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I run a $60 million branch with a staff of 11 people under me, and I am also a business banking specialist. I am responsible for bringing in new business clients and expanding our customer base. I also work with local businesses to help them grow. Part of my job is to be involved with and give back to the community I work in. I am on several local committees, and I work with the local hospitals and schools. I also help to recruit employees from the local schools and offer potential jobs to students.

I am responsible for overseeing the daily operation of the bank. I report to my supervisors on the growth in the branch, and of businesses that bank with us. I also report the growth of deposit bases and loans that are brought in. I train employees on system upgrades or system conversions, and I am also involved in my own training. Our bank is going though an acquisition (where one bank buys another bank), and I am the branch representative for all of the training that takes place in my branch.

The customer is always right, even when they are wrong. We have to remember that the customers are paying our salaries. I am pretty easy going and generous when it comes to doing something at my own expense, but I have a major problem with people who walk in with an attitude and don't give me a chance to help them. Customer service is tough and no one is ever happy when they are coming in to see me. I am much more likely to help someone who is friendly to me.

Even though I work for a company, I run my branch with autonomy. As long as everything gets done correctly, I have managerial freedom. I have the benefit of being able to be out of my office, but I don't take full advantage of the things I am allowed to do. I like to be in control, so I am not good at delegating. I wish I were better at delegating, because it would allow me more time to work on making our branch more successful. Procrastination doesn't work!

After getting my associate's degree in liberal arts, I began working as a bank teller in order to save money to earn my bachelor's degree. This was 30 years ago, so it was a low paying position. After about a year and a half, I became a platform person, and then a year later I was promoted to assistant manager. After five years, I became a manager. I didn't have to have a business degree to become a manager at that time, but things have changed. Today a bachelor’s degree is really necessary.

I have always been with the same bank, but the bank name has changed three times through acquisitions. It was always to my advantage to stay with the company through acquisitions because I was compensated monetarily.

I guess I am doing a good job. The bank has grown quite a bit since I became manager. It started as a savings bank with only consumer accounts, but in 2000 it became a commercial bank. We now have several large business clients.

It wasn't just a salary decision. I wasn't satisfied staying at the bottom, and I was bored. I knew moving up would be better for me. You develop relationships with clients a lot better at a desk than you do standing behind a counter, handing out cash. Moving up has allowed me to develop great relationships with my clients over the years. I am also a huge believer in people utilizing continuing education classes to improve themselves so they can move up.

I never really wanted to be in the business field. My plan was to go back to school, but I got married after working as a teller for two years. My priorities shifted to starting a family. Since banking hours were 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., I thought it was perfect for eventually having chilldren. I didn't think banking was going to be a "forever job." Unfortunately, it was 11 years before I had a family. However, because I was promoted so quickly in the beginning, it paid off for me to stay with the company, and I didn't lose any seniority at work by taking maternity leave. In hindsight, I am glad I didn't give up my career, because eventually my child grew up and didn't need me around all the time.

I open the branch in the morning because a supervisor always has to be present. I start off by emptying the night drops, checking the ATM machine, and making sure cash is distributed to all of the tellers. I check all accounts that have been overdrawn, and then I check my email. Email is really important because you never know what comes in overnight. By the time everything is ready for the day, the customers start coming in. Aside from overseeing what goes on at the bank, a lot of my job is public relations and helping people manage their accounts. The company prefers for managers to be out of the office 70% of the week looking for new business and speaking with current clients.

Because I have been at my branch for so long, customers tend to come to me first. I have very loyal clients who are accustomed to getting excellent service. We may not have the best rates or products, but our customers stay because they see the same faces every day. I have been here for 16 years, and it has become a comfort thing for people. It is very unusual for banks to keep their manager in the same location for that long. I have only transferred once in 30 years.

Sales calls are just one thing I do to attract people and business owners to bank with us. A "cold call" is when I have never met the person before. I literally go around and knock on doors. Sometimes you have to go back 100 times, but being persistent really pays off. When I meet with existing clients I see if they are satisfied with our bank and if there is anything we can do to improve their banking experience.

I am the President of the West Islip Chamber of Commerce, and I promote the bank in the local community. I am involved in several committees with the hospital, and I work on a lot of fundraising events for the hospital, library and high school. I am also on the advisory board for the high school. It is not required that I be involved in that many organizations, and I know I am involved in a lot more things than other managers, but I enjoy it. Having my face out in the local community helps me to get new clients, and I have created a lot of new friendships and relationships that I probably wouldn't have otherwise.

Sometimes. That's where you learn to delegate your work to someone else when you are out of the office. A lot of sales calls can be done from the office, so it is important to arrange your schedule to be at the branch during the busiest times.

Because I work long hours and I am involved in so many organizations, it affects the amount of time I get to spend with my family. I take my job home with me. I do projects from home as well as work for the activities I am involved in, but I also take worries home with me. I am always thinking about what I have to do tomorrow. Dinners are usually late, and on the weekends I spend time trying to take care of things around the house. I try to leave Sundays to relax. One of the reasons I never switched branches was because I like working close to home. If ever there is an emergency, I can be home in ten minutes.

It takes time to get from an entry-level position to a top position. Right now, our bank has a management trainee program for people with a bachelor's degree. It is a lot different now than when I first started. You used to be able to move right up from the bottom, but now the training program takes 18 months, and you learn every area of banking (like teller, platform, and back office jobs) before you become a manager.

