How bankers cope with the flood of messages and the swelling tide of data that streams their way every day

 

Go to any meeting of community bankers these days and what are they doing before programs, during programs, during breaks, and after programs? Hauling out Blackberries and other handheld fruit to check their e-mails. More community bank CEOs than ever haul laptops on the road, too, and many have been using high-end cell phones that do everything but make loans (Is that next?) for years, now.

Back at the office, e-mail and the internet dominate the desktop like nothing before. Even before the World Wide Web, bankers complained about information overload. Now, there are no superlatives left to describe the deluge.

Meantime, no one has added any hours to the day.

We’ve been hearing complaints about “electronic servitude” from many bankers. So we asked our Aspirin prescribers two questions (also by e-mail):

1. How do you handle e-mail? How do you reduce the burden? How do you enjoy its benefits?

2. How do you handle the flood of information and data that you could/should/ought to/wish you could read?

The answers to the first question were often quite surprising, though one Alabama banker told us: “I’ll get an answer to you … as soon as I get through all these *$*#@! E-mails!” We’re still waiting. The answers to the second question were few.

After you read these answers, share your own thoughts at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Put “Pass the Aspirin: Overload Ideas” in the message field. We may publish your answer on our “Pass the Aspirin Plus” website, debuting soon.

Remedy 1
Debra R. Lins, president and CEO, Community Business Bank, $48.9 million-assets, Sauk City, Wis.

Our bank’s system allows all of us here to be more efficient, as we have less telephone tag (and people tag). We have the opportunity to view what the sender is looking for and can either answer them immediately, so the e-mail does not have to be touched again, or we can save the e-mail to respond to at a later time when we know the answer or have more time. It also saves our staff time, as they no longer have to handwrite notes that can be lost on one’s desk; they can just e-mail that someone called and needs a callback, or they can even e-mail me when I am on the phone to see if I want to take the incoming call. (They used to have to leave the lobby to put a note on my desk to get my attention.)

Of course, for every pro there is a con. The disadvantage of e-mail is that you no longer have the human touch, so you may not see the person’s body language when you are sending your response to know if you truly answered their question. I also believe some brainstorming is lost when a physical conversation is no longer taking place.

The volume of e-mail can be very taxing and I have to admit that if it is ”one of those days,” when I have been out a great deal or do not have the time, I skim the subject matter. If what I see is something that I feel does not have to be opened or read, it is deleted.

I also do not move e-mails to a “save file.” I deal with it at the time it is first touched. If it needs to be passed on, I do it right away. If it looks like junk mail, it is deleted without opening. If I can respond immediately, I do; if it needs to be kept, I print it and have it filed; and if it needs to be read, or I need more time to deal with the subject matter, I print the e-mail and take it home to be read at night. It is rare that I have my e-mails scanned by anyone else, unless I am out of the bank, as our bank does not allow remote access at this time.

I do have concerns for the ”immediacy response” environment we are currently functioning in, as I believe that somewhere along the way we need more opportunity to be able to balance our time with response time, and we need to insure the human touch element that makes community bankers so special is not lost in cyberspace.

Remedy 2
Walter B. Bowden, president and CEO, Darby Bank and Trust Co., $614.5 million-assets, Vidalia, Ga.

E-mail is the best information tool that I have ever had. I have 150 employees, customers, board members, and even the ABA to respond to. I can choose the priority of responding, including fully 25% of e-mails that are deleted without thought. It is a blessing and not a burden. A CEO has a need to communicate with his people, and this is instant and direct. There is no need for pleasantries like the beginning of a telephone conversation. There is just business.

We have placed filters to keep off-the-wall e-mails from getting on my screen.

Regarding overload, that requires a real discipline to immediately throw away the junk sent to us all. Even good material has to be prioritized and only the important things get read. As CEO, I immediately send to my staff anything they might want. They are also instructed to throw it away if they do not need it. I don’t want them believing they must use it because it was forwarded from me. It requires a big picture mentality to decide what is important in order to only give time to those things. We can adjust the priorities over time. With this attitude, the overload does not create a problem.

