18:47
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, hard.
18:48
[SPEAKER_00]: I can do not.
18:48
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I'm looking at, I'm looking at you.
18:52
[SPEAKER_00]: I know there's a lot of people out here that want to talk about.
18:55
[SPEAKER_00]: There's two other schools out there.
18:58
[SPEAKER_00]: Martin Luther King, Jr. Senior High School, that my sister attended Renaissance.
19:02
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not familiar with it.
19:04
[SPEAKER_01]: You say Martin Luther King, I'm not familiar with that one.
19:06
[SPEAKER_00]: And I think I might have heard about the Renaissance.
19:08
[SPEAKER_00]: That's the one.
19:08
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
19:09
[SPEAKER_00]: But those, there are, you know, there are.
19:12
[SPEAKER_00]: They're always playing second and third, so do you sometimes forget about them?
19:17
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, but cast-check, second or not, right?
19:19
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, absolutely.
19:20
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, yeah, I mean, what other high schools are there?
19:23
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, what other high schools are there?
19:24
[SPEAKER_00]: There are other high schools, but the two of you named that, I'm not too familiar with it.
19:27
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I'm not.
19:28
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not.
19:29
[SPEAKER_00]: Right, yeah.
19:32
[SPEAKER_01]: What thank you for partaking and freestyle Friday and engaging in the randomness.
19:36
[SPEAKER_01]: So I wanted to go back and ask you from and lean on your financial expertise because you be in a millennial and most of the audience that taps into the show are of that generation as well would love to get your opinion on what are some of the things when it comes to financial resources, banking,
19:54
[SPEAKER_01]: Whatever the case may be, that we probably should be considering at this stage in our lives as we get prepared for the future.
20:03
[SPEAKER_00]: It's a great question, and so the way I approached learning about financial services and products, I was a finance major, so I was probably more inclined to invest in things like, well, mutual funds are still great options, but there was a quicker path for me to go down that road.
20:24
[SPEAKER_00]: There are a lot more options in ways that you can invest your money today, but what I would tell individuals that you like you and your age to think about, since pensions aren't necessarily offered by companies, start saving at a
20:41
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, your first job, or whether it's the first, the first nine to five when you get a steady paycheck and what I do while it's what I'll suggest is set aside a payroll deduction put some money in a 401k and invested in a high growth high growth or high yield stock or mutual fund because you're young.
21:03
[SPEAKER_00]: You have a lot of one way and you can do a lot with it additionally and my son.
21:08
[SPEAKER_00]: Does this get a Robinhood account those are accounts that you can learn how to invest in in equities or mutual funds on your own and get get your knowledge that way and your expertise and still build a nest egg And it helps you with that one of the next-gen board members that's no longer on the board had an investment app
21:30
[SPEAKER_00]: which we actually piloted for her, and it was very, very useful.
21:35
[SPEAKER_00]: She's doing exceptionally well with it, but those are the types of vehicles that you can sock your money away in as you're salary and your income grows, continue to put more into that, think about putting money away for a house.
21:51
[SPEAKER_00]: If you have a house, repairs on the house, of occasion, another car, a rental property, if you want to invest.
22:00
[SPEAKER_00]: So think about some of the different avenues that they do exist out there.
22:06
[SPEAKER_00]: And because it's out here, there are other things like crypto currency and the blockchain, which is becoming more and more of a tool that folks are using.
22:18
[SPEAKER_00]: Learn about it.
22:19
[SPEAKER_00]: Again, sample.
22:21
[SPEAKER_00]: Don't necessarily put all your eggs into it unless you truly understand it.
22:26
[SPEAKER_00]: Just be intellectually curious about the different types of investment vehicles that are out here and but put money into them.
22:36
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, so you tell me I shouldn't invest all my money into the lottery doing fan dual sports gambling the casino You trying to tell me I should not put my money there and I should put into these investment opportunities So I have I'm not in the judgment of
22:54
[SPEAKER_00]: what you do, but I would just say think about ways that you can put your money into investments, that you actually know that you can almost predict some type of return.
