Deputy Chief Operating Officer

Investar Bank, National Association; Baton Rouge (LA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Investar Bank, National Association in Baton Rouge seeks an experienced Operations Executive to support the Chief Operations Officer with strategic planning, regulatory alignment, and efficiency initiatives across Retail, Commercial, and C&I lines.

The role directs staff, oversees SOX controls, and partners with regional leaders to optimize processes, systems, and vendor management while driving profitability and customer service excellence.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required.
• 10+ years’ experience in a Retail or Operations Banking environment.

Responsibilities

• Provides operational oversight for the Retail Branch Network, Small Business, CRE and C&I lines of business (loans and deposits).
• Ensures operational processes, policies, and systems support organizational growth.
• Assesses, develops, and coaches staff to support long-term business goals and customer service.
• Ensures relevant SOX Controls are carried out on time and implements or modifies controls as needed.
• Assists the COO with administration, including developing operating policies and procedures.
• Reviews and analyzes loan and deposit activity against staffing and profitability metrics.

Skills

Leadership

Staff development

Regulatory knowledge

SOX compliance

Financial analysis

Vendor management

Communication

Strategic planning

Team coaching

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Tools

MS Office

Core banking systems

Job description

Supports the Chief Operations Officer by providing strategic, operational efficiency, and M&A support as assigned. Develops and implements strategic plans for the Operations department in accordance with strategic goals/objectives, with a focus on meeting regulatory, legal, and compliance requirements. Optimizes the use of all systems (FIS Core, Compliance Systems). Develops, implements, documents, and maintains deposit and loan operations policies, processes, and procedures. Directs the activities of assigned staff.

Job Responsibilities –

• Provides operational oversight for the Retail Branch Network, Small Business, CRE and C & I lines of business (loans and deposits).
• Ensures operational processes, policies, and systems support organizational growth.
• Assesses, develops, and coaches staff in the skills necessary to support long-term business goals, employee development, product and promotional strategies, and customer service.
• Ensures relevant SOX Controls are carried out on time and implements or modifies controls as needed.
• Assists the COO with overall administration, including developing financial institution operating policies and procedures and analyzing operational problems to develop procedures to resolve them.
• Reviews and analyzes loan and deposit activity against staffing to support a quantitative staffing model and product performance and profitability metrics.
• Coordinates forecasting and related analysis for assigned areas as part of budget processes.
• Oversees acquisition bank product evaluations for product alignment and implementation.
• Collaborates closely with Regional and Market Presidents to ensure support areas of the bank perform as expected, deliver exceptional customer service, and meet bank customers' needs.
• Maintains and optimizes use of all systems.
• Coordinates and manages critical vendors (mainly FIS and CS, ATM vendors, etc.) to ensure statements of work are accurately documented and completed in a timely manner. Ensures scope of services under MASTER agreements is as intended.
• Coordinates, Communicates, and Trains on all new system releases to include correction of defects, enhancements, and regulatory items, etc.
• Reviews and analyzes financial data to ensure accuracy and identify financial/operational items to bring to management's attention.
• Ensures that own work is in compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, policies, and guidelines.

All other duties as assigned.

Education and Related Experience –

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required.
• 10+ years’ experience in in a Retail or Operations Banking environment required.

Skills and Abilities –

• Must possess operational knowledge of multiple areas of a financial institution.
• Must understand the importance of sales in a community bank environment. This includes program development, training, goal setting, tracking, and rewarding employees for sales.
• Must possess the ability to motivate and encourage staff.
• Must possess the ability to provide feedback to employees and develop reward systems as appropriate.
• Must possess the ability to communicate thoughts clearly, both orally and in writing.
• Must possess the ability to communicate throughout the bank and to all levels of staff.
• Must possess the ability to understand the concept of banking products.
• Must possess the ability to make recommendations for feature/function changes to help the bank remain competitive and profitable.
• Must possess the ability to embrace change and see it as an opportunity.
• Must be willing to express and support management’s ideas to affected staff.
• Must possess knowledge of standard office equipment including computer, ten-key adding machine, typewriter, fax machine, scanner, and copy machine.
• Must possess knowledge of computers and computer operations and MS Office software.
• Must possess good organizational skills.
• Must possess the ability to perform detailed tasks with accuracy.
• Must possess the ability to work through stress and handle difficult situations.
• Must possess a sincere passion for sales and a desire to grow customer relationships and develop employees
• Must possess a high energy level, strong work ethic, and ability to accept and direct accountability.
• Must possess leadership/management experience.
• Must successfully use independent judgment and discretion
• Strong knowledge of core processor system (loans/Deposits)
• Strong supervision/Delegation
• Strong analytic skills with excel/other

Working Conditions and/or Physical Requirements –

• Ability to work under stress and meet deadlines.
• Ability to operate a keyboard if required to perform the essential job functions.
• Ability to read and interpret a document.
• Ability to travel if required to perform the essential job functions.
• Ability to lift/move/carry approximately 20 pounds if required to perform the essential job functions. If the employee cannot lift/move/carry this weight and can be accommodated without causing the department an “undue hardship,” then the employee must be accommodated; therefore, lifting is omitted as a physical requirement.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled