Chester County Leadership – Patti Husic, CEO of Centric Bank

By

Patti Husec

As she prepares to cut the ribbon opening her bank’s first suburban Philadelphia branch across the street from The Devon Horse Show grounds, Patti Husic, the CEO of Centric Bank, spoke with VISTA Today about growing up outside Harrisburg, the values her parents instilled in her during her childhood, her entry into banking, liquidating her personal savings to bet on herself and her new bank, and the kinship she feels with her clients who are small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Husic also discussed her passion for giving back to the community, being a leader for women in banking, the choice to expand Centric Bank into suburban Philadelphia, and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the bank.

Can you share a little bit about your background, Patti?

I was born and grew up in south central Pennsylvania in a small town called Oberlin, tucked between Harrisburg and Steelton. I am the younger of two sisters and both of us returned to the Harrisburg area after college to start our careers.

My grandparents were Croatian immigrants, and when my grandmother came to America, she was 15 years old. Her family remained in Croatia because they could only afford to send one child to the United States for a better life. When I asked my Mom later in life why was my grandmother chosen among her siblings, she told me that the most adventuresome child was selected, one that was courageous and fearless!

We are a very close family, active in our church and community, and enjoyed lots of family activities with relatives and friends. My father, Anthony, and I had special bond with our love for the Phillies.

I was always impressed with my father’s work ethic, drive, attention to detail, and especially his resilience. The landscaping at our family home reflected his attention to detail and the pride he took in everything he did. He worked for the New Cumberland Airport in maintenance for 30 years, in addition to managing several part-time jobs for a significant number of years. Although he never completed high school, to me he was the smartest man I knew.

My father valued education immensely and encouraged my sister and me to excel. Both of my parents wanted us to be the first to graduate from college in our family. My mother (Catherine) was the executive assistant to the Human Resources Director for the Pennsylvania Railroad for over 30 years. She was positive, encouraging, and always a strong advocate for her loved ones. I credit my Mom with my gift of persistence. I still hear her words of advice, “Never give up, Patricia.” That advice has been instrumental to me in my career.

My parents instilled important values in me, encouraged me to set goals, work hard, aim high, and go after what I believe in. 

How did you get started in banking?

When I went to Temple at 18 years old, I thought I had my life figured out. My goal was to work in public accounting, become a CPA, and eventually become a partner in a CPA firm. When I graduated, I joined a CPA firm in central Pennsylvania, where I focused primarily on auditing financial institutions. Five years later, one of my bank clients offered me a position to lead the finance and accounting area at a de-novo bank. I credit those two early positions with developing my love of banking.

I spent almost 14 years with Pennsylvania State Bank before it was sold in 2004. As CIO, I was part of the senior leadership team, and six of the eight of us would be losing our positions due to the merger. The acquiring institution wanted to retain me as a project manager.

Meanwhile, John Vartan asked me to join his organization, Dauphin National Bank, as the CFO/COO. The challenge was to help turn around his Bank. He was a real estate developer who acquired 100% of this bank (Dauphin National Bank) in the mid-1980s. I decided to make the change and accept this role. What resonated with me were the challenges and the opportunity to place my handprint on the organization. Over my career, I have successfully completed a number of turnarounds, and this would be the most challenging one yet.

You are known for your entrepreneurial spirit. What impact has that had on the founding of Centric Bank and your customers?

I feel a strong connection with our small business clients and entrepreneurs—the men and women who risk everything to bring a dream to market. I’ve been there. In 2007, four of us risked our futures and significant savings to introduce central PA to a community bank that was truly different. Raising $12 million of capital in 58 days, bringing on eight new board members, liquidating my personal savings as a single mother to invest and bet on myself, achieving regulatory approval, and rebranding the bank to the newly named Centric Bank—all in less than 120 days.

But the hard work was just beginning. We worked to turn around the financial institution on the cusp of heading into the financial recession in the fall of 2008. Now, 13 years later, driven by grit, passion, and purpose, we are celebrating unimaginable growth, market expansion, and community impact. I’m reminded of a quote from Marissa Mayer: “I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.’”

You are passionate about giving back to the community—both as an individual and for the bank. Why is that important to you?

As a community bank CEO, I’m active in our community every day. Our tagline is “We Revolve Around You” and that extends well beyond our customers. It includes the organizations we support, the boards we serve on, and the programs we offer like Women Centric.

Some of the boards that I have served on include Holy Spirit/Geisinger Hospital, Whitaker Center, and Capital Region Economic Development Corporation (CREDC). As an institution, Centric Bank gives back with our time and our financial resources to hundreds of organizations including the YWCA (Harrisburg and Doylestown), Central PA Food Bank, Toys for Tots, Downtown Daily Bread, The Salvation Army, and FLITE.

One of my greatest passions is the American Heart Association, and I’m a member of the Executive Leadership Team, founder of the AHA Centric Red Couch, and a former Go Red Chair. My parents are my Why—both suffered from heart disease and stroke. I have pledged to make sure women are informed and educated on the lifestyle changes we can make to eradicate heart disease and stroke, the #1 killer of women in the U.S.

