Due to the upcoming retirement of the long-time CEO, Smith and Wilkinson has been retained by the Board of Directors to lead a search for the next CEO. This is a highly visible, dynamic role for a well-rounded, community oriented, financial services executive who is interested in leading the organization and building on the positive work done by the current team. The successful candidate will be responsible for the strategic leadership, management and vision necessary to grow the Credit Union. They will work closely with the Board of Directors and Credit Union staff to develop and implement short and long-term strategy and goals to achieve the Credit Union’s vision, mission and goals. Please reach out to Steve Peary to learn more about the role.

Due to a planned retirement, S&W has been retained by $933MM OneLocal (www.onelocalbank.com) to oversee the search for the bank's Vice President, Director of Human Resources. OneLocal was formed in late 2022 through the merger of Norwood Bank and Foxboro Federal Savings, both Massachusetts-based mutual banks, aiming to create a "larger, stronger community bank." The brand emphasizes the bank's commitment to being a local, independent, mutual community bank focused on helping families, businesses, and communities prosper. With four retail locations in eastern Massachusetts, the bank provides a full suite of consumer and business deposit and loan solutions accessible online, via mobile platforms, and in person. OneLocal consistently ranks at the top of its peer group for capital and earnings, reflecting its excellent financial condition.

Reporting to the bank's CEO, the VP, Director of Human Resources will lead the bank's HR function and have a significant role in the future of one of the financially strongest banks in Massachusetts. We are seeking exceptional human resources talent for this unique leadership role. Successful candidates will demonstrate the right combination of strategic vision, leadership, and hands-on HR skills. For additional information, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Darcy Flaherty, Senior Associate, Financial Services (dflaherty@smithandwilkinson.com) or Cameron Boyd, Managing Partner, Financial Services (cboyd@smithandwilkinson.com).

Reporting to the President & CEO, the Chief People Officer (CPO) is responsible for developing and executing the people resource vision and strategy for Mascoma Bank, demonstrating innovation and leadership in support of the overall business plan and strategic direction of the bank. The CPO oversees all disciplines associated with talent management, talent development, recruitment, compensation, benefits, people resources compliance, and the payroll function with the primary focus on increasing employee engagement and cultivating our purpose driven, inclusive culture. The Chief People Officer is an active member of the Senior Leadership Team and a key executive partner who is tasked with facilitating strategic initiatives, change management, and organizational design.

Reporting to the EVP Chief Operating Officer, the Senior Commercial Lending Officer will be responsible for overseeing the management and direction of the Commercial Lending team, Commercial Loan Administration department, the Commercial Portfolio Manager, and the Commercial Banking & Compliance Assistant. This person will be a “player-coach” with business development and portfolio management responsibilities, while being part of the Senior Leadership Team.  Our client is a $1B mutual bank with locations in Southern Maine and Southern New Hampshire.

Smith & Wilkinson has been retained to manage the search and selection process for the next Director of Accounting for Direct Federal Credit Union ("Direct," www.direct.com). Headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts, and founded in 1953, Direct is an approximately $834MM credit union that serves members who live, work, worship, or attend school in Norfolk and Middlesex Counties, a potential field of membership of over 2.3 million people. As a nonprofit, Direct's earnings are invested back into the credit union, meaning lower loan rates and higher deposit rates for its members. Unlike most community financial institutions, Direct does not operate retail branches besides its Needham headquarters but instead serves its members virtually through a modern suite of online and mobile solutions. The credit union is in strong financial condition, notably with a core capital/net worth ratio of almost 12%.

Reporting to the credit union's Chief Financial Officer, the Director of Accounting will lead a team of tenured accounting professionals and play a crucial role in steering the financial and operational success of the Credit Union. With autonomy over the credit union’s accounting strategy, policies, programs, and objectives, the role offers a unique opportunity for an experienced professional to contribute significantly to Direct Federal's financial vision. This is a hybrid role and Direct offers a very competitive suite of employee benefits. For additional information about this unique accounting role, please contact Darcy Flaherty, Senior Associate (dflaherty@smithandwilkinson.com).

Smith & Wilkinson has been engaged by Empeople Credit Union to lead the search for their next Vice President of Marketing. Established in 1935, Empeople has a rich history of guiding members toward their financial objectives. Although their name has evolved, their steadfast commitment to mission, vision, and values persists. The merger of Deere Employees Credit Union and Infinity Credit Union has resulted in a more robust, member-centric organization dedicated to continuous improvement. Following this merger, Empeople Credit Union boasts just over $2 billion in assets and serves over 73,000 members across multiple locations.