Remedy 3
Kathleen C. Marcum, president, Millbury National Bank, $60 million-assets, Millbury, Mass.

Although e-mail can be overwhelming, it has improved my efficiency. It has almost eliminated telephone tag. I am able to send and obtain information quickly.

One of the downsides that I see is that it has almost eliminated the “How are you today? How are your children?”, which I find really helps to cement relationships.

I also relieve some of the burden by checking my e-mail from remote locations, and frequently. I do not feel “out of touch” despite my physical location.

Remedy 4
Robert T. Braswell, president and CEO, Carolina Bank, $387.5 million-assets, Greensboro, N.C.

Relative to information overload, it truly is a burden, some days, attempting to process the mountain of information that comes across the desk, e-mail, airways, and—perish the thought—customer contact. I used to read The Wall Street Journal fairly religiously, but now I lack the time to do so more than once weekly. My COO tends to send me copies of articles he thinks I would benefit from. I send him e-mails of similar interest. So by sharing the duties, we can cover more outlets for information and not get bogged down.

On e-mail, the opening comments of your question were true relative to our perception of how this service has evolved. When adding the use of “Blackberry”-like devices, this more than trebles the number of e-mails you have to attend to. We installed “spam filters” to reduce the clutter as much as possible. When we begin getting repeat e-mails from sources we have no use for, our IT department blocks it, thus reducing traffic. This has helped to reduce the e-mail challenge, thus making me more productive.

Remedy 5
Richard Chenoweth, president and CEO, The Rawlins National Bank, $125.7 million-assets, Rawlins, Wyo.

I was slow to begin using e-mail because I preferred the telephone, personal “in-person” contacts, and the written letter. I thought e-mail would be too impersonal and only for IT geeks.

But I now use e-mail for virtually all internal communication and for external communications whenever possible. I find e-mail a much faster and more efficient method to communicate with and the best method for me to provide quick responses. I enjoy the options and flexibility of sending messages to multiple parties, copying others and forwarding incoming mail as appropriate. The positive aspects and benefits of e-mail far out-weigh the negatives.

I also receive lots of spam and unwanted e-mails at an increasing rate. I never open them and delete them upon receipt, which is a nuisance, but tolerable given e-mail’s other benefits.

Information overload is my most difficult daily challenge. The demands on my time are at an all-time high and getting worse. It is just impossible to read and keep current on all of the matters I would like. My wife tells me that my desires and expectations exceed my time. I “hope” that I read the most important articles, newsletters, regulatory and industry communications, etc., and yet find time to properly serve the customer and tend to employee, director, and community needs.

Every morning I prioritize and every night it seems I leave unfinished work. I work most effectively when the bank is closed as interruptions are at a minimum. Delegation is increasingly necessary.

Remedy 6
Blair Hillyer, president and CEO, $157.5 million-assets, First National Bank, Dennison, Ohio.

E-mail is both a curse and a necessity. We are terribly burdened by junk e-mail, stock tips, drug promotions, scam offers, etc. With all that junk in my queue, I am always afraid that I am deleting something important by accident. When you are out of the office for several days, the e-mail lineup can be unbearable.

Customers that use e-mail are very impatient. When they send an e-mail, they expect an instant response. In the “old days,” I would wait for the mail to arrive, separate the important items, and answer the necessary correspondence by letter or phone. You then returned phone calls and helped customers. With e-mail, you must make it a habit to check your e-mail several times each day. I am sure I check it at least six times. This takes a great deal of time and disrupts work.

I have learned to live with e-mail and use it regularly to communicate with employees and those outside the bank. I am sure we have reached the stage where we can’t live without it!

Coping with all the information that comes across my desk has always been a challenge. E-mail has only made the problem worse. I read as much as possible, because I am always afraid that I might miss something important that will help our institution. E-mail has allowed vendors to send huge volumes of material at lower costs and they are taking full advantage of it. The regulators, trade organizations, and vendors continually send interesting items in all forms. The regulators are the worst, because they send several copies of the same thing. Trade journals and weekly updates from Washington seem to arrive daily.

I have never been able to cope with the volume during banking hours. I take most material home and read two or three publications each night. Otherwise, the only way I could stay ahead would be to throw them away upon receipt.

