CULTURE, COMMUNITY AND RESPONSIBILITY
A core mission of the Company’s employees, executive leadership and
Directors is active engagement with not only the Company’s customers,
but the civic institutions, non-profits, schools and other
organizations that comprise the communities where we live and work. As
an organization that is community based, we are committed to
supporting volunteerism, implementing environmentally sound practices,
working with small businesses, and serving the broad financial service
needs of the communities in our geographic markets. We are proud of
the industry recognition we continue to receive, including being named
in 2023 as the 6th Most Trustworthy Company in America by Newsweek
Magazine and one of America’s Best Banks and One of the World’s Best
Banks by Forbes Magazine. In addition, we recognize that the
development and support of the Company’s human capital is an essential
element of the Company’s success. We are focused on furthering our
corporate responsibility strategy in alignment with our business and
evolution of important topics across the banking industry. In 2023, we
engaged a third-party advisory firm to assist the Company with its
continued focus on its corporate responsibility strategy and formed a
Corporate Responsibility Committee to increase emphasis on corporate
responsibility and to implement certain strategies identified by the
advisor and adopted by the Company’s senior management.
Recent highlights of the Company’s commitment to corporate social
responsibility and support of our communities and employees
include:
Human Capital Initiatives
•
In 2023, the Company adopted its Culture and Diversity Strategic Pillars
of culture, recruitment, learning, policy and practice, and communication
to implement strategic initiatives across the enterprise in an effort to
deepen the appreciation of each other’s unique contributions to the
Company while creating improved individual wellbeing and organizational
results.
•
The Company continued to leverage the “MyVoice” program, a Company-wide
program to enhance employee satisfaction and engagement. The goal of
MyVoice is to foster a culture of open communication and feedback to
enhance our employee experience making Community Bank a best place to
work. In 2023, the Company also repositioned its performance management
review process to provide ongoing and more frequent feedback in order to
achieve higher performance, engagement and commitment to improve
outcomes and productivity.
•
In 2023, the Company’s Culture and Diversity Council continued its
initiatives on culture and diversity across the areas of talent
acquisition and retention, employee community service spotlights, and
unconscious bias awareness. The Council engaged our workforce in
advancing diversity initiatives and identifying future initiatives.
•
The Company developed future leaders through its leadership programs to
strengthen our succession and leadership capabilities, as well as
reinforce our commitment to promote from within. Over 113 leaders
participated in these programs in 2023.
Supporting our Communities
•
In 2023, the Company appointed a Director of Community and Corporate
Relations. This new role reflects the importance to our entire
organization of investing in our communities to support the well-being
and sustainability of those places where we all live, work, and raise
our families.
•
In 2023, the Company donated more than $3.7 million to over 2,000
charitable organizations in the Company’s footprint.
•
Our employees volunteered 16,000 hours of their time to over 900
non-profit organizations in 2023, including those dedicated to
underserved and disadvantaged communities.
•
In 2023, the Company pledged $250,000 to the Growth + Equity Fund (“G+E
Fund”) at the CenterState CEO Foundation specifically earmarked to
support entrepreneurs of color, women, veterans, new Americans and those
with low to moderate incomes, providing them access to flexible capital
with borrower-friendly terms to facilitate the growth of their
businesses.
•
The Bank offers financial literacy programs geared towards students
and adults, including programs offered in elementary and high schools
and, in collaboration with our community partners, programs focused on
adults in lower and middle income communities.
•
We continue to expand our digital banking services to include
powerful, flexible and easy to use technology, including the addition
of a complimentary credit monitoring service, in order to enhance the
digital banking services provided to our customers.
•
The Company continues to participate in the Upstate Minority
Economic Alliance, the only Minority Chamber of Commerce in the
Upstate New York Region, and in 2023, further supported the
organization through providing meeting space and holding clinics
in order to strengthen its relationship with member businesses
and expand the pool of diverse clients and potential vendors for
the Company and its financial subsidiaries.
Environmental Sustainability Initiative
•
The Company engaged an outside advisor to assist management in
identifying corporate responsibility priorities and initiatives in
order to support a healthier, more sustainable future for our
stakeholders including our investors, employees, communities we serve,
and customers. The Company established the Corporate Responsibility
Committee lead by the Senior Vice President of Risk Management and
consisting of members of the Company’s and Bank’s management team with
the responsibility of executing on such priorities and initiatives.
