My path certainly hasn’t been linear, like most. In the early 2000s, I was a paralegal. After approximately 7 years in the legal field, I found myself being toward working in finance. I took a job at a local community credit union where I found a deep passion for financial fraud. I had a knack for identifying fraud, and using my technical skills, natural investigation abilities, and a lot of tenacity,
I dove in and found ways to prevent fraud, reduce risk to the credit union, work successful chargebacks and overall improve the credit union’s loss posture. From that, I found that there was a way to use my natural technical skills that I had “tinkered” with since the age of 12 and apply them to real world opportunities within financial institutions. Six or so years into my time at the credit union, I was approached with an opportunity to work for a major healthcare nonprofit, ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
There I spent 7 years creating and managing their financial fraud program and owning the payment platforms they offered to their donors. During my time there, not only did I build internal procedures for identifying financial fraud through technology, I built cross departmental partnerships that otherwise did not exist. During my last year, we successfully prevented over $27,000,000 in financial fraud using our technology infrastructure.
A colleague that I had worked with at ALSAC left to pursue an opportunity at Bank3. After a while, I was approached and offered an opportunity to come to Bank3 as Assistant Vice President of IT. That colleague later left Bank3, thus creating the vacancy of CIO. After discussions and presentations of recommendations of Bank3’s future when it comes to technology, I was offered the role in May 2024.
Reaching CIO was not always part of my vision. Honestly, I did not believe there would be an opportunity for it. As someone who is self-taught and didn’t attend college, I am not your typical candidate for these types of roles. People like me are sometimes overlooked, regardless of the experience or expertise we bring to the table.
At Bank3, I have been fortunate to be seen by my leaders, Frank Cianciola (Founder & Executive Chairman) and Will Chase (CEO), for my talents and capabilities. If we’re being honest, that is where it really matters. They both have made me feel valued and trusted, which in turn, inspires me and drives me to always stay hungry for more knowledge and professional growth.
Have you had a role model or mentor that has helped you on your journey? (If you feel comfortable, please share their name and how they helped you)
Paths in life can be funny. We often find ourselves reflecting on the mentors or positive influences we have had that have shaped who we become, both personally and professionally. I remind myself consistently to not forget the ones who often told me I wasn’t good enough, or told me that I’d never amount to anything because I didn’t go to college.
I don’t look back at those moments in my life with sadness, but with gratitude. I am thankful for their honesty, even when it felt raw and uncalled for. Had it not been for those moments, combined with a laundry list of personal hurdles to overcome, I would not have been as driven.
As far as a positive mentor, it would be Jeanette Russell. For a time, I worked for her at ALSAC. She and I really connected. She showed me how to push forward, even when the naysayers were very loud. Time and time again, she encouraged me to push and learn, giving praise and criticism when and where they were needed.
She was the first person to see me for me and not hold me back because I didn’t have a piece of paper from the University of wherever. She helped me network and grow my technical skills and showed me paths I never knew were possible.
How do you see the role of the technology leader evolving over the next 5 years?
Most leaders in technology roles get very caught up in the administrative elements, meetings, conferences, networking, etc. While those are necessary elements to our responsibilities, we cannot lose site of the inner workings of our teams/employees. CIOs should consider exploring opportunities to learn and hold themselves to the same expectations and goals they expect their employees to adhere to.
Over the next few years, I anticipate the desire to delegate will grow stronger. CIOs will feel much-added pressure when it comes to evolving AI, regulatory expectations, and fast-paced technology changes we see. It can be easy as a leader to lose sight of the “employee experience”. I urge other leaders to be sure they are engaging with their employees. Have true connections with them, celebrate them, give them the resources they really need—not just pizza for lunch.
Don’t be out of reach and disconnected. Nothing will kill the spirit of a great employee quicker than being a leader who is disengaged and absent from the trenches.
Communication and social intelligence. These soft skills are so critical, but not everyone has learned to master them. It’s not enough to be technical anymore, you must communicate with finesse in order to accelerate any business. Strategic thinking and the big picture.
CIOs need to have a clear strategic vision of the how and what for their business. Especially when it comes to resources, ROI, dependencies and things that challenge you. For some, strategic thinking and planning comes naturally, while others have to work at it.
If this isn’t a strength, know that it is ok. There are so many tools and resources now that can help. True weakness is only when you choose to not accept help when it’s available.
I have a few certifications that I am working on that I never got to complete earlier in my career. Even if they are things that I may not get to use in everyday life, it is still something I want to complete for myself.
Additionally, I want to provide paths for my employees that allow them access to continuous learning without limitations. I provide them with access to professional development that is very robust and will benefit them throughout their entire career, not just for them as an employee of Bank3.
This I something that I did not have a lot of in my earlier career. Access to education in any form can completely alter a person’s trajectory in life so I will never be a hurdle for them. I want to be for them, what I wish I had had earlier in my career.
Find you a great mentor or coach, and it doesn't have to be someone you work with. Don't be afraid to reach out to others in your network or even on LinkedIn that you admire.
"Don't be afraid to reach out to others."
One of the questions I get asked a lot from our employees or even from third parties we use is “What do you think about AI?” Today’s media has done a phenomenal job of terrifying most of society when it comes to AI. Most don’t realize that AI has been around, but now that it is a hot topic, it’s twisted and portrayed as something diabolical that will without a doubt take over the world and replace all us humans. The fact of the matter is we will not be getting away from the use of AI.
I think we need to see more positive messaging about the power of AI and how we can harness it to reduce friction, increase efficiencies, and reduce time spent on manual touchpoints. All this comes with great responsibility and awareness of risk. The use of AI, whether great or small, needs to be considered and evaluated. For example, there are leaders and employees alike all across the globe that are using or benefitting from forms of AI and they don’t even realize it. Instead of being fearful of it, take time to learn about it, how it functions, even if you aren’t technical. Evaluate and measure the risk. Work in partnership WITH it but go into it fully aware and responsibly.
For now, I am preparing by staying "in the know", beta testing with products, and having conversations with those in my network. I advise when and where I can to colleagues about the use of AI, and I encourage, when appropriate, for users to be open-minded and not so easily dismissive. There will come a point in time where you cannot ignore it, despite your best efforts. I think building internal policy and procedure now is key, regardless of how little you use it. This is best achieved with your Compliance department in partnership with you. Don't be afraid to lean on your regulators or even legislative leaders for information and guidance.
Can you share a book that has the most profound impact on shaping your professional journey and approach as a leader?
A big thank you to Monica Parks from Bank3 for sharing her journey to date.
If you would like to gain more perspective from Tech Leaders and CIOs you can read some of our other interviews here.