Submitted
Michael E. Schrage, CEO and Chairman of Centier Bank, has announced that Centier Bank has been recognized as the top-ranked “Best Bank to Work For” in the state of Indiana by American Banker. For each of the past eight years, Centier Bank has placed alongside financial institutions across the country on the nationwide list.
Centier Bank also ranked 11th out of 85 banks in the U.S. The nationally-renowned American Banker publication creates the list based on extensive employee surveys and reviews employer benefits and policies. The publication also evaluates a company’s volunteering and charitable contributions, as well as leadership philosophy, recruitment, and diversity – among other areas – as determining factors.
In 2020, a new area of workplace efforts American Banker considered was banks’ responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Among other efforts, Centier Bank established a parent resource network over the summer in response to challenges many employees faced while adjusting to pandemic life. Managed by human resources and hosted on the companywide intranet, the network gives employees a forum to request or offer help with navigating the sudden loss of childcare and classroom learning,” the publication stated.
Chrisanne Christ, Senior Partner in Human Resource Development at Centier Bank, said this year posed unforeseen challenges across the country, the banking industry, and certainly at home at Centier Bank. The abrupt onset of pandemic life, Christ said, brought Centier Bank’s associates closer together than ever before.
“We made a commitment early on to show compassion and strength in supporting our associates with their unique needs around a crisis; they need to know their bank family stands with them no matter what,” Christ explained. “We knew that family needs would come first, and flexibility would be essential. Our associates need to have job security and reassurance that we will be there with them, and sometimes all it takes is a manager asking ‘How can I help support you right now?’”
Schrage said the bank’s 125th anniversary year didn’t exactly turn out to be the celebration he had in mind, but it has made evident the immense amount of strength, determination, and camaraderie Centier Bank associates possess for one another, for clients, and the organization as a whole.
“To know that this recognition is in large part due to feedback from our associates means everything,” Schrage said. “We are working toward brighter days ahead – together – and are ecstatic to celebrate this recognition with gratitude.”
Centier Bank, which recently surpassed the $5.3 billion assets milestone, was one of the largest banks on the list, with only two other Indiana-based banks being named. The distinction follows similar workplace accolades from Forbes, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, and The Times of Northwest Indiana, to name a few.
For more information on American Banker’s rankings, visit americanbanker.com. For more information about Centier Bank, go to centier.com.