When Carol Herrmann was managing a branch for a competitor across from our Milwaukee Capitol office, her boss encouraged her to join a business group. “I didn’t drive,” Carol says, “but I knew Lyneen Fischer. She was manager at the North Shore branch across the street and belonged to the Exchange Club, so I asked her if I could ride along.”

Little did Carol know how that small gesture would affect her life.

When Carol’s employer transferred her to Milwaukee’s south side, Lyneen called her and said, “What are you doing there? Don’t they know you belong on Capitol Drive?” Lyneen, now operations channel manager in our Customer Support Center, had been promoted to district manager, and she pictured Carol as her perfect replacement.

“Carol and I always had a friendly rivalry to see whose rates were better,” Lyneen says. “After she joined me in the Exchange Club, I coaxed her to take my place at my branch. Her commitment to the community is strong, as is her rapport with customers. I knew that my customers and employees would be in good hands with Carol.”

And now, after 32 years — all spent on Capitol Drive, and the last 14 and a half at the North Shore branch she calls home — Carol is bidding her banking career farewell.

Management style all about people
Carol reflects with appreciation on the many colleagues she has admired over the years, giving Lyneen special mention. “I will always be grateful to Lyneen for inviting me to join the North Shore Bank team and for allowing me the freedom to practice my own management style. I love the branch environment and the relationships that develop with customers and staff.”

If you had to concisely describe Carol’s style, “people-centric” would do it.

“I don’t like numbers,” Carol confesses. “When I consider goals and percentages, I view them in terms of what we have to do every day in relating to and helping customers. If you do that right, the numbers will come together.”

And come together they did. Carol was Manager of the Year in 2008, earning a memorable Alaskan cruise. “The core team that helped me achieve that is still with me,” she says.

“I’ve always loved lifting people up, helping them to do their best, to achieve what they never thought they could, to feel proud of themselves,“ Carol says. But she doesn’t limit her efforts to banking associates.

“One of my favorite memories is of a customer who was studying to become a citizen. He also happened to be my nail tech. We would study for his citizenship test while he did my nails. I took a bouquet of congratulatory balloons to his shop the day he became a citizen. When his first child was born, he brought the baby to the bank, placed him in my arms and said to the little guy, ‘Meet your grandmother.’ Talk about a tug on your heartstrings!”

Carol has appreciated watching the scope of responsibilities — and the respect — broaden for tellers through the years. “It is no longer an entry-level position in terms of the knowledge, people skills and sales skills we require of them.”

She adds this advice for new hires: “Learn all you can in the position you were hired for, and then learn what your supervisor or manager knows. When opportunity knocks, you will be able to confidently open the door!”

Colleagues pour on the accolades
District Manager Craig Witz attests to Carol’s leadership and how she inspires her staff. “Carol is one of the finest managers I have had the opportunity to work with. She understands how to have great relationships with her team, without sacrificing accountability. She celebrates achievement, without diluting the value of true accomplishments. She trains people well so they know their jobs thoroughly, without losing the creativity to come up with new ideas or approaches.

“What I like best about Carol is her unquenchable enthusiasm,” Craig adds. “She is so positive in her approach to the workday. She makes it fun for everyone. She loves taking on challenges and thinking of creative ways to communicate with her staff. You can’t help but smile when working with Carol!”

Vice President, Branch Operations Manager Sue Doyle agrees that Carol is a superb communicator and motivator. “Carol has been known for going the extra mile to motivate her team and express appreciation for their contributions to the organization. Over the years she has been caught on camera walking down the red carpet sporting a feathered boa to kick off a new fiscal year, as a caped customer-service superhero leading a customer service brainstorming session, and as a terrific host of employee appreciation days or to honor a retirement or years of service.

“Carol is an inspiration to her co-workers,” Sue adds. “Her direct reports and peers seek her out for her banking knowledge and wisdom in handling customer relationships. They speak highly of her and express gratitude for helping them grow in their role. Younger managers look up to her and listen closely when she shares thoughts and ideas during manager meetings.”

Relaxation, family time take over her agenda
Carol’s first retirement move will be to Lake Poygan, a two-hour drive from Milwaukee, where she and her husband, Fred, built a home in 1996 in preparation for this chapter of their lives. They’ll escape the cold by first heading to Florida for three months, visiting family on the way back.

The Herrmanns have a blended family of four adult children and 16 grandchildren, some living near their retirement spot. Carol and Fred will take in school and sporting events, and Carol expects to become a regular in Sweet Memories, a musical group made up of her husband, sister and brother that plays what Carol calls “the nursing home circuit.”

“My main talent might be lugging their instruments,” she jokes, adding, “I can also carry a pretty good tune.”

She looks forward to summers reading on their pontoon boat as Fred fishes, and she will continue to write, a skill she recently used to help craft North Shore’s new customer promise statements. “If I hadn’t gone into banking, I think I would have pursued journalism. I love to paint pictures with words and to find just the right words to touch the reader or help someone better understand a situation.”

“Carol has a gift for the written and spoken word,” Sue confirms. “Her presentations at community events never fail to capture the essence of the occasion. Her contributions to authoring the customer promise declaration, including after-hours emails, helped shape our organization’s SOAR Together statements. Carol’s contributions to the organization and community will be missed.”

And Carol will miss her colleagues and customers. “North Shore is a great place to work, full of positive, appreciative people from the top on down,” she says. That’s why she doesn’t want to completely lose touch. Whether it’s to chat or to seek her wordsmithing skills, “Call me!” she says.