23:06
[SPEAKER_00]: Fandwell, the lottery, it's no guarantee.
23:09
[SPEAKER_00]: So again, most people know this.
23:12
[SPEAKER_00]: You have a greater probability of being struck by lightning than when the lottery.
23:17
[SPEAKER_00]: than winning the power ball.
23:20
[SPEAKER_00]: So if you think logically about it, and again, I'm not insulting it.
23:24
[SPEAKER_00]: You're talking number here.
23:25
[SPEAKER_00]: There are random times when the, when the, when the mega, the mega millions of the power ball is used.
23:31
[SPEAKER_00]: It's big.
23:31
[SPEAKER_00]: I will do a random ticket because, hey, you never know.
23:35
[SPEAKER_00]: But then that probability is so small.
23:38
[SPEAKER_00]: So I would say park your money into things that where you know you're going to see a guarantee, a guarantee return of some type that you can look at and say, okay, I know I know where this money is going.
23:50
[SPEAKER_00]: So, Fandul, again, the lottery, those are just uncertain ways of a park in your money.
24:00
[SPEAKER_00]: You're more or less, I just say the probabilities are larger.
24:05
[SPEAKER_01]: at the what the tools that I suggest to agree and it took me a while to be able to understand the investment vehicles and like how to get into the market things like that.
24:15
[SPEAKER_01]: I think for me, I started also with a Robin Hood account as I noted you I mentioned that someone else had
24:21
[SPEAKER_01]: and that actually helped me be able to generate some money that I was able to take out once I was ready to purchase a home.
24:28
[SPEAKER_01]: So it got me in the position where I said, hey, let me, I got this amount that I wanted to play with in the market.
24:33
[SPEAKER_01]: I put it in here and then it yielded some results for me that helped me get what I wanted to optimize, which I thought was phenomenal.
24:39
[SPEAKER_01]: And I wanted to ask you what age or what timeframe do you feel like you came around to?
24:44
[SPEAKER_01]: having a solid fight, financial literacy, understanding or foundation, whether that a young gauge or whether as you progress through your career.
24:53
[SPEAKER_00]: So, I would say...
24:56
[SPEAKER_00]: probably around, I've really had a pretty good understanding of it.
25:02
[SPEAKER_00]: I just didn't, in my mid-20s, I wasn't really saving as consistently as I probably could have or should have, but I knew it, and I actually, so I probably had, I've been working with an FAA financial advisor for almost 40 years, and so that's where you developed a
25:24
[SPEAKER_00]: And that allowed me to really commit to it.
25:28
[SPEAKER_00]: So in my 20s, I knew it.
25:30
[SPEAKER_00]: I started getting more discipline about it towards my 30s.
25:34
[SPEAKER_00]: And I worked at places where I ultimately did have at a couple of pensions.
25:39
[SPEAKER_00]: So once I want to do those companies were acquired in those pensions,
25:45
[SPEAKER_00]: became, they gave you an option of a lump sum.
25:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I rolled them over, so I've been able to benefit that way.
25:52
[SPEAKER_00]: But I was aware in my mid 20s, I really started being disciplined and towards my 30s.
26:01
[SPEAKER_00]: And the rest is, they say, you know, I was pretty steady by the end, afterwards.
26:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
26:06
[SPEAKER_00]: And that's a natural,
26:08
[SPEAKER_00]: your 20s of my opinion are a period of discovery about a number of things.
26:14
[SPEAKER_00]: And then your 30s is where you kind of get serious, your 40s is where financially you should start really accumulating well and putting more money to the side.
26:25
[SPEAKER_00]: You probably have had a home by then and you can start
26:29
[SPEAKER_00]: parking morning towards retirement and it carries until the 50s and so forth.
26:34
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
26:35
[SPEAKER_01]: And could continue to speak to those folks that's in my demographic, could you just talk about the development of the first gen board?
26:44
[SPEAKER_01]: Because when that would one thing that attracted me to,
26:46
[SPEAKER_01]: wanted to be a part of the board with the fact that I felt that that was very innovative and forward thinking to be able to have the input of those people, what is in my demographic leaders in their communities and their own right and being able to provide that foresight of things that we care about.
