DIRECTOR OF COMMERCIAL CREDIT

The Senior Credit Officer/Director of Commercial Credit oversees the credit function of the credit union’s commercial loan portfolio while fostering a high-performing team culture with a focus on credit risk identification, efficiency, and employee growth. This role manages the daily functions of commercial credit and portfolio analysts while also maintaining a personal pipeline of underwriting loans. Key responsibilities include working closely with loan officers and other members of the commercial team to provide credit underwriting support through financial statement analysis and assessment of risk which are documented in credit approval memorandums. This role will help guide the credit union’s commercial credit policy and procedures as well as have an integral role in building out technology solutions for our business members. This position will communicate with many different parties including members, loan officers, upper management, and third parties to ensure a smooth and timely loan process.

All job positions at 7 17 Credit Union may be assigned further duties with or without notice, verbally or in writing.  Essential duties and responsibilities include the following.

Primary Duties:

Underwriting

• Provide feedback and assist sales team with the structuring of new loans.
• Manage personal underwriting pipeline ensuring loan requests are reviewed timely with turn time expectations clearly communicated to the deal team.
• Perform due diligence and develop financial projections for loan requests submitted to underwriting, ensuring that requests meet policy and guideline requirements.
• Accurately risk rate proposed loans utilizing all available information.
• Write detailed credit approval memorandums based on the financial trends and ratios and present to loan committee for approval.
• Responsible for approving loans within individual credit authority.
• Join Commercial Relationship Managers on prospect and member calls as requested.
• Prepare reports for and present at the Special Asset Committee, present reports for troubled member business loans, and present MBL quarterly reports.

Employee Management

• Lead and manage team members involved in commercial loan underwriting.
• Monitor and evaluate individual performance, providing monthly feedback and conducting annual performance appraisals. 
• Establish and review performance standards, complete evaluations on schedule, and administer disciplinary actions when necessary. 
• Develop and maintain a training program, including determining the training needs of the team, researching, and using available training resources, providing staff training, and measuring training results.
• Conduct regular team meetings to communicate updates, align priorities, and reinforce service standards. 
• Communicate credit union objectives, strategic plan, and mission statement to team members.
• Develop and implement career development plans for team members, including educational support, goal setting, and training opportunities. 

Departmental Management

• Partner with other Commercial Lending leaders to foster a culture in Commercial Credit that prioritizes member experience and teamwork, ensuring loans are underwritten accurately and efficiently.
• Collaborate with Commercial Lending leadership to set annual and strategic goals for the department that align with the credit union’s goals.
• Develop and evaluate products and procedures currently in place and implement approved changes as needed.
• Support Commercial Credit team in a backup capacity for all departmental functions, as needed.
• Commercial Underwriting Oversight
  • Manage underwriting pipeline to ensure expected turn times are met by the team.
  • Utilize and train staff in relevant systems to aid in timely underwriting and loan decisioning.
  • Ensure credit proposals underwritten and presented for approval are compliant with Board Policy and NCUA regulations.
  • Assist with annual review process.

Projects & Efficiency Improvements

• Identify process improvement needs for Commercial Credit to streamline, automate, and enhance workflows, tracking, reporting, and controls, with a strong focus on improving member experience and operational efficiency.
• Lead departmental and business unit projects.
• Lead process improvement efforts in coordination with applicable stakeholders.
• Assists with the set-up and implementation of new products and processes utilizing technology.
• Collaborate to create and execute strategies around participation servicing, product and system enhancements, and digital commercial servicing functionality.

Miscellaneous

• Assist with audits from NCUA, ODFI or any other governmental agency or third-party vendor.
• Build/maintain production reports to improve product and/or vendor performance.
• Manage third-party vendor relationships and serve as an internal and external point of contact for assigned vendors.
• Assist with management of third-party vendor relationships as well as vendor onboarding and due diligence reviews.
• Complete annual regulation training as assigned.
• Perform all other duties as assigned.

This position manages the following jobs: Commercial Loan Underwriters

Internal and External Contacts: Other Employees, Members, Vendors, Corporate Management 

Confidentiality Requirements: Must keep members' transactions and other Credit Union business in strictest confidence.

Travel Demands:  Occasionally travel to vendors or business customers

Prerequisite Education:

  1. High school diploma or equivalent

     2.  Undergraduate degree in Business, Finance or Economics or an associated area.

   Prerequisite Experience:

1. Ten years of financial institution experience required, with at least seven years (director) or five years (credit officer) in commercial credit
2. Five years (director) or two years (credit officer) of management experience required
3. Excellent communication skills and ability to deal with others in a friendly, courteous and efficient manner
4. Meticulous attention to detail
5. Knowledge of regulations and compliance for commercial lending, understanding of the real estate closing process, and commercial entity and loan documentation
6. Strong problem-solving ability
7. Proficient with Microsoft Word, Excel and personal computer programs (such as Loan Origination or document preparation software)

Other Prerequisite Requirements of the Position:

1. Ability to learn loan origination system and underwriting software
2. Must be able to handle information in strict confidence
3. Ability to proceed on own initiative

Required knowledge, skills and abilities once in the job:

Demonstrated team leadership abilities

Advanced knowledge of commercial lending and loan underwriting to include: Commercial non-real estate and real estate lending, financial statement analysis, loan structuring, and commercial lending regulations

Customer service attitude and skills to include: Team player attitude, commitment, patience, enthusiasm, creativity, listening, comprehension, initiative, cooperation, attention to detail, resourcefulness

Professionalism to include: Confidence, good judgment, appropriate demeanor and appearance, ability to interact with employees and members

Skills to include: Problem solving, decision making, time management, interpersonal communications, organization, ability to work independently, flexibility. Must be able to maintain contact with applicants and members and conduct relationships in a professional manner that will enhance the marketing effort of the credit union. Must be accurate and thorough in underwriting and reviewing loans          

Certifications, licenses required once in the job: None.

Physical, Mental or Visual Demands:  The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to: stand, walk, sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls, reach with hands and arms, climb or balance, or crawl, talk or hear 

This job regularly requires the employee to lift _1__ to _20_ pounds __5_ times per day.

Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, the ability to adjust and focus.

The noise level in the environment is usually moderate.