Remedy 7
William C. Carr, president and CEO, Liberty National Bank, $155.8 million-assets, Kenton, Ohio.

I find I have to be organized and consistent with my usage of e-mails. Each morning can bring 25-35 new e-mails, with most of them being junk or advertisements. I quickly delete all of the unwanted mail and review the rest of the mail in a priority fashion. I have folders established for specific individuals, which helps to sort incoming mail and speed the process of reading pertinent business.

I, like most community bankers, feel swamped at times with the volume of e-mail. However, after 36 years in banking I can say this is a fast, efficient way to communicate with so many different entities that without it I would feel obsolescent. I cherish the day that I took that first step to becoming computer literate.

The trick to information overload is sharing. I know I cannot read everything, so I delegate and assign a lot of reading, research, etc., to our management group, especially as it pertains to their areas of responsibility. Personally, I look at the Table of Contents in various periodicals to determine topics of interest to me. I read at least two newspapers daily and watch the nightly news. I feel comfortable with my knowledge of local and world affairs. Regardless of the amount of paperwork, I am always available to talk to my shareholders, customers, and bank staff.

Right now I have a box of reading materials under my desk, which needs to be sorted and reviewed by me. These sessions usually find a lot of stale dated material being tossed. There are no easy answers to overload, so you just have to use common sense and do the best you can. Oh yes, did I mention that I do not have an administrative assistant?

Remedy 8
Robert Rutten, president and CEO, Citizens State Bank, $69 million-assets, Arlington, S.D.

E-mail has become a “necessary problem.” It is a less-expensive communication device, but it takes more time for everybody to keep up with them. I find that my new “best friend” is my delete button. Thankfully, you can scan e-mails and send them to appropriate personnel without reading all of them.

Regarding overload issues, I have to take a lot of time on weekends and evenings when there isn’t anybody around to read through my professional material. That is one area that you cannot delegate! It “goes with the territory.”

Remedy 9
Larry J. Callais, president and CEO, M C Bank & Trust Co., $219.6 million-assets, Morgan City, La.

I depend on e-mail a great deal. I am involved with a number of community and professional organizations and, in order to keep up with them, e-mail is the most efficient means.

I also believe in sharing information from associations, regulatory bodies, and governmental entities with those officers and supervisors who would benefit from such information and e-mail is the quickest, most efficient way.

The bulk of the burden is eliminated through our firewall. Whenever I have e-mails that I still do not want to receive, a simple e-mail to my IT director includes these sources in the firewall, in order to reject further attempts.

I have not found that e-mails are a challenge except for the very few instances where some employees may be going beyond what it was set up for at the bank. To counteract this we have an e-mail policy that is required reading each year by all employees. And our IT director and security officer monitor e-mail reports daily to address any abuses quickly.

I find the best way to cope with information overload is to be selective and using those sources which are as concise as possible. One of the best means of keeping up with a great deal of the information concerning the industry—whether regulatory or otherwise—is by utilizing the e-bulletins provided by the ABA. I along with all of my officers and supervisors have selected those bulletins which can assist us directly in our respective positions and subscribe to them. Weekly I receive an update from the Louisiana Bankers Association concerning pending legislation.

Remedy 10
Don H. Pattillo, president and CEO, Farmers & Merchants Bank, $340 million-assets, Stuttgart, Ark.

Overall, I welcome the new technology. I think it makes my life easier and lets me be more productive in managing the bank.

I start hacking away at the e-mail with attempts to screen all the unsolicited sales pitches that come in every day. Of course, some make it through and I begin by immediately deleting them. I like e-mail because it is more efficient than phone calls to people who are out of pocket and have to call back later. You can always leave a message and take theirs when it comes in.

As far as the information overload, I treat it like other information coming into my office. I realize I can’t run this bank by myself so I forward pertinent information to department heads and supervisors where appropriate. This leaves me more time to deal with legislative issues and various regulatory changes as necessary. I have encouraged my department heads to subscribe to the ABA’s news services relative to their department. Such electronic newsletters and udpates can be read from the screen or printed to read later, as time and workload permits. BJ 

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