Paul Gores of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel interviewed North Shore Bank Chairman and CEO Jim McKenna recently, and it made for a very interesting and enjoyable Q&A, which you can read in full on paper’s site. Here’s an excerpt:

Q. North Shore Bank has remained strong since the recession — enough so that you were able to take over two failed banks in the state. How did you stay out of trouble during the economic downturn?
A. We’re very conservative. We’ve never done subprime lending. We don’t believe in it. We’re just a very conservative institution. If you run with the bulls, you are going to get gored. We don’t run with the bulls.

Q. You’ve said in the past that bankers in boom states have said banking in Wisconsin seems boring. Is it?
A. We love to be bored. I don’t need to be excited in the banking business. Also, we’ve stayed in our territory. We’ve stayed close to home. We understand the people. We understand the markets.

Mr. McKenna also talks about his experiences offering input to federal government policy makers like Alan Greenspan and his favorite motorcycle trip ever.