In this role, reporting directly to the President & CEO, the Vice President of Marketing will play a pivotal part in shaping and executing data-driven marketing strategies. These strategies are designed to propel the credit union's overall success by attaining strategic objectives. Key responsibilities encompass crafting and implementing a comprehensive marketing plan, analyzing market metrics, understanding member life cycles, and providing insights into market trends. Emphasis will be placed on leveraging data analytics and member segmentation to customize messaging and effectively reach target audiences. The VP of Marketing will oversee ongoing campaigns for loan, deposit, and membership growth, utilizing both traditional and digital channels. Additionally, the position entails managing the credit union's online and social media presence, spearheading marketing automation initiatives, nurturing vendor relationships, and overseeing the annual marketing budget.

For a confidential discussion and further details, please contact Nathan Townsend or any member of our financial services team.

The Network Security Officer will oversee and supervise the activities and assignments of the Bank’s Network Administration employees. You will be responsible for all supervisory tasks including Annual Performance Reviews and GPS meetings. You will ensure the security and continuity of the Bank’s network and related systems. You will establish network specifications for security by analyzing network security health, workflow, system access, information, and security requirements to provide overall network security architecture guidance. You will also perform firewall security administration, including access control maintenance and signature tuning. Managing the SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) log management system will be an integral component of the position along with the daily operation and maintenance of the InfoSec Playbook.

This position will report to the Chief Technology Officer.

The SVP Finance will be responsible for the accounting and financial reporting, including profitability analysis, corporate budgeting, financial controls, and overall business strategy as well as the management of the bank’s investment portfolio.

The SVP of Finance reports directly to the Co-CEO, CFO of the bank.

Due to the planned retirement of the bank's longtime EVP Chief Marketing Officer ("CMO"), Bristol County Savings Bank ("BCSB") has selected S&W to lead the search and selection process for its next leader in marketing and communications.

Founded in 1846 and headquartered in Taunton, Massachusetts, BCSB is a 159-year-old, mutual community bank that embodies the best of what a community bank can be. For generations the bank has served consumer and business customers throughout southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island and beyond, having been a source of financial stability for customers and the communities it serves through good times and bad. As a mutual, BCSB is both owned and governed by its depositors, meaning that every decision that the bank makes is centered on helping families to save, businesses to grow, and communities to prosper, and not on short-term investor demands. Supported by the pillars of stability and balance sheet strength, BCSB is well capitalized, profitable, and efficient and maintains exceptional asset quality. While much of the bank's growth has been organic, in 2020 BCSB acquired Rhode Island-based Freedom National Bank, bringing the total number of full-service retail branches across its footprint to 18. Today the bank has approximately $3.1B in total assets, making BCSB a top-20 bank in Massachusetts by asset size, and offers a comprehensive suite of loan and deposit products for consumers, small and medium sized businesses, and municipalities. As the bank has continued to grow its offerings, in 2017 it formed Bristol Wealth Group. Most importantly, BCSB is an exceptional corporate citizen and in 1996 established its Charitable Foundation as part of the celebration of the bank's 150th Anniversary. BCSB is primarily regulated by the FDIC and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Division of Banks.

This key, transformational role will join a collaborative senior leadership team that will lead the bank to its goal of sustained and organic growth throughout the footprint. The CMO plans, coordinates, and manages the activities of the Marketing and Community Relations Departments in conformance with established Bank strategies, policies and procedures. He/she will support and adhere to the Bank’s regulatory compliance objectives as well as recommend and implement changes to support prescribed requirements. We are looking for candidates with a vast understanding of performance marketing, content management, digital strategy, regulatory guidelines, and community relations with an emphasis on the overall customer experience.

For additional information about this exceptional leadership opportunity, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Nathan Townsend or Cameron Boyd. 

S&W has been retained by Gouverneur Savings & Loan Association (“GS&L,” gouverneurbank.com) to manage the search and selection process for the bank’s next President & CEO.

