July 25, 2024

AROUND THE BANK

Emerging Leaders Group celebrates new Core Team with epic game-show battle

(Back row, L to R) Breanna Rooney, Ryan Melcarek, Kristin Monday, Ray Guardiola, Rachel Rasmussen, Mike Monday (husband/guest of Kristin), Sara Speich; (Front row, L to R) James O’Brien, Melissa Grode, Kari Tuyls, Beth Wianecki, Rebecca Guardiola (wife/guest of Ray), Jenni Horst (twin sister/guest of Beth)

The Emerging Leaders Group (ELG) recently celebrated its new Core Team with a fun day of friendly competition between group members at Game Show Battle Rooms. Broken into two teams, they went head to head in games that are similar to classic game shows.

Beth Wianecki, AVP and branch operations support manager, is the new chair of the Core Team. The team coordinates the group’s scheduling, content, and events. Beth said individuals are nominated to the group by their managers.

“It’s for people starting out with North Shore Bank or within their career here who have a drive to be involved and move up,” Beth said. ELG members offer support for bank initiatives, participate in community events, and organize a group outing each year to volunteer for a worthy cause.

The employee-led, voluntary group has 27 members, which includes the Core Team. Beth said the ELG does a “just for fun” outing like the Game Show Battle Rooms once a year to get the group together outside of bank-related events. “It was very competitive. I was not on the winning team,” Beth said with a laugh.

The winning team is (back row, L to R) Kristin Monday, Breanna Rooney, Ray Guardiola, Mike Monday, (front row, L to R) James O’Brien, Ryan Melcarek, Kari Tuyls.

Throughout the year, there is typically one ELG event per month, such as webinars, meetings with senior leaders of the bank to learn more about how they got started and the responsibilities of their roles, and sessions on leadership.

And while learning and leadership is the focus, Beth said the relationships formed throughout the group are also a key benefit. “You make connections with people in other departments and that’s really helpful,” she said. “It’s such a great group of people. All are driven, but so fun to be around.”

The new Core Team will lead the group for the next two years. In addition to Beth, members of the Core Team are:

  • Vice Chair Kristin Monday, Accounting operations manager
  • Incoming Vice Chair Rachel Rasmussen, Marketing data analyst
  • Board Members: Aubrey Abrahamson, Allouez assistant branch manager; Tisha Kenfield, Northland assistant branch manager; Ryan Melcarek, Human Resources training specialist; Heather Somers, Oak Creek branch manager
  • Executive Sponsors: Molly Schissler, chief HR officer; Sue Doyle, SVP retail banking

In future months, we will feature members of the ELG in Shorelines, so keep an eye out for that!

 

OUT OF OFFICE

IT team jumps aboard river cruise for after-work fun

The IT team on the Fiesta Cruise in downtown Milwaukee.

The IT team took a fun Fiesta Cruise through downtown Milwaukee earlier this month, enjoying delicious Mexican food, great music, beautiful weather, and a nice evening to have a good time together outside the office. Dana Scherff, VP, Information Systems, said the team was happy to get back to its annual outing, which hasn’t taken place for a few years due to the pandemic.

The 90-minute cruise, run by Edelweiss Cruises & Boat Tours, took the team down the river, into the harbor, and behind the breakwater by the Milwaukee Art Museum. The team was lucky to get a large table outside to enjoy the perfect weather.

Dana said the dedicated, conscientious team has a lot of fun together during the normal business day, which makes getting together outside of work extra fun. “IT can be a high-pressure environment; it can be stressful at times,” she said. “That’s why it was important for us to get away from the office and just enjoy each other’s company. It’s a really fun group, pretty special.”

 

Marketing team enjoys fun day of friendly competition

The Marketing team enjoying game-show battles: (L to R) Kate Knox, Rachel Rasmussen, Kate Johnson, Emily VandenHeuvel, Mary Ott, Sheri Livermore, Jordan Gundrum, Brent Neumann, Scott Stulo, Nate Dekker, and Tim Gluth.

The Marketing Department also visited Game Show Battle Rooms recently for a fun day of team building. The group divided into two teams—men versus women—to see who would emerge victorious after playing classic game shows.

The matches were highly competitive, but the women’s team walked away as the winner. Congratulations, ladies, and better luck next time, guys!

 

BANK ON KINDNESS

Pups take center stage at Dog Days on Drexel

The Oak Creek branch team gets ready for Dog Days. The team includes (from left) Alena, Rayna, and Lincoln, all children of Heather Somers (with patterned purse strap); Teller Samantha Mars; Personal Banker Kelly Berglund with her pup, Stormy, and daughters Andrea and Ali; and Teller Kristin Derzay (far right) with her daughter, Kailey.

Arvin

Employees from North Shore Bank handed out free dog toys and treats at Dog Days at Drexel last weekend in Oak Creek. Heather Somers, Oak Creek branch manager, said the free gifts were a big surprise to attendees.

“We loved spreading kindness and petting the dogs,” she added. “It was so much fun!”

