Vanessa Zampini was recently hired as vice president and cash management manager for Bank Rhode Island. She has more than 30 years of banking experience, most recently as vice president of commercial services and government banking for Centreville Bank. She previously worked for over a decade in branch management at The Washington Trust Co.
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ZAMPINI: First and foremost, the most important thing I’m focused on is getting to know our commercial lending clients and building those relationships. I truly believe that the best way to service our clients and help them achieve their goals is through knowing and understanding their individual circumstances. Every customer is unique and different, and I embrace that.
In addition, I want to identify new growth opportunities within our retail network as a way to enhance customers’ digital experience, which in turn will help them to become more efficient in their day-to-day operations. Along these same lines – and recognizing the ever-growing role digital plays in banking and in business – I want to help our internal BankRI teams build on their knowledge of cash management services and processes as a resource for the evolving needs of their customers.
PBN: How has your experience in the industry, including in branch management, informed your perspective and goals for your new role?
ZAMPINI: There is no doubt that my past experiences in banking play a significant role in what guides me today. Having held such a wide range of positions during my years in the industry allows me to continue to learn, but also to understand the different perspectives needed in your role.
At the same time, there is one absolute constant, and that is how vital communication is when it comes to business and personal success. Clear and open communication with customers and colleagues helps you to build a relationship that’s based on trust. And when trust is at the foundation of a relationship, it allows you to ask the necessary – and sometimes difficult – questions that lead to the right solution for your client, ultimately moving them closer to their financial goals.
PBN: What do you see as the greatest challenges to cash management at BankRI and in the industry generally?
ZAMPINI: I don’t think there’s any question that fraud has become one of the biggest challenges facing the banking industry as a whole. We live in a digital age in which so much of our personal information can be found with relative ease, and where businesses also possess serious amounts of information based on their interactions with customers. We have a team at BankRI whose sole function is to monitor our digital activity in real time and flag anything that looks even remotely suspicious.
PBN: How has the continued coin shortage impacted your clients and merchants, and business operations as a whole?
ZAMPINI: As a digital services department, the ongoing coin shortage has not had a direct impact on BankRI’s cash management team, as we do not handle cash or coin. However, it does make things more challenging for our business clients, particularly those who offer goods for sale both over the counter and online. As the result of the coin shortage, clients now rely more heavily on offering credit and debit card payment options. These payment methods are more costly to the business and are either absorbed or passed along to the consumer.
PBN: In terms of technical assistance, has that changed/increased now that more customers (and even employees) are banking or working remotely? How do you adapt?
ZAMPINI: With many businesses and employees continuing to work remotely, we have experienced an increase in the number of customers who are also banking remotely. During the pandemic, when most banks needed to cease in-person operations or limit traffic coming into their branches, this naturally led to an increase in the volume of mobile banking deposits and with our Business Deposit Express service.
And while those restrictions have since been lifted, there has been a definite shift in customer behavior in terms of comfort level and reliance on digital services. So along with an increase in remote check deposits, we have a growing number of businesses making payments via ACH [Automated Clearing House] origination, where they can initiate electronic payments safely and efficiently from their home or office.
On the consumer side, there is a greater reliance on online bill pay and platforms such as Zelle and Venmo. To meet these changes and the needs of our customers, we maintain a dedicated call center for clients to obtain technical assistance, as well as making our team available for personalized guidance and support.
Nancy Lavin is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Lavin@PBN.com.
Congratulations, Vanessa!