Headquartered in Gouverneur, New York, GS&L is a 131-year-old, approximately $205MM community bank serving communities along the Saint Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. The bank provides a range of deposit and lending services to individuals, families, and businesses within its North Country footprint. In 2022, GS&L completed the acquisition of Citizens Bank of Cape Vincent, expanding the bank’s footprint into Jefferson County and allowing GS&L to continue to serve their customers with a high level of personal service across the bank’s expanded five branch network. Following the acquisition, GS&L established a subsidiary limited-purpose municipal bank to service the deposit needs of the area’s municipalities, which is owned and operated by the bank's holding company. GS&L is in strong financial condition; for the period ending on March 31st, 2023, the bank had $205MM in total assets, total deposits of $179MM, total stockholders’ equity of $26MM, and a core capital ratio of 10.73%. Pursuant to the bank’s mission to “invest in, support, and nurture the communities [they] serve,” the bank’s parent company, Cambray Mutual Holding Company announced that Gouverneur Bancorp, Inc (OTC Pink: GOVB) adopted a Plan of Conversion and Reorganization and will reorganize into a fully public stock holding company, anticipating regulatory approval by the third calendar quarter of 2023. The additional capital raised through the conversion will allow the bank to execute upon a regulator-approved plan to expand its geographic footprint and service offerings. GS&L is regulated by the FDIC and New York Division of Banks.

The President and CEO of GS&L will be responsible for providing strategic leadership, driving operational excellence, and ensuring the growth and success of this community-focused bank. We are seeking an exceptional well-rounded banking executive to lead the bank into its next chapter. For additional information, or to arrange a confidential conversation, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Moriah Maron, Consultant, Financial Services (mmaron@smithandwilkinson.com) or Cameron Boyd, Managing Partner, Financial Services (cboyd@smithandwilkinson.com). 

Due to the planned retirement of the bank’s President and CEO, Maureen Frank, S&W has been retained by New Haven Bank (“NHB,” newhavenbank.com) to manage the search and selection process for the bank’s next chief executive.

Headquartered in New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven Bank is an approximately $185MM CFDI bank. Designated in 2010, NHB is the only Community Development Financial institution (CDFI) bank in the State of Connecticut and is driven by its mission of supporting economically underserved communities within the Greater New Haven area. The bank provides a range of deposit and lending services to the people, businesses, and communities in their footprint and recently invested in new technology to further allow their customers to bank digitally. Continuing to grow and provide “face-to-face service quality and execution with excellence,” in accordance with their mission, NHB is opening a second branch in West Haven. The West Haven branch epitomizes the bank’s goal of providing banking services in areas currently not adequately represented by community-centric lending and relationship banking. NHB operates under a nonprofit holding company, First City Fund Corporation, a charitable nonprofit foundation whose charter mandates the formation of a locally based community bank to assist in the economic development and progress of the City of New Haven. The bank maintains excellent capital and asset quality. NHB is regulated by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and the Connecticut Department of Banking.

The President and CEO of New Haven Bank is responsible for the overall leadership and stewardship of this important community financial institution. We are seeking exceptionally well-rounded, community-centric banking talent with a broad understanding of community banking, a proven track record of executive leadership, and shared values of the role New Haven Bank plays in the communities that it serves. For additional information, or to arrange a confidential conversation, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Moriah Maron, Consultant, Financial Services (mmaron@smithandwilkinson.com) or Cameron Boyd, Managing Partner, Financial Services (cboyd@smithandwilkinson.com).

Due to the planned retirement of the credit union's longtime President & CEO, Tricorp Federal Credit Union (tricorp.org) has retained S&W to lead the search and selection process for its next chief executive.

Tricorp is a member owned, member controlled, not-for-profit cooperative financial institution that exists to serve other natural person credit unions. Tricorp, and the other 10 corporate credit unions in the US, are credit unions for credit unions. Corporate credit unions were formed in the 1970's as a solution to cashflow issues that credit unions were facing by aggregating their liquidity and creating a cooperative distribution system. While the suite of products and services has evolved over the ensuing years, the mission of these organizations remains the same, which is to add value to the nation's credit union system and to maximize its returns to members. Headquartered in Westbrook, Maine, Tricorp serves a membership base of dozens of natural person credit unions across New England through the primary offerings of payment services, investment and liquidity solutions, and strategic alliances. The credit union is approximately $300MM in assets, not including off balance sheet assets, is in strong financial condition, and has one of the highest capital ratios of any corporate credit union. Tricorp has differentiated itself through exceptional service and responsiveness to its members by its knowledgeable and tenured staff.

Reporting to Tricorp's Board of Directors, the President & CEO is responsible for the overall successful operation of the credit union. Success in the role of President & CEO will be measured against the deepening of relationships with existing members through the adoption of additional products and services, the retention of members and staff, and by identifying opportunities for growth through both the addition of new members and new solutions. This highly visible member of the credit union system should be recognized and respected by both members and nonmembers alike and by key constituents at the local, state, and national level. We are seeking well-rounded financial services executives who exhibit a strong member service orientation, financial and operational acumen across the key technical areas of Tricorp's business model, and a passion for both maintaining and growing the institution. For additional information about this unique credit union leadership role, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Moriah Maron, Consultant (mmaron@smithandwilkinson.com) or Cameron Boyd, Managing Partner (cboyd@smithandwilkinson.com). 