Bartleby

The branch used $300 from its Random Acts of Kindness fund to donate to Rescue Gang, a nonprofit pup adoption agency. The donation will put $150 toward the adoption fees for two dogs that have been at the shelter the longest—Arvin and Bartleby. You can see both dogs and all of Rescue Gang’s adoptable dogs on their website.

 

BRANCH NEWS

Grateful couple surprises Burlington branch with sweet treats

Lead Teller Emily Henry shows off the treats customers brought to the branch.

The Burlington branch recently received a sweet surprise. The branch team helped a couple who needed assistance with their mother’s accounts after she passed away. The couple dropped off a large box of doughnuts to thank the team for the care they took at a difficult time.

Great job, Burlington branch!

 

NEW HIRES

June 2024 new hires

Welcome to all of our new hires for June 2024!

  • Eric Beck joined us as a personal banker at the Fox Point Branch.

  • Brandon Cathey joined us as a teller at the Bayshore Branch.

  • Arlyn Collett joined us as a teller at the Germantown Branch.

  • Sydnee Korom joined us as a teller at the Kenosha Central Branch.

 

HEALTHY YOU

Focus on inner calm, staying healthy this summer

Don’t sweat the small stuff

When we’re already sweating in the summer heat, it isn’t fun to feel the additional pressure of things in our lives that may make us feel anxious, upset, or stressed. We encourage you to try some new strategies that will help you not sweat the small stuff—that is, not to focus your energy on things that don’t hold significant importance in your life.

Click here for some helpful steps you can take to let go of little things that may bother you.

Top 10 cancer prevention strategies

Lowering your risk of cancer can be one of the keys to a longer, healthier life for you and your loved ones. This flyer offers 10 ways individuals can reduce their cancer risk with smart lifestyle and healthcare choices.

Take care of your skin in the summer sun

Avoiding sunburns lowers your risk of developing skin cancer. This flyer provides tips on protecting yourself from the sun with a QR code that links to tips on using sunscreen appropriately.

 

FROM HR

Your employee referrals benefit us – and you!

This is just a reminder that you can score a win-win for North Shore Bank and yourself by helping us fill open positions with our employee referral bonus program!

Make a qualified referral, and you’ll be eligible for:

  • A $100 gift card will be given to you during your referral’s first week of employment
  • A $1,000 to $2,000 cash reward based on the open position! (External candidates only, cash incentive paid out in two installments, 30 and 180 days post-employment)
  • A chance to win a quarterly shopping spree (valued at $500!) on the Seymour Salutes Bucketlist website

Janet Rosenthal, talent acquisition manager, said our great employees are the best source for quality candidates. 02546 If you know someone in your circle outside of the bank who would be a great fit for a position, be sure to fill out the Employee Referral Form, which can be found on Ask Seymour under the Jobs tile!  Remember, someone inquiring about a job while at the branch doesn’t qualify as a referral.

All employees are eligible for referral rewards except senior executives and Human Resources staff. There are a few exceptions for managers:

  • District Managers are eligible if the referral is not for one of the branches they are responsible for
  • Branch Managers are eligible if the referral is not for the branch they are responsible for
  • Department Managers are eligible if the referral is not for a department they oversee

If you have questions about the program, reach out to Janet at jrosenthal@northshorebank.com.

 

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Zelle adds QR codes to make sending, receiving money easier

Zelle users can now access a QR code in their personal mobile app/online banking that contains their unique Zelle payment information. Users can:

  • Share their QR code with others for a safe and easy way to receive Zelle payments from others.
  • Scan and store codes from friends and family for quick ways to send money.

Search the Zelle Reference Guide for more details on how to use QR codes.

 

Customer Loyalty Tip of the Week

Eliminate the words “can’t, won’t, and don’t” from your vocabulary. Instead, focus on what you CAN do and will do for your coworkers and customers.

 

COMMUNITY CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Discover events and activities in and around your community

  • Music at the Pavilion in Germantown | Thursday, June 6 to Thursday, August 15| Gehl’s Performing Arts Pavilion, Firemen’s Park, Germantown, WI
  • Join us for SAGE Grows In Rural WI-Pulaski Edition | Tuesday, July 30 (5:30 PM) | North Shore Bank – Pulaski Branch | 165 N. St. Augustine St. | Pulaski, WI
  • Family Fun Carnival in Germantown | Thursday, July 25 (5 PM) | Firemen’s Park | W162 N11870 Park Avenue | Germantown, WI
  • St. Francis National Night Out | Wednesday, August 7 (6 PM) | Milton Vretenar Memorial Park | 4230 S. Kirkwood Ave. | St. Francis, WI

Shorelines wants to share news about YOU!

Just a reminder that we’re always looking for fun and exciting things to share in Shorelines.  Whether it’s a special event at your branch or a shout-out to one of your coworkers, a great trip you went on with family or friends, information about a half-marathon you’re running, or even just a fantastic photo you took over the weekend, we’d love to share it! Please email shorelines@northshorebank.com to have your news included in a future issue.