SVP, Senior Credit Officer

If you would enjoy working in a dynamic environment and are looking for an opportunity to become part of a stellar team of professionals dedicated to service, we invite you to apply online today.

This position offers a flexible hybrid work arrangement, allowing employees to balance in-office collaboration with the benefits of remote work. We provide the necessary tools and technology to ensure seamless productivity, whether you're working from home or the office.

SUMMARY:
The SVP, Senior Credit Officer - Commercial Lending provides senior leadership for commercial credit risk, underwriting, and portfolio risk management. The role serves as the Chief Credit Officer's primary strategic and execution partner for commercial credit, translating enterprise credit strategy and standards into consistent commercial credit practices. The SVP leads the commercial underwriting and portfolio management functions, exercises credit approval authority within established limits, maintains strong portfolio risk discipline, and provides substantial support to the CCO on regulatory, policy, governance, and other commercial credit matters.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead commercial credit risk management across the commercial lending portfolio, consistent with enterprise credit strategy, approved risk appetite, policy, and regulatory expectations.

• Provide senior leadership to the Director of Underwriting and Director of Portfolio Management and ensure effective coordination between underwriting, portfolio management, and credit analysis.

• Oversee the quality, consistency and timeliness of commercial underwriting, credit analysis, risk rating, and portfolio management practices.

• Exercise commercial credit approval authority within delegated limits and provide senior credit judgment on complex, material, or higher-risk credit requests.

• Ensure appropriate monitoring and active management of the commercial portfolio, including concentrations, criticized and classified assets, covenant performance, risk rating migration, emerging risks, and action plans.

• Support the CCO with timely commercial portfolio risk reporting, analysis and escalation of material trends or concerns.

• Partner closely with Portfolio Management leadership to ensure accurate, forward-looking portfolio intelligence and effective management of deteriorating or higher-risk relationships.

• Lead or materially support commercial credit components of regulatory examinations, internal audit, loan review and other independent reviews, including preparation, issue response, and remediation.

• Support development, review, and implementation of commercial credit policies, underwriting standards, approval authorities, and related credit procedures.

• Serve as a senior commercial credit resource to lending leadership and relationship teams, providing independent credit perspective while supporting sound, sustainable business execution.

• Support the CCO in executing enterprise credit initiatives that affect commercial lending, including governance enhancements, data and reporting improvements, process changes, and credit risk projects.

• Develop commercial credit talent and succession depth across underwriting, portfolio management and credit analysis; establish clear expectations for judgment, accountability, technical quality, and professional development.

• Represent commercial credit in appropriate senior leadership, credit and governance forums and act on behalf of the CCO on commercial credit matters when delegated.

Leadership Profile

• Deep commercial credit expertise with demonstrated strength in complex underwriting, portfolio risk management, and credit decision-making.

• Senior-level judgment and credibility sufficient to operate effectively with executive leadership, regulators, auditors, and senior lending leaders.

• Strong people leadership with the ability to develop directors and build a durable commercial credit leadership bench.

• Ability to distinguish matters that can be resolved within commercial credit from matters requiring escalation to the Chief Credit Officer.

• Collaborative leadership style with a strong independent credit voice.

EDUCATIONAL AND WORK EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Finance, Accounting, Statistics, or related field required.
• Master of Business Administration preferred.
• 15+ years of banking or financial industry experience,
• 15+ years’ experience in credit. Emphasis in commercial and business lending activities required.

• Thorough knowledge of single-family residential, consumer, and commercial banking products and processes, vendor relationships, and accounting principles.

• Proficiency in Windows-based applications and related computer skills.

• Knowledge of current laws and regulations governing financial institutions, including credit unions, as well as loan documentation requirements and applicable investment restrictions.

• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to negotiate and influence colleagues outside the direct reporting structure. Ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders across diverse backgrounds and levels of expertise, including senior and executive management and state and federal examiners and regulators.

• Extensive, progressively responsible experience in commercial credit, underwriting, and portfolio management within banks or credit unions, including substantial leadership responsibility.

• Demonstrated experience in commercial credit approval, risk ratings, management of criticized and classified assets, credit concentrations, and regulatory expectations for credit risk management.

 

CRITICAL LEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES:

Collaborating and Influencing

The ability to collaborate, motivate, persuade, and influence stakeholders at all levels is a critical component of the position. Internal and external stakeholders include the board, executive management, business units, auditors, consultants, and regulators. The SCO will combine a strong intellect, independent viewpoint, and personal conviction with an open and respectful communication style. The SCO will be extremely rigorous with regard to data and ideas but also build close and supportive relationships across the risk and business teams. The SCO will excel at informal influence and persuasion, not exclusively relying on formal approval authorities. In the best credit discussions, it is often difficult to distinguish who is on the credit team and who is on the line of business team.

Technical Credit Expertise

The SCO will have primary accountability for credit risk in the company and will have strong experience and skill in all facets of commercial credit risk, including the development of credit frameworks and policies, the critical evaluation and identification of key risks in complex credit transactions, and the development and operation of quantitative tools, including models. This leader will have a consistent track record of making smart risk-return and capital allocation decisions in a manner that allows for intelligent and resilient risk-taking, not merely the minimization of credit risk. The SCO will have experience across a wide range of real estate and C&I businesses.

Cultural Agility

The SCO will encourage open discussion of different ideas and views and will be able to invite and use input from perspectives significantly different from his/her own and adapt her/his behaviors and communications to engage with others across the Georgia’s Own organization.

ADDITIONAL/IMPORTANT SKILLSETS:

• Ability to work in a fast pace and high-pressure financial industry environment.
• Attention to detail and drive for results.
• Strong problem solving, analytical, and decision-making skills.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, Excel experience required.
• Team player, independent thinker, highly motivated.
• Strong interpersonal, negotiation and communication skills.
• Results driven, high-level of energy, thinks outside the box.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

To perform this job successfully, the employee must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. All employees must be able to communicate face to face or through technology with or without reasonable accommodation. Employee will be in an office environment (well-lighted, heated, and air-conditioned) typically stationed at a desk or table. Employee will be asked to sit and stand for various increments of time, and to lift/push up 10 lbs. Clerical office duties on various forms of technology are required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions.

All positions that have lending responsibilities must comply with all requirements under the SAFE ACT, as well as the Credit Union’s policies and procedures related to the SAFE ACT. This includes an obligation on the employee’s part to ensure that NMLA registration pertaining to the SAFE ACT is kept current. The employee must notify the Credit Union within 30 days of any changes that need to be reflected on the NMLS registry.

Georgia’s Own Credit Union is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any classification protected by federal, state, or local law. Consistent with obligations under federal law, every company that is a federal contractor or subcontractor is committed to taking affirmative action to employ and advance women, minorities, disabled veterans, special disabled veterans, veterans of the Vietnam era, and other eligible veterans. 

We are an equal opportunity employer. Employment selection and related decisions are made without regard to sex, race, age, disability, religion, national origin, color or any other protected class.