Employee Longevity Showcases Olympia Federal’s Commitment To People

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By Kate Scriven

Olympia Federal Savings was founded in 1906 with a single branch in downtown Olympia.  Over the century, they have grown to seven branches throughout Thurston and Mason Counties.  Olympians now refer to the bank simply as OlyFed, an affectionate nickname for a bank that can measure their business history in centuries.

Many regard OlyFed as an Olympia icon and when you ask around for a new bank or where to go for your loan, you’ll inevitably hear, “Go to OlyFed – they are the best.”  This statement is usually followed with an employee name and story of personal connection, describing how their banker is a friend and has made a difference in their life.

Lori Drummond, OlyFed’s President and CEO will celebrate her 29th year this month.

This is not the exception at OlyFed but rather the rule.  Connection with customers and creating lasting, real relationships is the core of their business and what keeps people coming back year after year.  But this bond isn’t only important between the bank and their customers.  OlyFed is committed to building relationships among the bank’s employees – fostering promotion from within, building longevity in their workforce.  This is a purposeful decision by the bank leadership as they value hard work and loyalty, but also value customers seeing the same face each time they visit.  This is part of what sets OlyFed apart.

Lori Drummond, OlyFed’s President and CEO, knows a bit about longevity.  She will celebrate her 29th anniversary as a bank employee on February 13.  She started as the receptionist in the main lobby of the downtown branch and worked her way up to the second floor where she is the seventh president in the bank’s 107-year history.  Drummond is also the only woman to hold the title.

Drummond smiles when she talks about her employees because she truly knows them and has “grown up” in the bank with many of her co-workers.  When asked why OlyFed has such success in retaining employees she says, “It’s the culture here.  It comes down to how you treat people – customers and employees.   Our employees are the face of our organization and we treat them right because they are our future.”

OlyFed isn’t a big corporate bank.  They have remained locally based and have grown organically as the community has expanded.  This business decisions allows them to retain their family feel while still offering all the services you can access at a larger institution.  The difference?  They know your name.

Vice President and Marketing Director, Sandy DiBernardo has been with OlyFed since 1986.

Vice President and Marketing Director, Sandy DiBernardo has been with OlyFed since 1986 and also began her 27-year tenure behind the reception desk.  As she rose in the ranks, she knew OlyFed wasn’t going to be just a “job”, as she initially thought.  The focus on integrity, good citizenship, and honest and approachable staff provided a place she could build a career.

“We always think about what’s good for the customer, what’s good for the organization, what’s good for the community when making decisions.  It guides us as an institution,” explains DiBernardo.  “Being small, we can be responsive to what Thurston County’s people want.   And, we attract customers who value what we value.”  For example, a real person answers the phone when you call – every time.  “We may be a bit old-fashioned,” says DiBernardo, “but our products and service aren’t.  We offer nearly everything a big bank does, but we do it here in Olympia with our neighbors.”

As OlyFed has grown throughout the years, a need for strong leadership at new branches has emerged.  Again, they were able to look within when opening the Lacey Branch and turned to 30-year veteran Michelle Lord.  Her story at OlyFed begins in the same place as Drummond and DiBernardo’s – at the reception desk.

Lord rose in the ranks through hard work, integrity, and commitment.  Now the Lacey Branch Manager, Lord shares, “OlyFed has been doing business here so long, that they really know the community.  They know what kind of people live here and how they want to do business.  You are never a number at OlyFed.”

As a branch manager and longtime employee, Lord sees it as part of her responsibility to teach new employees what she knows about banking and serving customers, but also about OlyFed’s culture.  “Sharing my knowledge makes us all stronger, individually and as a company, ” adds Lord.

Thirty year veteran, Lacey branch manager Michelle Lord, rose through the ranks through hard work, integrity and commitment.

OlyFed’s commitment to the community is easy to see.  From their annual involvement in the Providence St. Peter’s Christmas Forest to participation in the Saint Martin’s Gala to their ongoing support of GRUB, SafePlace, Boys and Girls Clubs of Thurston County and The Community Foundation, OlyFed is focused on their community.  (To read more about OlyFed’s 100 years of generosity, click here.)

The relationships they build through their customer and philanthropic interactions are intentional and part of the fabric of who they are.  “When a company loses sight of what they are really about,” says Drummond, “things can go astray.  When you are all about building relationships, both internally and externally, and remain focused on that it makes a huge difference.”

It’s a difference you will feel if you bank at OlyFed.  And it’s a difference that their employees feel every day, creating unprecedented employee longevity for any business.   What was the one thing all three of these amazing woman said when asked about their job?  “I love OlyFed and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”  It’s interesting – this is exactly what their customers say as well.

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