27:00
[SPEAKER_01]: So just want to know if you could talk a little bit more about the development.
27:03
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm happy to talk about that.
27:04
[SPEAKER_00]: And again, this is just another, this is another pillar that Chairman Kelly, Kenneth Kelly,
27:09
[SPEAKER_00]: was able to think about a man's thoughtful as he thought about the bank and so I used to turn sleepy and that's not, it's not in it.
27:19
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just a bank that hadn't really
27:21
[SPEAKER_00]: started thinking about ways to become more relevant and really more aligned with where society and where people spending habits and thinking habits are.
27:32
[SPEAKER_00]: His thought was, okay, I looked at our he looked at our customer base and he saw the opportunity the need to try to be more inclusive of younger people and I don't know what they're thinking.
27:47
[SPEAKER_00]: How do I improve on that?
27:49
[SPEAKER_00]: So he hired someone that was helping us with social media, and as he started talking with her, and other people in her cohort, and he started coming up with this idea on, I need to hire a board of millennials, because that was the initial name.
28:08
[SPEAKER_00]: But the millennials, they understand what we aren't doing, what we need to do.
28:13
[SPEAKER_00]: And so some of the things he said,
28:15
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay, I'm gonna bring you on and give you a small stipend.
28:18
[SPEAKER_00]: You actually get to be on an actual board and you get to do the kind of things that a board does and you do some things to supplement an argument with the board of the traditional board does.
28:31
[SPEAKER_00]: But tell us what we need to do to get some immediate impact on and drawing people like you and your age.
28:40
[SPEAKER_00]: website, we did a refresh, still working on that.
28:45
[SPEAKER_00]: Some of the products, some of the products, the one product that I talked about, that a millennial board member had, that was an uptick and it just gave us more perspective and they started thinking about additional ways and we introduced other products.
28:59
[SPEAKER_00]: We that were more attractive and that would get people interested in our bank and then our products and looking at our core banking platform and open technology platform with something that we knew we needed to do so that was all part of the
29:14
[SPEAKER_00]: the vision and his thinking and then just executing on it is what made a difference.
29:20
[SPEAKER_00]: It has we, the thing that was said, you get people that would be on for two year periods.
29:26
[SPEAKER_00]: You want it to roll them in, allow them to get the experience on being on a board.
29:31
[SPEAKER_00]: and thinking and being in a place of a business, roll them off, get newer people in, different perspective, and allow us to continue to evolve.
29:42
[SPEAKER_00]: And it continues to work well.
29:45
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, and I believe that's to you and others.
29:47
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, thank you.
29:48
[SPEAKER_01]: And I joined at the top of this year in 2005, and I believe that it was initiated in 2019.
29:53
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was like, okay, that would be right before I started.
29:57
[SPEAKER_00]: Yes.
29:57
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, very nice in there.
29:59
[SPEAKER_01]: So yeah, we're going to continue to keep it going.
30:01
[SPEAKER_01]: I got to two year term.
30:03
[SPEAKER_01]: So I have a lot of no time.
30:06
[SPEAKER_00]: So we appreciate how you, you've been your ideas and your input our valuable skills.
30:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Appreciate that.
30:11
[SPEAKER_01]: And I noted you had mentioned that this was a a brain child for Chairman Kelly and
30:17
[SPEAKER_01]: wanted to talk about how he recently just made history and very huge accomplishment.
30:22
[SPEAKER_01]: I was celebrated this week here in Detroit and I want to know if you could talk about that history that was that was recently made.
30:30
[SPEAKER_00]: So just consider this.
30:34
[SPEAKER_00]: First independent Spain.
30:36
[SPEAKER_00]: First.
30:37
[SPEAKER_00]: And this is really happening around some somewhat serendipitous things and events and occurrences.
30:45
[SPEAKER_00]: So he became the first person of color to be elected to the chair of the board of the American Banker Association.
30:56
[SPEAKER_00]: This is the trade association for all of the banks.
