ABA Banking Journal
No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
SUBSCRIBE
ABA Banking Journal
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
ADVERTISEMENT
Home Community Banking

Advancing women in banking leadership is everyone’s business

April 25, 2022
Reading Time: 2 mins read
Advancing women in banking leadership is everyone’s business

Sponsored by Zions Bank, this mural in downtown Salt Lake City features more than 250 female leaders from Utah's past and present.

By Scott Anderson

Community banking is at heart a local business. To be successful, we must have strong ties with the communities in which we live and work. We need to reflect our communities. But while each one of our communities differs in terms of racial and ethnic makeup, immigrant populations, LGBTQ status, religious views and other dimensions of diversity, one factor doesn’t change as you travel to different communities: women make up roughly half of our communities!

My own bank, Zions Bank in Utah, has a strong history of serving women. When we opened our doors nearly 150 years ago, five of our first 15 depositors were women. This was unusual—many banks in that period wouldn’t accept an account from a woman unless she had a man to cosign for it.

But our communities didn’t always see in us the forward-thinking identity we saw in ourselves. Not long after I joined Zions Bank in 1991, we commissioned market research that asked consumers “How would you describe Zions Bank as an individual?” The response? “A middle-aged, white, balding man who drove a Cadillac and lived in a gated community.” As a Zions customer since age eight, that wasn’t my perspective on my bank, but it’s important to hear, receive and respond to hard feedback.

So, we took it to heart. We’ve put a lot of effort into changing the image to reflect our community, including establishing a women’s business center and offering a special-purpose credit program to make loans to women-owned small businesses that might otherwise have been rejected. And in the community, we’ve sponsored initiatives like the Utah Women’s Leadership Institute, where we’re participating in the ElevateHER program to cultivate female leadership in all areas of Utah life: business, society and politics.

And we as an industry must turn our focus to our employees, too—making sure we help women use their skills and talents at every level. I’m proud of the progress we’ve made at Zions, where we’ve been recognized as having a “top team” through American Banker’s Most Powerful Women in Banking awards for several years. Today, half of the Zions Bank board is made up of women. But while women make up 52 percent of our employees, we have more work to do in our executive ranks, where our share of women leaders more closely reflects the overall industry.

It’s a reminder that supporting women’s advancement is a mission for all of us. In April, ABA and the Illinois Bankers Association hosted our second virtual Women and Allies Leadership Symposium—but note the rebranding from 2021 to include “and Allies.” That’s key. The event brought together men and women to join around this shared goal.

Advancing women’s leadership in financial services is not just a job for women. It’s a job for all of us, including male CEOs like me. It’s a job I’ve taken to heart. If we’re going to open opportunities for our female customers and team members—we all need to be fully invested.

ABA Chair Scott Anderson is president and CEO of Zions Bank in Salt Lake City.

ADVERTISEMENT
Tags: LeadershipWomen in bankingWorkforce excellence
ShareTweetPin

Related Posts

OCC sees need for regulatory reform in bank merger process

Business First to buy Progressive Bancorp in Louisiana

Community Banking
July 8, 2025

Business First Bancshares in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has agreed to buy Progressive Bancorp in Monroe.

ABA, groups urge FHA to improve loss mitigation options for borrowers

FFIEC publishes 2024 data on mortgage lending

Community Banking
July 8, 2025

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council recently published data on 2024 mortgage lending transactions reported under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act by 4,908 U.S. financial institutions.

CPFB report claims health savings accounts have ‘hidden costs’

New HSA expansion included in federal budget bill

Human Resources
July 8, 2025

President Trump last week signed a budget bill that included the largest expansions to Health Savings Accounts since they were created in 2003.

The ever-expanding role of chief risk officer

The ever-expanding role of chief risk officer

Human Resources
July 7, 2025

'A new era has emerged in which CROs faced greater nonfinancial risk amid pressure to boost the bottom line.'

ABA, associations urge lawmakers to finalize deal on debt ceiling

Updated: President signs ‘big beautiful bill’ including numerous ABA-backed provisions

Ag Banking
July 3, 2025

Included in the bill were several ABA-supported tax provisions related to banks, including a modified version of the ABA-advocated ACRE Act and the permanent extension of the Section 199A pass-through deduction rate of 20%.

Chair’s View: Celebrating a century of giving back

Chair’s View: Celebrating a century of giving back

Community Banking
July 1, 2025

Not only do we celebrate the 150th anniversary of our organization, we also commemorate an important milestone for the ABA Foundation.

NEWSBYTES

FinCEN extends compliance dates for fentanyl orders

July 9, 2025

FDIC board to consider proposals on CRA, bank branches

July 9, 2025

FOMC minutes show divergence in opinion on tariff effects

July 9, 2025

SPONSORED CONTENT

Navigating Disruption in Ag Lending – Why Tariffs Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Navigating Disruption in Ag Lending – Why Tariffs Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

July 1, 2025
AI Compliance and Regulation: What Financial Institutions Need to Know

Unlocking Deposit Growth: How Financial Institutions Can Activate Data for Precision Cross-Sell

June 1, 2025
Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

April 25, 2025
Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

April 5, 2025

PODCASTS

Podcast: Inside ABA’s new Treasury Check Verification System API

June 25, 2025

Podcast: Staying close to clients amid tariff-driven volatility

June 18, 2025

Podcast: Old National’s Jim Ryan on the things that really matter

June 12, 2025
ADVERTISEMENT

American Bankers Association
1333 New Hampshire Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
1-800-BANKERS (800-226-5377)
www.aba.com
About ABA
Privacy Policy
Contact ABA

ABA Banking Journal
About ABA Banking Journal
Media Kit
Advertising
Subscribe

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.