A former employee of two of the area’s largest banks is happy to be part of a smaller, full-service bank that offers what those other banks did, but with a “community” vibe that informs how it conducts business.

“We don’t have a call center, and I say that proudly,” said Centric Bank’s Marty Haenn.

As Vice President and Financial Center Manager of the bank’s Devon location, Haenn likes the idea that customers can call him directly at any time.

“That’s why my personal cell phone number is on my business card,” he said.

A 26-year resident of West Chester and father of four, Haenn had previously worked at PNC Bank and Wells Fargo before arriving at Centric Bank two and a half years ago.

“I enjoyed my time at those banks, but they were much bigger, and sometimes, it felt like the customers would get lost and become just numbers at some point,” he said. “To me, coming to Centric was the first time I had an opportunity to work for a community bank. I liked hearing that they are dedicated to their communities and want to make a connection with their customers.”

For Haenn, going from those bigger banks with 50,000 to 125,000 employees was a drastic change. A welcome result of that move was being able to know most of his fellow employees on a first-name basis.

“There are just 120 of us, and I know exactly who to call to help, depending on the specific request, and that my teammates are going to be there,” he said. “Customers appreciate that as well, and we saw this during the PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) process.”

Indeed, perhaps the biggest difference he found between those bigger banks and Centric is the customer service the latter offers. How Centric helped customers navigate the PPP process is a prime example. 

The Paycheck Protection Program provided small businesses with the resources they need to maintain their payroll, hire back employees who may have been laid off, and cover overhead.

“Centric was an active player in PPP,” said Haenn, “and over and over, we heard from customers that their banks would not return their calls or e-mails about helping out with that program. One guy who had been with his bank for 35 years said that when he wanted to apply for PPP, his bank suddenly would not return any of his calls.

“He got my name from a Chamber of Commerce group that we work with, and we had the PPP money in his account in three days. He was amazed, and that’s the kind of reaction we’ve been getting from a lot of customers on a number of different requests.”

Centric Bank offers the entire suite of deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market accounts, and debit cards, along with mortgages and auto and home equity loans. Haenn also noted that customers who do not necessarily live near one of the bank’s branches still have the accessibility of online and electronic banking, including remote check deposit.

“As long as they are getting the service they want, we feel they will not care if Centric is 15 miles from their house,” he said.

And, of course, with the personal cell phone number of their Centric banker, help is always just a quick phone call away. The bank also offers online appointment scheduling if customers prefer to schedule a time to meet.

“My time at Centric has been everything I was hoping it would be,” said Haenn. “If people are feeling like they are just one of a big number of customers at another bank and are not getting the attention they deserve, they will get that with Centric Bank. We want them to know we will treat them like gold.”

Learn more about Centric Bank.