30:59
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm talking about 25 trillion in assets, not B, not
31:06
[SPEAKER_00]: That's a 150-year-old organization, and he has been entrusted to lead and guide individuals that provide oversight as a trade organization to all of the banks.
31:19
[SPEAKER_00]: That's extremely significant on a number of fronts.
31:23
[SPEAKER_00]: Hey, you have an individual.
31:25
[SPEAKER_00]: Again, this talks about talent, capability, ability to inspire and lead people to be comfortable fall, to follow you.
31:33
[SPEAKER_00]: To be trusted to take on that, it speaks to his ability and talent.
31:37
[SPEAKER_00]: So that's it's it's it's it's it's store.
31:40
[SPEAKER_00]: It speaks volumes about him as a person, as an influencer, and it just speaks volumes on, again, just the knowledge that he has over his career and the success that he has had as chair and CEO of First Independent's Bank and worked that he did for the National Banker Association.
32:01
[SPEAKER_00]: All of those things had a lot to do with him being tapped to take that leadership role.
32:06
[SPEAKER_00]: We are proud.
32:08
[SPEAKER_00]: All eyes are on him.
32:10
[SPEAKER_00]: We're going to continue to lift him up and help him to do the great things that he will do and we're going to continue to be lead at first independent Spain.
32:20
[SPEAKER_00]: So it's a proud moment for all of us for the state as well as for first independent Spain.
32:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
32:27
[SPEAKER_01]: And shout out to Chairman Kelly for that accomplishment and definitely looking for it to see how he's able to lead in that position, move forward.
32:35
[SPEAKER_01]: And I want to ask you, being in leadership at First Independence Bank, what would you say that that appointment does or means for the bank moving forward?
32:44
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, what it does is
32:48
[SPEAKER_00]: it draws attention to the bank because they want to know more about him, they want to know more about the bank and the story of the bank and what they see is they see a progression of continued growth, profitability,
33:04
[SPEAKER_00]: the performance, all of the key ratios that they look at, they look at that and they see that this is a man that truly is.
33:11
[SPEAKER_00]: Again, he stepped into a chair, a seat where the bank was with solid, but has really propelled, it expanded to multiple states.
33:21
[SPEAKER_00]: They're looking at that, they're looking at us, and so we have to make sure that we continue to run the bank as the business that it is with focus on keeping our customers in the center of the circle of life and having products that everybody, your cohort, the millennials, the next stuff.
33:41
[SPEAKER_00]: the genetics and wires one, and that's a bank for everybody, so our focus is to continue to be that because folks are watching us and expecting us to do those things.
33:53
[SPEAKER_00]: So we like the challenge, we like the attention, I think it presents additional growth opportunities and expansion opportunities for us.
34:02
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely, and I can't forget about you because you were recently named a part of Michigan Chronicles power 50 so congratulations to you and for that pristine accomplishment.
34:12
[SPEAKER_00]: I want to know what does that mean for you just as an individual it is you know What I can say is
34:21
[SPEAKER_00]: It's humbling, it's extremely a great sense of accomplishment.
34:29
[SPEAKER_00]: The Michigan Chronicle for multiple generations has continued and always put emphasis on recognizing black excellence in Michigan and for me to be recognized for the work that I'm doing.
34:42
[SPEAKER_00]: and my job that I really like, and I'm just, this is my job, but being recognized for that and being as an influencer in Southeast Michigan, it speaks volumes to me just continuing to be disciplined and focused on
34:58
[SPEAKER_00]: the responsibility that I have as a person is leading this bank to the team members at this bank, to the community that I serve, and just the sense of pride that I have every day that I try to do something positive to change lives and make them better.
35:15
[SPEAKER_00]: So being recognized,
35:18
[SPEAKER_00]: By the Michigan Chronicle is, it's an extremely huge honor, and it's humbling, and I think about, you know, my story, and it's a great, it's a great sense of accomplishment.
35:32
[SPEAKER_00]: And, and I lastly, I have to thank, again, Chairman Kelly and a board for their confidence in me to lead this organization and represent it in a way that I would be honored.
