Lyneen Fischer brought some financial experience to her teller position when she joined Badger Savings & Loan in 1983. She moved up to personal banker just one week later when the position unexpectedly became available.

Badger merged with North Shore Bank in 1995, and Lyneen continued her upward trajectory. She has served as branch manager, Central Region manager, district manager, and since December 2011 has held the title of operations channel manager in our corporate Customer Support Center.

“I made the change to work with a different part of the bank and use a different part of my brain,” she says. “I’ve always considered operations and processes a strength for me, yet in this position I’m still able to use my sales skills in many ways. Getting a customer to pay us after a security incident, for example, is really a form of selling; it’s all about persuasion.”

Technology has changed the face — and pace — of banking
Thirty years have brought so many changes that it’s hard to keep track of them all, but technology heads the list. Lyneen remembers writing loan payments on ledger cards and figuring interest on a calculator. “We looked up customer account numbers by signature cards,” she says.

Her new role gives her the opportunity to bridge the interface between customers and technology. “Some aspects of banking are complex for customers,” Lyneen says. “I like the support role of helping customers understand the transactions they’ve authorized, and I enjoy the challenge of making sure we consider how new technology and new regulations will affect our customers and their relationship with North Shore.”

Technology advances call for different kinds of customer relationships
Future success lies in using technology to build, not hinder, relationships. Lyneen is sad in a way to see the changes online banking have brought. “It can be more challenging for today’s staff members to get to know their customers and build relationships,” she says. But the technology has been such a boon for everyone that she can’t deny its success.

Between now and her next service anniversary, Lyneen expects to see more of the same: “More technology demanded by busy people on the go, whether it is making a deposit using your smartphone or having video conversations with customers.”

“We need to constantly remind ourselves that banking is not only about mastering technology; it still is about building strong and positive relationships with not only our customers, but also with our team — elements that will continue to make North Shore Bank successful and a top place to work.”