The day has finally arrived! After over a year of discussions and months of planning, the day of closing is here.
Like me, I know many of you are excited about this transition and the opportunities it creates. I imagine some of you are anxious. Some of you may be indifferent or even discouraged. If you are in the latter group, I don’t expect this letter to change your perspective. What I can do is share my perspective on what you can expect from me, what I expect from you and where we plan to go from here.
First, you can expect me to be transparent. I don’t like wasting time and I really, really don’t like ignoring real issues. So here is a real issue we all know — there will be consolidation of some positions as a result of this transaction, which means several CEBT positions will be absorbed into existing Triumph positions and departments. Some of this will happen immediately, some will happen over the next few weeks and some will not happen until early next year. We have already communicated with the people affected by this consolidation. We will do all we can to be fair in this process, which means that we will recognize years of service and assist in the transition to another position or another company.
For the substantial majority of you, the plan is for you to continue forward as part of the Triumph team. Let me be the first to officially welcome you to the Triumph team. I say team because that is exactly what we are – “team members,” not “employees,” working collectively toward the same goal. In the coming months and years, I hope you will see that these are more than just words. It is fundamental to how we do business.
When we acquired THE National Bank in 2013, which we now call Triumph Community Bank, I penned a similar letter to their team members. In that letter I noted that the success of their future at Triumph depended primarily on them. I will say the same thing to you. You have a great opportunity to excel and prosper in our growing organization.
So what does success at Triumph look like? We often use the four “Ds” as a roadmap to success:
- Delivering Value – Create value by consistently making a lasting and positive impact on all that you touch and do. Go above and beyond what others would do.
- Demonstrating Expertise – Understand your role and be excellent in fulfilling it.
- Developing People – People are our most important asset. As a team member you are expected to improve yourself and those around you.
- Displaying Commitment to Enterprise Success – Demonstrate a commitment to the success of the team over success over any one individual.
You each bring a unique set of skills and value to Triumph. You have played a role in building Colorado East into the organization it is today. We hope that you now will play a role in Triumph’s success, helping us realize our vision of being the most valuable company in the financial industry. It is an ambitious goal – I encourage you to check out the History & Values page on our website to understand exactly what I mean by this statement.
Admittedly, I am very biased, but I know we have something special with Triumph. While we never feel we have “arrived,” we do recognize the incredible amount that we have achieved in such a short amount of time. What started ten years ago with just one person and a laptop is now a $2.4 billion enterprise with almost 730 team members. We have experienced incredible growth in a competitive marketplace because of our outstanding team members. The future is very bright and I look forward to sharing it with you.
If ever I can be of help to you or if you have comments or suggestions, I would be happy to hear them. Welcome to the team!
Aaron Graft
Vice Chairman and CEO of TBK Bank, SSB