The Bank of Tucson named 10 "up-and-comers," four of whom are children of its board members, to start learning the banking business and eventually take over the board.
They may not be ready to take the field today, but the bank is committed to training them and allowing them to advise the board of directors on what the next generation of business leaders wants from a community bank, said bank President Michael Hannley.
"I look at the board as the major league and this advisory board is the minor league," he said. "As the major leaguers retire, we'll bring up the minor leaguers. They should be the future leaders."
Among the members of the new Bank of Tucson Advisory Board is Hannley's son, Bryan Hannley, who is the clinical director at ProActive Physical Therapy, 3100 N. Campbell Ave. This will be his first experience in the banking industry, Bryan Hannley said.
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"My father has been my personal adviser in my career, and now I have the opportunity to learn about his business and eventually serve in a capacity where I can be an adviser to him," he said.
Other family ties between the boards include:
• Brian Imwalle, a vice president at Lovitt & Touche Inc., whose father, Richard Imwalle, is chairman of the board of directors and former president of the University of Arizona Foundation;
• Tim Harris, a Realtor with Long Realty Co. whose father and business partner, Michael J. Harris, is a board member;
• Omar Mireles, executive vice president of HSL Properties, whose uncle and boss is board member Humberto Lopez.
There is a lot of family connection in the succession plan, but "it's a real, working board with a tremendous amount of responsibility today and in the future," Hannley said.
The next generation of the board needs to learn to analyze financial statements, understand the process for approving loans and have a broad knowledge of local business, he said.
The other up-and-comers are:
• Kimberly Clements, president of Golden Eagle Distributors Inc., who along with her brother, Christopher Clements, inherited the business from their parents;
• Neil Weitman, general manager of Royal Buick, who is the son of Paul Weitman, dealership owner;
• Brad Feder, principal of Simply Bits LLC;
• Rodney Glassman, president of the Glassman Foundation and a candidate for the City Council;
• Megan Davis, president of The Davis Consulting Group;
• Matt Muehlebach, a former University of Arizona basketball player who now works as an attorney with partner Larry Hecker, chairman of the Economic Blueprint Steering Committee.
The other members of the board of directors include: Bruce Ash, Slivy Edmonds Cotton, David Jeong, Michael Kasten, Burt Kinerk and Harold Kitay.
Bank of Tucson is part of Capitol Bancorp Ltd., which has executive offices in Phoenix and Lansing, Mich. The state-chartered bank, which has an office in Tucson at 4400 E. Broadway and another in Nogales at 610 N. Morley Ave., emphasizes small-business services and has assets of about $176.5 million.
"I look at the board as the major league and this advisory board is the minor league. … They should be the future leaders."
Michael Hannley, Bank of Tucson president