35:45
[SPEAKER_00]: and you went to cast on me you you had some point in time but i mean look i want to cast on me why wouldn't you expect anything else right i'll tell you me come on right okay i'll tell you let's let's let's let's continue to remind remind people about that absolutely absolutely and could you talk to could you get us a peek behind the curtain and talk to us about
36:07
[SPEAKER_01]: your responsibility and or your day-to-day when it comes to being the president at Michigan or at first independence bank.
36:14
[SPEAKER_00]: So leading the day-to-day operations coming into the bank, making sure that we interact with
36:26
[SPEAKER_00]: regulators, customers, make sure all of the areas, the back office, the front office, being that, you know, the make sure everybody is continuously, you know, working together, collaborating together.
36:42
[SPEAKER_00]: to take care of our customers, needs, making sure that I'm leveraging relationships that I have to take advantage of loan opportunities that present themselves just through folks that I know over time and prior roles in banking and opportunities that allow us to grow.
37:01
[SPEAKER_00]: Going to events, I attended an event this morning that the advisory committee of Wayne County,
37:07
[SPEAKER_00]: community college district had and because of the eminence of the bank and the positive reputation by happenstance.
37:15
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't tell my director of marketing about this.
37:19
[SPEAKER_00]: I was actually he did a one off one of the vice chancellor.
37:23
[SPEAKER_00]: She says I want to let everybody know that we have the president of first independence bank here.
37:28
[SPEAKER_00]: And he asked me to make some remarks.
37:29
[SPEAKER_00]: So it was a it was a shameless plot.
37:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Why I could say look, you students to get your certificates in degrees.
37:35
[SPEAKER_00]: think about opening up a bank account at first in the business bank.
37:38
[SPEAKER_00]: So I go to a lot of community events.
37:40
[SPEAKER_00]: I make sure that we're doing the right all of things in the community around financial wellness, financial literacy, you know, get auxiliary organizations, collaborating with CDFIs and
37:53
[SPEAKER_00]: and loan committees, board committees that I said on that drive a lot of the decision, the strategy, those are some of the things that comprise the day-to-day and over-peer it of time at the bank.
38:06
[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, fine.
38:07
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, nice, nice.
38:08
[SPEAKER_01]: And you have mentioned the community aspect of it, and Michigan, and first independent bank has always had a history,
38:15
[SPEAKER_01]: of being able to have that community focus and essence of that.
38:18
[SPEAKER_01]: So I want to know in your role, how do you continue to maintain that community focus of making sure that the people in the immediate area and and being able to expand out have the necessary financial resources that they need.
38:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, what we do is, so I do some financial literacy workshops and I speak in some instances.
38:39
[SPEAKER_00]: I also sit on some boards of some nonprofit organizations.
38:43
[SPEAKER_00]: I also sit on a gubernatorial point in board, a point in board, which is the Michigan Strategic Fund.
38:50
[SPEAKER_00]: And I chair the Finance and Investment subcommittee, which deals with economic expansion on major projects that are continuing to go on where we're
38:58
[SPEAKER_00]: revitalizing communities there where their buildings that haven't been used, rebuilding them, for mixed use purposes, so that's part of the job, that's part of my community involvement, continuing to support businesses that provide various activities and levels of support to the communities.
39:20
[SPEAKER_00]: We try to sponsor and support organizations that are doing things.
39:24
[SPEAKER_00]: that are aligned with the same principles and things that we view as important to the community.
39:31
[SPEAKER_00]: So, and we encourage our team members to do the same.
39:35
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
39:36
[SPEAKER_01]: And given the state of where we are in the world and there's so many different things happening right now in terms of people who've been a fist being,
39:42
[SPEAKER_01]: cut off in different opportunities.
39:44
[SPEAKER_01]: I wanted to ask you, stand on that community, focus, how do you feel that your community based bank or local bank with it, whatever it is?
39:53
[SPEAKER_01]: Because it's so many different institutions, but how can they focus on meeting those basic needs of those people in those communities?
