Episode 13

Winning the Talent War — with Renee Peterson and Steve Farbstein

We started focusing on our employees and what they need as much as what we need,” says Steve Farbstein, Blue Ridge Bank’s chief revenue and development officer. Since the Great Resignation, the Virginia community bank has shifted its approach to recruitment, taking things like flexibility and wellness into account, along with 401(k)s and PTO.

As Farbstein and our other guest, Renee Peterson of Horicon Bank in Wisconsin, discuss with host Charles Potts, it’s no longer enough to do things as they’ve always been done. Community banks will only win the talent war if they think creatively about recruitment—and then work just as hard to keep the good people they’ve hired.

This episode is sponsored by Finastra.

• The April issue of Independent Banker magazine looks at talent management from all angles, including better onboarding ideas and how to market your community bank as an employer.