Lewis & Clark Bank Featured In Forbes.com

-- This article is republished here with the permission of the author, Ty Kiisel and Lendio. Ty Kiisel's originally posted article can be found here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tykiisel/2014/08/06/bankers-who-think-like-small-business-owners-really/

Bankers Who Think Like Small Business Owners? Really?

There are community-focused bankers who really make a difference. We often talk about them here. It’s important because the economy may be improving and things look like they are getting better, but accessing capital is still a challenge for too many Main Street business owners. These are the same businesses that employ roughly 50% of the workforce and create the lion’s share (about 75%) of new jobs.

A month or so ago I read about a bank headquartered in Oregon City, Oregon that called their bankers “Bankerpreneurs.” They are taking a different approach to their small-business focused bank—I wanted to talk to them.

Although they aren’t part of the Lendio network, they are the type of bank that should be. When I spoke with Colby Schlicker, the bank’s marketing director, I was impressed with this relatively new player in the market. Founders and co-presidents Jeff Sumpter and Trey Maust were frustrated at the bank they were at and raised enough capital to open the doors of Lewis & Clark Bank in 2006.

Since that time they’ve recruited a team of experienced bankers who are dedicated to helping small business owners with construction loans, commercial real estate loans, and other small business loans. Including their headquarters south of Portland, they currently have offices in Bend, Klamath Falls, and West Portland.

So far they might not sound too different from every other small community bank, but I think they are. Here’s why:

Offices vs. Branches: They don’t have branches. Yes, they do offer all the services you’d expect to find at a traditional bank—except the branch. Instead, they keep costs down by offering online banking services to their business customers. “It costs a ton of money to open a traditional branch,” said Schlicker. “We can better put that capital to use in offices that make small business lending more accessible and less expensive for the borrower.”

They are part of the disruption: “There’s a lot of disruption in small business lending,” said Schlicker. “Big banks aren’t lending in the smaller dollar amounts most Main Street business owners are seeking and non-bank online lenders are capturing a lot of that market.” The bankers at Lewis & Clark Bank haven’t simply observed the trend toward online banking, or looking at different criteria to evaluate potential borrowers, and making the small business loans the big box banks might not, they are right in the middle of the evolution of small business lending. And are profitably helping small business owners within their community access the capital they need to grow and thrive.

Bankerpreneurs are bankers that think like small business owners: Sumpter and Maust want their loan officers at Lewis & Clark to put themselves in the shoes of the small business owners they serve. “We’re looking for good borrowers who might be in the middle of an unusual situation,” said Schlicker. “They likely wouldn’t fit into the restrictive set of norms a typical large bank would be looking for.” He also suggested that a company big enough to employ a CFO was probably too big for them. They’re focused on helping Main Street business owners. Sumpter and Maust want to work with small business owners who are looking for capital to get things done and they expect their bankers to look at every transaction from the borrower’s perspective as well as the banks—this is what they call being a “bankerpreneur” He shared a couple of stories with me of successful business owners who had either circumstances or business models that didn’t seamlessly fit into a neat and tidy package. Some of them required the loan officer to do a little digging to understand the business and see the value of offering a loan. Instead of discouraging their bankers from doing this, they encourage it.



They make it simple: Of course it’s easy to say, “We make it simple,” but they do more than say the words. The way they approach a potential small business loan is a pretty straightforward five-step process:
 

1. Look forward—Instead of starting with questions about credit score or collateral, they want to know what the endgame looks like. What will the financing do and how will it add value to the business?
2. Business 360—They evaluate how the borrower’s current situation fits with their goals. Is a loan appropriate or are there other things that need to take place to help the small business owner qualify for a loan?
3. Resource calculator—They want to partner the small business owner with someone at the bank to shepherd them through the small business loan process. They want to invest in the small business owner within their community to help them become better small business borrowers.
4. Set the course—Together, the small business owner and their banker partner set a course to help the small business owner reach their endgame goal.
5. Green light—Once a loan is approved, the bank looks for other opportunities to do business with the small business owner. The goal is to create a long-term relationship and become a partner with the small business owners in their community.

There is no question; access to capital is one of the biggest challenges faced by small business owners. I like what Lewis & Clark is doing to overcome those obstacles.