•
The Company invested $5,000,000 in a solar tax equity fund to
participate in regionally-based small- to mid-size solar projects
primarily designed to promote public welfare, including the welfare of
low- and moderate-income communities or families.
•
The Company analyzed HVAC systems, air quality, and energy efficient
systems in connection with the build out of the Company’s new
headquarters in DeWitt, New York with the goal to create an energy
efficient and healthy space for our employees to work.
Corporate Responsibility
The Company recognizes the continuing importance of corporate
responsibility and continues to further our corporate responsibility
strategy, including environmental, social and human capital, and
governance initiatives, in alignment with our businesses. We understand
that a thoughtful, coordinated approach to our corporate responsibility
obligations will support a healthier, more sustainable future for our
stakeholders including our investors, employees, communities we serve, and
customers. We expect to build upon our core values as a community
financial institution and our core mission of serving the financial needs
of our communities. We expect our developing corporate responsibility
strategy will align with the nature and scale of our business in
respecting the environment and the evolution of corporate responsibility
principles in our industry.
In 2023, the Company formed the Corporate Responsibility Committee made up
of key members of the Company’s and Bank’s senior management to formulate
ways to advance the Company’s corporate responsibility goals across the
enterprise. Some of our specific efforts and commitments regarding our
environment, our people and our community for 2023 and 2024 are summarized
below.
COMMITMENT TO OUR PEOPLE - HUMAN CAPITAL INITIATIVES
We recognize that our people are essential to our success and are committed
to supporting the development and well-being of each individual in a
collaborative and inclusive environment.
Commitment to Our Core Values.
The Company continues to commit to our set of core values to guide our
employees and exemplify our commitment to each other, our customers, our
Shareholders, and the communities we serve:
These core values represent the Company’s focus on people – our customers,
our communities, our Shareholders and each other and serve as the
foundation that supports and drives the corporate responsibility
initiatives below.
Commitment to Culture and Diversity.
The Company is committed to
fostering a diverse and inclusive environment where there is a sense of
purpose, belonging, and work ownership driven by our core values and
service to our customers. We aspire to empower our workforce to achieve
their full potential and in 2023, our Culture and Diversity Officer
introduced our Culture and Diversity Strategic Pillars and Initiatives set
forth below. These strategic pillars support our commitment to knowing,
respecting, and leveraging each person’s unique talents, which helps to
respect diversity of thought and drive impact within the organization. We
have found that focusing on strengths deepens the appreciation of each
other’s unique contributions and improves individual wellbeing and
organizational results.
Watch
this video (opens in new window)
to learn more about our Culture and Diversity Council from Maureen
Gillan-Myer, EVP Chief Human Resources Officer of the Company and Freddie
Jacobs, NRS, Chief Operating Officer of Northeast Retirement Services,
LLC, the Company's subsidiary.
Click here
to see more about our Culture and Diversity Council and its current
initiatives.
Alignment of Management Incentive Objectives with Goals.
The Compensation Committee is responsible for the oversight of the
Company’s human capital management, including regular review of the
Company’s management resources, culture and diversity policies, succession
planning, and talent development programs. In order to demonstrate the
Board’s commitment to achieving the Company’s culture and diversity goals,
the Compensation Committee, in reviewing the Company’s human capital
management programs and management’s objectives for 2023, included a
specific performance objective in the 2023 Management Incentive Plan tied
to the acceleration of manager accountability for engagement. In 2024, the
Company again included a performance objective in the Management Incentive
Plan tied to advancing the Company’s executive leadership program,
providing leadership opportunities for the graduates of that program,
identifying emerging leaders in the Company and creating development plans
for each.
Commitment to Employee Engagement – Implementing “MyVoice
Program”.
The Company is committed to creating a top tier workplace filled with
highly satisfied and engaged employees. The Company believes that open and
honest communication among employees, managers and executive leadership
fosters an open and collaborative work environment where everyone can
participate, develop, and thrive. In 2021, the Company launched the first
company-wide employee engagement survey called “My Voice”. Thereafter, and
continuing in 2023, the Company has made concerted efforts to make
improvements, including developing a network of Engagement Champions
across all of our business areas, to support our leaders and managers to
further the My Voice efforts across the organization and surveying
employees again in late 2023, with 77% of the Company’s employees
participating, indicating that our employees feel heard and want to
provide feedback to the Company. In January 2024, the latest survey
results were reviewed with business unit leaders, managers, and employees.