You are a leader for women in banking on a local, state, and national level. Tell us how your banking journey is helping other women succeed.

I believe in the power of “See one to be one.” For the Centric women I mentor daily at the bank, I hope working alongside a female CEO and observing good communication, resilience, respect in the workplace, and how to handle conflict is not only showing a path to the C-suite but showing how to conduct yourself with dignity and decorum.

In 2012, I founded the PA Bankers Women in Banking (WIB) Advisory Committee and launched a conference in 2014 that has attracted statewide and national attention. Internationally recognized speakers and panelists challenge female bankers to mentor each other, network with intention, and prioritize professional development as they advance. I’m a Past Chair of the Board of PA Bankers, the third-largest banking association in the nation, and only the third woman in 125 years to chair. I’ve taught at the PA Banking Schools, am a board member of the American Bankers Association, served on the Executive Women’s Leadership Panel for ABA, participated as a panelist on the Mentor Factor in New York City, and founded Women Centric: Prepared to Lead, a quarterly executive leadership initiative for our women-owned/women-led companies that are customers of Centric Bank and other women-owned businesses in the community.

It’s an honor to be recognized by my banking peers as one of American Banker’s 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking for five consecutive years. I was also awarded the inaugural Woman of Influence award by PA Bankers for the development of the Women in Banking Program. Going forward, the award became a legacy honor.

My other recognitions include: Diversity Champion by the Harrisburg Chamber/CREDC, Business Woman of the Year by the West Shore Chamber, inducted into the Circle of Excellence by the Central Penn Business Journal, and received the Lifetime Achievement award by the Conference for Women Be Extraordinary.

I am one of 13 female bank CEOs in the Commonwealth of PA out of 189 banks, and our executive team at Centric is comprised of 60% female executives. My goal is to ensure that younger female bankers and high-potential employees can benefit from my experience and journey.

How do you inspire future generations to take an interest in banking?

Over the past year, I‘ve enjoyed several opportunities to connect with high school students, and it was not only refreshing but informative. For instance, I was invited by the American Heart Association to speak to girls at Penn State Hershey Medical Center about STEM. Their overall viewpoint and modern perspective was much different than that of an experienced CEO. It humbles me to go back to my roots and approach everyday situations with a clean slate. Gen Z is the future of banking where cash is relatively non-existent to them and apps like Venmo are everyday financial tools.

Why did you choose to expand in Suburban Philadelphia?

In our digital age with four generations in the workplace, banks need to ensure they’re remaining relevant. It’s about moving forward with growth and expansion. We need to be planning our next steps, targeting new service areas, strengthening our core customers, and helping our communities to be the healthiest and most business friendly they can be.

I see tremendous potential for Centric Bank as we move deeper into southeast Pennsylvania. Our Philadelphia growth began in Doylestown and Bucks County in 2015, and from there, Chester County was a natural fit and expansion. We love the community, the entrepreneurial spirit, and the focus on small business in these regions. Our brand-new Devon Financial Center just opened at 105 Lancaster Avenue, near our Loan Production Office at 80 W. Lancaster Avenue. We’re excited to bring personalized, relationship-driven banking to the area.

Looking into 2020, what are the most significant opportunities and challenges for Centric?

In 2019, I don’t think anyone in the industry thought we’d have three interest rate cuts. That’s challenging for any bank. Throughout the industry, loan growth slowed in the early part of 2019. Every CEO has had to adjust their strategic plan to focus on these changing dynamics.

For our long-term horizon, we will continue to grow and expand without sacrificing our Centric Bank Way culture. That’s one of my key priorities: Centric’s culture is an important differentiator for our customers. Over the past few years, we’ve doubled the size of the bank, and I attribute that to an amazing team. They continue to bring fresh ideas to meet new challenges and are incredibly loyal to our customers.

How would you define the Centric Bank culture?

It’s a culture where we check our egos at the door and focus on the team. We have codified our purpose with The Centric Bank Way, 26 fundamentals that define how we do business.

We want our employees to be happy and to have purpose in their work so they can deliver exceptional service to our customers. When our employees are happy, our clients and shareholders benefit.

We believe in inclusion, honest and open communication, diversity of thought and ideas, doing the right thing always, and keeping things fun!

What do you do when you have downtime?

It’s easy to suffer fatigue or burnout when you don’t make time for yourself, so I go to a personal trainer during the week at 6 a.m. It is an incredible way to begin the day. I also love my spin class and still enjoy my lifetime passion of swimming. In the summers, we still have our family vacation in Ocean City, NJ, and I play golf when I can. I also love spending time with my son, who lives in the area.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Both my mom and dad lived by the principle of Never give up. They sacrificed to help put my sister and me through college, and I’ve always been grateful for their life examples.

They had a few themes: set your sights on your goal, work hard, maintain your integrity, never forget your roots, be humble, and, of course, never, ever give up. They taught me that there’s always a path to get there.

My parents always set goals and saved money. Watching them do these things as I grew up, it’s something I still carry with me today. Their lives continue to inspire me every day, and I miss them both.

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