40:00
[SPEAKER_01]: Regardless of what's happening.
40:02
[SPEAKER_00]: So what we,
40:04
[SPEAKER_00]: We've been approached by some organizations that are doing things, well we have an upcoming, we have a Thanksgiving holiday coming out.
40:14
[SPEAKER_00]: We've been asked to partner with some organizations that are finding meals, finding food for people, and we're not only helping to sponsor some of those activities, some of our team members are going to be actively participating in it.
40:31
[SPEAKER_00]: We're going to also try to find additional ways to support individuals that may need assistance where it makes sense and that's also aligned with what we do in the various sponsorship initiatives that we take on.
40:52
[SPEAKER_00]: We probably, you know, it's really, it's really tough right now.
40:57
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I talked to you, you look at the news, you see people really hurting.
41:03
[SPEAKER_00]: And we honestly are going to try to make a conscious effort to listen to our customers.
41:11
[SPEAKER_00]: And an instance is, you know, right now our customers don't appear to be
41:18
[SPEAKER_00]: how I say it, how I say it, struggling financially where we're seeing impact to our overall portfolio and performance, but we're checking in with people and we're just trying to say, hey, if things get, you know, somewhat challenging, we will work with you and we'll try to work through things with you, but not going well.
41:38
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, so far so good, but we will continue to support organizations that are trying to do things that are going to make the most lives better.
41:49
[SPEAKER_01]: Very nice.
41:50
[SPEAKER_01]: And taking a look into the crystal ball for the future, what do you see on her rise in for yourself and also for first independence?
41:57
[SPEAKER_00]: So, for first, for myself, I'm gonna continue to be in this seat, continue to add talent to this bank.
42:09
[SPEAKER_00]: I think we're gonna have opportunities to grow.
42:12
[SPEAKER_00]: And if fortunate, expand into other states, we are in Minnesota for now, and we're in Michigan.
42:20
[SPEAKER_00]: And hopefully there may be opportunities to expand in other states, which will create additional jobs for people, adding roles of importance to the bank.
42:31
[SPEAKER_00]: And that for me will continue to allow me to lead this bank and allow us to meet Chairman to lead the growth in expansion.
42:43
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, we want to be a billion dollar bank, a billion plus a dollar bank.
42:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I think, you know, based on the way we approach the business of running this bank, we feel good about those prospects.
42:57
[SPEAKER_00]: So that's simple.
42:58
[SPEAKER_00]: I think for me, I like the jobs that I'm in, I like the seat that I'm in, and I'll continue to do that to the best of my abilities.
43:08
[SPEAKER_01]: very good and could you give a piece of advice to folks who may be looking to inspire to sit in the seat that you're in as a president or wanting to be able to have a seat at the table in terms of their career to be in a space like that?
43:23
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you have any or just pursue a current finance?
43:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you have any pieces of advice or piece of advice for those folks?
43:30
[SPEAKER_00]: My advice is simply this.
43:34
[SPEAKER_00]: You should be able to see the regardless of your circumstances.
43:39
[SPEAKER_00]: If you look at me and look at how things began from me where I started, it's never about how you start, but always how you finish.
43:48
[SPEAKER_00]: Group on the lower East side, my maternal grandparents raised me.
43:52
[SPEAKER_00]: They had migrated from the south.
43:57
[SPEAKER_00]: didn't have a lot.
43:59
[SPEAKER_00]: Didn't come from privilege.
44:01
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, was a decent, uh, was more than average, more than above average student, uh, excelled academically, went to Morehouse College, went to Harvard Business School, but I'm a kid.
44:12
[SPEAKER_00]: That's from the East side of Detroit.
44:13
[SPEAKER_00]: So if you look at yourself and if you ever doubt that you, you know, a second guest that you can't get it done,
44:21
[SPEAKER_00]: look at me and look at where I am.
44:24
[SPEAKER_00]: And I'm hoping that you can see yourself in me and that can be an inspiration for you to press on because it's never going to be easy, but if you continue to believe in yourself, continue to be intellectually curious and just stay focused on things.
