Geoff Stecyk was appointed RAKBANK’s Chief Operating Officer in June of 2015. The responsibilities that come with being a COO includes managing a bank’s full back-office operations, information technology, branches, call center, online and ATM channels, remittances, premises and the business continuity approach. It’s a job that requires a very specific set of skills in order to function successfully. Below is a list of personality traits that Geoff Stecyk believes makes a person an ideal COO:
Adaptability: The number one thing a Bank COO has to be comfortable with is adapting to all of the external factors they can’t control in the financial industry. To this point, a COO has to be comfortable with making decisions based off of what statistics are showing. Instincts and hunches are not things that can be relied upon for robust decision making.
Understanding the Importance of The Team – A bank, like most business, is successful or unsuccessful based on the talents of the people in the organization. The industry is incredibly competitive and a COO must always be focused on filling the pipeline with the best talent available. Professionals in the banking industry earn their way to the top. Making the bank appealing for top talent is an essential part of being a Chief Operating Officer.
Detail Oriented – By being in a position of responsibility, a COO will have to delegate. They have to understand their personal expertise and the expertise of each individual member of the team. The best way to delegate is to fully understand the key strengths and workloads of everyone. Once you know everything there is to know about the members of the team it’s important to ensure that they all are working towards the same goal. Aligning the vision of the bank is a key component. Make department goals the same as company goals to set your bank up for success.
Be Proactive – A bank COO needs to be proactive. While department heads should always be looking to clean up bottlenecks, the COO is in charge of making sure employees are rewarded for doing a good job. When there are gaps in leadership, the COO must step in to improve processes. The more vocal a COO is and the better they are able to communicate, the better the alignment and effectiveness of the teams within the bank.