S&W has been retained by Northeast Bank (northeastbank.com) to manage the search for the bank's Chief Risk Officer ("CRO").

Northeast Bank is a high-performing publicly traded community bank. The bank was founded in Maine in 1872 and acquired by its current ownership group in 2010. The bank's overall strategy is to originate consumer and small business deposits primarily through its retail branch network in western, central, and southern Maine and to use those loans to originate and purchase commercial real estate loans nationally. Northeast Bank has experienced significant growth and currently has approximately $3B in total bank assets and is in exceptional financial condition with strong earnings, efficiencies, asset quality, and capital. From the most recent reporting period the bank has an ROE of 17.49%, efficiency ratio of 44.12%, noncurrent loans to loans of 0.62%, and core capital ratio of 10.38%. The Bank is regulated by the FDIC and the State of Maine Bureau of Financial Institutions.

Reporting directly to the bank's President & CEO and joining highly collaborative executive team, the CRO will play a critical role in the ongoing development and implementation of enterprise-wide risk management practices and culture, position the bank for ongoing growth and success. The CRO will be responsible for leading teams in Compliance, BSA and ALM, and serve as the Bank’s Information Security Officer. We are seeking exceptional risk management talent with strong communication skills for this unique and growth-driven community bank leadership role. For additional information, or to arrange a confidential discussion, please contact Moriah Maron, Consultant, Financial Services (mmaron@smithandwilkinson.com).

The primary responsibility of the Commercial Real Estate Loan Officer (CRELO) is to originate commercial real estate construction loans for investor-owned residential and mixed-use properties in accord with HCLF lending policies. The CRELO will be expected to market the HCLF construction-rehab loan program, analyze and underwrite loan applications, and develop loan packages for presentation to the appropriate approval authorities within the organization. The CRELO will also assist with portfolio management responsibilities, including loan modifications and restructurings. This position will report to the Director of Lending.

Under the general guidance of the Risk Management, Security & Information Security Officer and in accordance with established policies and procedures, the Bank’s Compliance Officer is responsible for managing all facets of regulatory compliance affecting bank operations, including marketing, deposits, lending and HMDA to ensure adherence to federal and state banking laws and regulations The Compliance Officer is responsible for ensuring compliance training efforts are conducted bank wide. The incumbent must be available as a subject matter expert and resource for compliance related questions, and will be responsible for inquiries from internal, state and federal audits.

Our client, Bath Savings, is a $1.3B mutual savings bank, based in Midcoast Maine.  The Compliance Officer will serve as Chair of the Compliance Committee and be a subject matter expert for all applicable federal and state banking laws, regulations, and regulatory guidance.  In addition, the Compliance Officer will develop and perform compliance monitoring programs to meet compliance objectives for all departments of the bank.

In anticipation of the planned retirement of the bank's long-time head of commercial lending, Smith & Wilkinson has been retained by Cornerstone Bank (cornerstonebank.com) to manage the search and selection process for the bank's next Executive Vice President, Commercial Lending.

Headquartered in Spencer, Massachusetts, Cornerstone Bank is a thriving mutual community bank with assets totaling $1.5 billion. Established in 2017 through the merger of two area mutual banks, SpencerBANK and Southbridge Savings Bank, Cornerstone Bank operates a network of 10 retail branch locations in central Massachusetts and serves both consumer and commercial customers throughout the state and beyond. This local institution takes pride in its commitment to personalized customer service, catering to the unique needs of individuals, businesses, and community organizations.

As a member of the bank's collaborative executive team, the EVP, Commercial Lending is one of the most highly visible leadership roles in the bank and is responsible for the overall growth, profitability, and success of commercial lending. The primary responsibilities include managing the bank's Commercial Lenders, Commercial Loan Operations, and Commercial Services groups. The selected candidate will provide invaluable guidance and support to department heads, ensuring efficient management, supervision, and direction of all activities of these important teams. This role also demands active participation in Senior Management meetings, spanning ALCO (Asset and Liability Management Committee), Commercial Loan Review, and Strategic Planning sessions. Monthly reporting to the Bank's Board of Directors and Executive Committee will underscore the EVP's integral role in shaping the bank's strategic direction.

For additional information regarding this esteemed leadership opportunity or to arrange a confidential discussion, please contact a member of the S&W search team: Nathan Townsend, Partner & Consultant (ntownsend@smithandwilkinson.com), or Cameron Boyd, Managing Partner (cboyd@smithandwilkinson.com)