As both a hiker and a banker, Lynn Rhodes is conditioned to navigate rocky terrain. After 15 years in banking, Rhodes has navigated the ups and the downs of the industry while working at a number of banks, including one that failed.
Rhodes is now on steady ground as executive vice president of risk management at Flagship Bank Minnesota, Wayzata. She is one of eight bankers honored by BankBeat as a “2022 Rising Star in Banking.”
Rhodes was cautioned early in her career that working in risk management can often be a thankless position. The warning came from a chief financial officer of a Twin Cities community bank that later failed. At the time, Rhodes was an intern in the lending department.
“It’s not a position you want to see any bank go through again,” Rhodes said of the experience. With early exposure to the downside of risk, Rhodes learned the importance of nuanced communication amid great challenges. “I learned a lot about how important oversight and management is in the entire banking process.”
As the executive vice president of risk management, Rhodes not only oversees the compliance program for the $330 million Flagship Bank, but also for its $728 million sister organization Security Bank & Trust Company in Glencoe, Minn.
“[Rhodes] has been critical in building and overseeing a strong audit, compliance, CRA and BSA program for both banks, and has helped successfully guide both banks through examinations with multiple agencies as well as numerous independent audits,” said Brian Wagner, president of Flagship.
While the positive exam and audit results speak for themselves, Wagner said, “a less measurable but equally important aspect of her impact is the positive and collaborative approach she takes with her peers.”
Though her position is less customer-facing in nature, Rhodes’ communication skills have proven vital to the institutions’ healthy management. This leadership and comprehensive risk management experience has led to growth, success, and “will continue to be a huge asset for both organizations,” Wagner said.
Overseeing the two banks’ compliance programs has meant understanding and navigating their distinctions. While Security Bank & Trust has a predominantly consumer and rural customer base, Flagship largely serves commercial and urban customers.
“They’re totally different markets,” said Jackie Herman, chief operating officer at Flagship. “Working with each of those unique personalities, she’s able to communicate at different levels … depending on her audience.”
Rhodes administers all things compliance, which often means that “no news is good news in that type of role,” Herman said. Rhodes, however, has honed the ability to communicate with colleagues in a way that is delicate, honest and constructive. Rhodes enjoys explaining difficult concepts in a way that’s understandable and relevant to those in different banking sectors, ultimately contributing to the bank’s culture of transparency and trust.
“Different aspects of banking can get really complicated really fast, especially in regulations,” Rhodes said. Oftentimes regulations are muddled by complicated language, “but if you break down and simplify it, then it resonates.”
When Herman conducted the interview that led to Rhodes’ hiring at Flagship in 2017, she recognized in Rhodes traces of maturity and grit. During interviews, Herman typically looks for three qualities: Intelligence, drive and integrity. The greatest of the three, Herman said, is integrity.
Herman considered the personality of a hiker — someone who can maintain mental sharpness under the pressure of less oxygen — and noticed a parallel to Rhodes’ even-keeled inclination in the comparably high-stakes banking environment of risk management.
“[Rhodes] has naturally mastered being analytical, being organized, and being personable, all at the same time,” Herman said.
Rhodes has a “big picture” vantage point hoisted by her team-oriented focus and profound industry acumen, which “allows her to apply sound banking and compliance practices while assisting bankers in providing a simple and straightforward approach to banking,” Wagner said.
Rhodes considers both Herman and Wagner to be friends and mentors. As she looks forward and continues her career ascent, she reflects on the trail of teachable experiences, former colleagues and counselors — including the CFO who mentally prepared her for banking compliance’s rough terrain.
The advice to which Rhodes recurrently holds fast is: “To learn from people who are willing to teach you.”