Randy Dorn was thrust into an unforeseen position.
A youth basketball coach since arriving in Battle Lake, Minn., 14 years ago, Dorn accepted an offer to coach the Battle Lake High School varsity boys’ basketball team during the 2021-22 season, following the resignation of the school’s previous coach.
In his only season, Dorn, president of Minnesota’s First National Bank of Henning, Otter Tail and Battle Lake, led the squad to an 5-7 conference record and was recognized as the Little Eight Conference Coach of the Year, even as he worked long hours leading the $302 million bank.
Though at first blush being a varsity basketball coach and leading a bank seem like different tasks, it’s the commonalities — securing the buy-in of team members by showing empathy, kindness and an ability to spot talent — that have allowed him to be successful at both.
“You can try to tell them a thousand different ways, but you need to show them compassion, you need to show them that you care, and they’ll buy in,” Dorn added. “They’ll do their best, and they’ll go above and beyond, which is what we need employees to do.”
Dorn, 39, is being recognized by BankBeat magazine as a 2023 “Rising Star in Banking.”
Dorn grew up on a dairy farm but wasn’t attracted to the 24/7 nature of milking cows. While attending the University of Minnesota-Moorhead, Dorn briefly worked the front desk of a local hotel. He eventually secured a part-time job at Wells Fargo, allowing him to attend school early in the day while working short shifts in the afternoon.
Drawn to the relationship-based nature of community banking, Dorn secured a position at Grand Rapids, Minn.-based Woodland Bank. He eventually led the bank’s Hill City, Minn., branch. “It’s very value-oriented,” he said of community banking. “It’s driven by the idea of faith, family and more hard work, and that fits my values. I appreciate the ability to help my family succeed, to help the communities that we serve succeed. And you are able to see your hard work come to life, and the benefits and the rewards of it.”
Dorn joined First National Bank of Henning, Otter Tail and Battle Lake in 2007. Initially a branch manager, Dorn was promoted to chief managing officer in 2019, where he served until being named president in 2021. Dorn replaced Jim Espeland, who remained as CEO and shifted his focus toward the bank’s long-term strategy, expansion and board governance. Espeland had seen Dorn’s strong organizational skills and propensity for hiring talented, hardworking employees as positive indicators of his leadership style.
“Not only did he want to grow, but he wanted the bank to do well,” Espeland added.
Five years ago, Dorn encouraged Espeland to hire First National Bank’s first IT officer. Now, the bank plans to add a second IT professional. During the pandemic, Dorn, a certified SBA lender, set up the bank’s Paycheck Protection Program, which allocated more than 700 loans.
Espeland said the bank’s SBA 504 lending program has also grown under Dorn’s dutiful eye. Under Dorn’s leadership, First National Bank has established a payments committee which meets on a quarterly basis. The $302 million bank has more than doubled the size of its asset-liability management committee to more than a half-dozen employees.
Following a staff request, employees at each of the three First National Bank branches meet on a weekly basis to discuss pertinent topics. Under Dorn’s leadership, the bank’s culture has grown to add an emphasis on the whole person rather than focusing strictly on career-related issues. Performance reviews are now structured to facilitate an open discussion with employees, who are provided a platform to express how they are feeling both personally and professionally. The reviews allow employees to know that their superiors care about their personal growth, Espeland said. “They feel more valued,” he added.
To Espeland, Dorn’s success as a bank president and basketball coach stems from his positive leadership. “Banking is really based upon a relationship, and Randy possesses such strong organizational skills that he keeps the customers, the staff, the communities, the shareholders in front of him at all times,” Espeland said.
Dorn sees the bank growing to communities outside of Otter Tail County over the next several years, offering the same business model to different communities outside of the immediate region. Dorn, who is expected to eventually succeed Espeland as CEO, views his own leadership style — approachable and willing to discuss non-work tasks with employees — as a continuation from his predecessor.
“It works well because I don’t have to act like I am just stepping in his shoes,” Dorn said. “We’re both just naturally people who care. We do see this work environment as a family, and we approach it that way.”