A starting level teller makes about $11/ hour depending on experience or lack thereof. A management salary may start at $45,000 to $50,000, depending on experience. I don't know if someone fresh out of college would make that. It took me a long time to make what I do now, even with a yearly raise of 4%. People today are definitely reaching my salary at a faster rate. Salaries most likely fluctuate regionally. Someone working in New York City would make a lot more than they would on Long Island.

I receive medical benefits, insurance, a pension, 401(k), and stock options. I have holidays off, and I get 4 weeks off a year. I work 5 days a week, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. or 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an hour for lunch. A manager doesn't punch a clock, so I don't have to keep track of how long I actually spend for lunch. I arrange my day according to what I need to get done. A teller just starting out also has benefits, but they have to qualify on an individual basis. A full-time employee only has to work a month before they begin receiving benefits, and would get 2 weeks vacation a year after working for 6 months.

It is all a part of the package. I report to my district manager, who in turn reports to a regional manager. As a manager I participate in incentive pools, which give you goals to work toward. The goals are a combination of growth, keeping expenses down and increasing income. When I have goals I have to make, I could theoretically double my salary if those goals are met. I also have to motivate my employees to work toward those goals. We get points for selling a certain amount of products, and also for participating in certain community reinvestment programs. The scores tellers receive when they are mystery shopped are also included. My incentive is really important to me, because in the past it has paid for a lot of really great things for my family, like vacations and things in the house.

Some things have improved with the Internet, and others have not. The Internet gives us a lot of flexibility - things can now be done on the computer to save the customer time and give us a break. For example, the customer can go online to put a stop payment on a check. People can check their balance online, so we don't have as many people calling to find out what it is. However, older people who don't have computers still like to have someone help them over the phone or in person. Since 9/11, we are not as quick to give out information, and we have to verify identity because identity theft is rampant. We are dealing with people who want everything right way. We haven't cut any staff because of the Internet. I have had to learn a lot to adapt, but it was going to happen sooner or later. However, the Internet has made the job of attracting and keeping new customers more difficult. People can shop for better rates on the computer, and they no longer rely on what I have to say. They come in to see what we can do for them based on what they have researched.

This is all I know. It would be hard to change careers at this point, although I have considered it. My job is very secure, and I think I run a pretty good office. Most of my staff respects me and I know that my customers do too. I enjoy my job, and I have a very good reputation at work. I like being where I am because I have seniority, and if I get my job done, I also have flexibility. I also like being on salary because I don't have to punch a clock.

The pay isn't as good as it should be, and I put in long hours. The banking world has changed since I started. We are now open earlier and later, 6 days a week. Between work at the office and all of the work-related activities I do, my days are long.

My biggest problem is keeping my employees productive. Nobody wants to do more than the bare minimum. My staff is quite varied in age. The young ones tend to be lazy, and the older people tend to be tired. There isn't much turnover, however. The only reason anyone really leaves is to make more money. When there is an acquisition, which doesn't happen that often, you encounter a lot of disgruntled customers and employees in the beginning, but they usually get over it in time.

My job is always stressful, but part of that is because I take everything personally. If someone isn't doing his job the right way, I get upset. We get mystery shopped, which means someone comes in anonymously to evaluate how well a teller does what she is supposed to do. If my staff gets a perfect score, they get a day off with pay, but I feel if they are doing their job well and they get a perfect score, their paycheck is their reward. I often take my work home with me to ensure that I meet deadlines for required projects. At the end of the day, I am responsible for everything that goes on at the bank, and I always have to report to someone else.

A teller doesn't need a college degree, but a manager does. I would think the more education someone has, the better her salary will be. If you are getting a degree in the banking field, our bank will pay for your education. I always encourage people to take advantage of it. In addition, a lot of business knowledge is learned on the job. It is always good to have prior customer service experience, however.

You need to have managerial skills, supervisor skills, and customer service skills. It is important to be organized, and you need to have a lot of patience and energy. A lazy person cannot do this job. Somebody who has no desire to get ahead should not be a bank manager. I don't think anyone can just come in and take a job as a bank manager without a banking background. It is important to at least have been a teller first, because you need to know the basics of banking to do your job effectively. I really appreciate my tellers because I used to be one, so I understand what they go through on a daily basis.

Don't settle for mediocrity, and don't get so comfortable in what you do that you are afraid to take on something bigger or better. For example, you can make a big increase in salary when you move from one bank to another. Don't get so complacent that you can't or don't want to make a move to benefit yourself. There are always opportunities.

You need to be outgoing and know how to communicate with others. I take my assistant manager on calls, and she hates it. She would rather stay at the bank and do the operations. It is hard to get comfortable doing sales calls when you are used to doing paperwork and managing employees all of the time. I wasn't good in the beginning. But the more sales calls you do, the better you get at them. It took me a couple of years to feel really comfortable with the sales calls.

Overall, the atmosphere at my branch is very positive. I try to make it fun and tell them not to take things so seriously. I also stress that teamwork is really important. If you see someone slacking, you have to get him back on track. My staff is very happy because I am not a tough boss. Sometimes that can be a problem, however, because I can be too easygoing. I never took classes to learn managerial skills, but I know there are classes you can take to improve in that area. I have figured out how to run my staff mostly through experience.