Finding and keeping top talent is high on the list of the many challenges Virginia banks face. We hear over and over from our members about how difficult it is to attract quality employees and that the pool of available candidates has shrunk exponentially over the last decade. The solution is BankTalentHQ — the premier talent management site for financial industry careers, brought to you by the VBA and in partnership with other state banking associations across the country.

When you post on BankTalentHQ, through their partnership with America’s Job Exchange, your open position is also posted on a combination of 7,500 employment offices, community-based organizations and specific diversity hiring sites. Your position will also be funneled to Top USA Jobs, U.S. Military Pipeline, multiple state banking association websites, as well as hundreds of others. Our goal is to generate the candidates who have the skills and experience that your organization needs.

In order to drive talented job seekers to the site, we need job posts from as many Virginia banks as possible. The more jobs posted, the easier it will be to build the talent pool of resumes. For a limited time, we will be offering FREE 30-day job postings for VBA members to assist in the progression of the site. Contact Amy Binns to learn more.

Benchmark Community Bank
Renee Puryear – Relationship Banker

Dollar Bank
Julie Bartley – Vice President, Business Banking Manager

Farmers Bank
Sandra Williams – Vice President, Branch Manager

Old Point National Bank
Matthew Queripel – Senior Vice President, Market Executive

United Bankshares, Inc.
Dr. Patrice Harris – Board of Directors

The current economic crisis driven by the COVID-19 pandemic has shocked the financial sector and organizations are learning firsthand whether the risk management strategies they put in place are working or not. Here are some of the key practices that organizations will need to implement in their risk strategies to contain and manage the risks in the "new normal." (BAI)

Amid the COVID-19 recession, business conditions were most often called the single biggest challenge facing community banks, according to an annual survey recently released by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. (ABA Banking Journal)

Bank Director’s latest governance survey holds some interesting nuggets. Those surveyed identified two key issues facing bank boards today, with more than two-thirds of respondents tagging them: Staying abreast of changes in the banking industry and cybersecurity. The dangers of data breaches and importance of keeping pace with industry changes aren’t new challenges, but they’ve obviously become a greater area of concern over recent months. (Bank Director)

Over the last 10 years, the banking industry has seen a steady decline in fee income associated with checking accounts — community banks under $10B have seen a 32% decline and banks over $10B have seen a 45% decline in fee income when compared to a 2008 baseline. Many institutions are raising fees. Here, Sean C. Payant, Ph.D., with VBA Associate Member Haberfeld, talks about the factors banks should evaluate as they consider whether to raise fees.

Several financial institutions have fallen victim to losses arising out of wire transfer and check forgery schemes targeting HELOC accounts and have taken action to mitigate the risk of future loss experience. According to this article from VBA Associate Member Travelers, banks can take steps to help eliminate, or at least significantly reduce, losses arising out of HELOC fraud scams.