Nayer Sikder’s desire to grow personally and professionally has been a defining feature of her 10-year career at Austin, Texas-based American Bank of Commerce.
Sikder, who leads the bank’s retail collections work, is perhaps even more acclaimed for her community involvement and willingness to learn tasks beyond her official job description. Her willingness to go above and beyond her work at the bank and in the Austin community has earned her recognition as one of BankNews magazine’s 2023 “Outstanding Women in Banking.”
Sikder, a native of Bangladesh, is culture lead of the Bangladesh Association of Greater Austin, which promotes and sustains services on behalf of the city’s Bangladeshi-American community. She leads the organization’s annual talent show and recruits participants.
An emerging community leader, Sikder is active in Financial Women in Texas, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce and Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce. She has served as a City of Austin commissioner for the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission. From 2019-21, Sikder was a director of Austin Bangla School, which offers classes for children and adults who want to learn the language and culture of Bangladesh.
“The community has given me so much, and it’s for me to give something back,” Sikder said. “There’s so much you can do and help in the community, their needs. I get satisfaction from helping them.”
Senior Vice President of Small Business Administration Lending Shasi Wilson credited Sikder for being willing to learn more about cash management, insurance products and lending to more effectively market American Bank of Commerce at community networking events.
“She has shown great initiative in participating in getting some name recognition for our bank in the community,” Wilson said. “To enter a room full of strangers can be daunting — unless one has a totally different mindset, which Nayer has.”
Sikder’s desire to serve the community was sparked as she was growing up in Bangladesh. Her father, a businessman and a film producer, would take his family to villages to feed people in need with his own money while helping villagers secure money for homes and business inventory and to meet other needs. Sikder’s father died in 2004.
“That’s what motivated me,” she said. “Rain or shine, he would take us. I have seen so many people come to him with so many problems, whether it’s a health issue or funding that was needed for a school.”
Sikder, who emigrated to the United States as a 20-year-old newlywed in 1998, soon attended the University of Texas-Dallas, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration. Sikder’s first job out of college was in banking, which she enjoyed. She took a five-year hiatus from the profession in 2008 after the birth of her son, Nameer.
American Bank of Commerce hired Sikder in 2013 as an Austin-based part-time teller. Her desire to grow at the bank was soon evident as she asked her supervisor for additional responsibilities, both from her natural desire to learn and from a yearning for change. In 2018, she became a lending assistant, and was appointed to lead American Bank of Commerce’s retail collections work in 2020.
In her current role, Sikder leads the bank’s collection of consumer and commercial charge-offs and recovery of accounts and loans; prepares and delivers monthly charge-offs and recovery reports to the executive board; monitors and addresses delinquent accounts and loans; and investigates and resolves exceptions for the collections department.
“I am a people person, I love talking to people … it’s the connection. It’s also helping, and we see so many different types of customers and people who come into the bank,” Sikder said. “They have their own stories that they share, and also you are helping them in banking and in different ways.”
When Sikder delivers challenging news, she prioritizes staying calm and listening to customers while understanding that their anger could just be a response to troubling circumstances.
“It’s part of my job, and maybe they are not having a good day,” Sikder said. “I understand they are going through some problem or issue and I understand their frustration. At the end of the day, everyone has their own story. Everyone has a bad day.”
True to her desire to help others, she hopes that being named an “Outstanding Woman in Banking” will help those who are seeking professional or personal growth. “This nomination will encourage women who are passionate about their jobs and have started late,” she said. “It is never too late to start a career, even if it is totally a new one, or it’s starting from scratch.”