44:45
[SPEAKER_00]: and it's always gonna be life is an obstacle course, but just stay buckled up in the sea and just work through it, that's wonderful.
44:58
[SPEAKER_01]: So working to people, if they want to get in contact with you, they want to follow your journey, how can they get in touch with you, do you have any social media handles or contact information also?
45:06
[SPEAKER_01]: I do work and they find the bank.
45:08
[SPEAKER_00]: So first independence is located on East Grand Boulevard in Woodward, and we're also we have a branch on seven mile and 11 o'clock.
45:17
[SPEAKER_00]: You can visit www.firstenddependence.com to open accounts online, or you can visit our branches.
45:25
[SPEAKER_00]: My, I'm on LinkedIn.
45:26
[SPEAKER_00]: I am on Facebook.
45:29
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't, I don't view it as much.
45:31
[SPEAKER_00]: I am on Facebook.
45:33
[SPEAKER_00]: I actually have an Instagram account.
45:35
[SPEAKER_00]: I have a Twitter account.
45:37
[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's DMH1.
45:39
[SPEAKER_00]: I think my Facebook handle is DMH1.
45:48
[SPEAKER_00]: I can tell you this, but most people spell it wrong.
45:52
[SPEAKER_00]: Go to the website or call 315-684-hanger.
45:56
[SPEAKER_00]: That's probably the easiest way to read it.
45:58
[SPEAKER_00]: Because if I say D-Hot you send at firstsendupinus.com, they can on a spell at Hutchinson, H-H-H-H-H-E-Sun, so visit www.firstsendupinus.com.
46:12
[SPEAKER_00]: But stop by and see us.
46:14
[SPEAKER_00]: We'd love to have you as a customer.
46:16
[SPEAKER_00]: I'll say this, we have a philosophy.
46:19
[SPEAKER_00]: At first, independence bank, you can bank, invest, and grow.
46:23
[SPEAKER_00]: And we don't necessarily want all of your money, but we'd love to manage some of it for you.
46:29
[SPEAKER_01]: absolutely and almost forgot to share my story with first independence.
46:33
[SPEAKER_01]: So that was my very first bank account when I became a police cadet in high school.
46:37
[SPEAKER_01]: I think I was maybe like 15, 16 years old, something like that.
46:41
[SPEAKER_01]: And then, no, I was like 16 or 17 and when I became police cadet first independence bank.
46:46
[SPEAKER_01]: was my very first bank account.
46:48
[SPEAKER_01]: I used to take the bus because we could take the bus for free with our yellow shirts and then I would go and catch my check.
46:53
[SPEAKER_01]: I think we got paid weekly or by weekly or something like that.
46:56
[SPEAKER_01]: But that $100 I got every week meant the world to me back then.
47:00
[SPEAKER_01]: I didn't have no bills.
47:01
[SPEAKER_01]: I was like 16, 17.
47:02
[SPEAKER_01]: So the first independent bank was the, I think it was the preferred bank that the program had used.
47:08
[SPEAKER_01]: And then of course, just naturally created a account there.
47:11
[SPEAKER_01]: But that was my first introduction to it.
47:14
[SPEAKER_01]: Special place in my heart so it's great to come full circle and I have this moment with you and then also of course You know be on the next in board.
47:21
[SPEAKER_00]: This has been outstanding.
47:23
[SPEAKER_00]: I've enjoyed it This is great and hopefully I did a well enough to be invited back, maybe absolutely.
47:30
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah Yeah, yeah, absolutely the door is open for sure Okay, so we appreciate you and we're thankful for all the work that you're doing and putting the community first and being able to make sure
47:39
[SPEAKER_01]: that we have the right tools and resources offered to the community and grateful for the work that you've been doing over the years.
47:46
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, thank you, and it's an honor and privilege to be in this seat and serve this community and it's so near and dear to me.
47:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Visit us at www.firstindependence.com.
47:58
[SPEAKER_01]: Perfect, and everybody watching listening, we're gonna tap in with y'all soon.
48:01
[SPEAKER_01]: Peace.