As leaders across the organization remain engaged, the My Voice initiative
contributes to achieving higher performance, engagement, and commitment to
improve outcomes and productivity.
Commitment to Fair Play.
The Company’s compensation philosophy includes elements that reinforce our
values, rewards our colleagues and maximizes long-term performance. We use
various measures to ensure our colleagues are paid fairly based on the job
that they hold and their performance in that role. In 2023, we continued
to conduct targeted workforce planning sessions across all our business
areas to ensure market competitive pay and staff development actions that
support our commitment to the development of our employees. In further
commitment to pay transparency and fair pay, the Company, beginning in
September 2023, took a proactive approach and included the minimum and
maximum annual salary or hourly pay range when advertising a job,
promotion, or transfer opportunity in all internal and external job
postings regardless of the state or location of the position.
Commitment to Talent Management and Employee Development.
The Company offers a wide range of learning and development programs that
support a broad scope of the Company’s talent development initiatives,
making continuous learning a part of each employee’s relationship with the
Company in a growth-oriented environment. These include a tuition
reimbursement program for employees who wish to further their education
with college courses. In 2023, the Company invested more than $63,000 to
support these employees’ educational goals. In addition, the Company has
developed a college partnership program, which offers discounted credits
to employees via online courses and online certifications.
Leadership and Professional Development Opportunities and Review
Process. The Company offers leadership and professional development opportunities
to develop its employees and strengthen its leadership pipeline, improving
employee engagement, workforce effectiveness, and organizational
leadership. Various growth focused learning programs include, coaching
sessions to leverage individual strengths and address behavioral
competencies; career-path roadmaps aligned with career goals/progression;
and a cloud-based E-Learning platform to increase efficiency and
effectiveness. In 2023, 113 leaders participated in one of our 11
professional development workshops that were offered. In addition to
learning and development programs, in 2023, the Company also repositioned
its performance management review process to provide ongoing and more
frequent feedback in order to achieve higher performance, engagement and
commitment to improve outcomes and productivity.
Commitment to Employee Health & Wellbeing.
The Company is committed to providing tools and resources to support
employees’ overall health and wellbeing. This includes offering a variety
of health and welfare benefits as well as a holistic wellbeing program
that offers financial incentives for participating in the wellbeing
programs. In 2023, through this program, the Company provided $770,800 in
discounts on employee medical plan premiums and incentive dollars that
employees could redeem for items within the wellbeing program’s store.
Click here(opens in new window)
to see more information about our “Work Happy” Mission and our commitment
to our employees by providing the highest level of employee support,
whether through our benefits, our professional development or our
challenging but rewarding professional experiences.
COMMITMENT TO OUR COMMUNITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
We continue to develop our corporate responsibility strategy and look for
opportunities to integrate sustainability and corporate responsibility
into our business practices with the intent to deliver community focused
products and services while creating long-term sustainable value for all
of our stakeholders. Set forth below are some of the environmental and
community initiatives we focused on in 2023 and early 2024:
Engaged Third Party Advisor to Assist with Corporate Responsibility
Strategy.
In 2023, the Company engaged a third-party advisory firm to assist
the Company with evaluating its corporate responsibility strategy and to
focus its resources to identify and execute environmental, social, and
human capital initiatives that are essential in driving success for our
stakeholders, including our Shareholders, customers, employees,
third-party vendors and the communities we serve.
Creation of the Corporate Responsibility Committee.
In 2023, the Company’s executive management team established the Corporate
Responsibility Committee, which is chaired by the Senior Vice President of
Risk Management and consists of senior members of the Company’s and Bank’s
management team, with the goal to identify and execute on corporate
responsibility initiatives.
Appointment of Director of Community and Corporate Relations.
In 2023, the Company enhanced its commitment to investing in our
communities by appointing the Company’s first Director of Community and
Corporate Relations. This new role reflects the importance to our entire
organization of investing in our communities to support the well-being and
sustainability of those places where we all live, work, and raise our
families. This position will have responsibility for developing deeper
priorities and strategies around how we invest in our communities,
including financial support, volunteerism and other means of engagement.
Focus on Vendor Policies and Sustainable Business Operations.
The Company holds itself to a standard of integrity, professional conduct,
and environmentally responsible business practices. This allows us to
establish trust with our employees, customers, stakeholders, and vendors.
We expect the same level of commitment and conduct from our vendors as we
focus on ensuring that we are operating in a socially responsible manner.
As part of its vendor management program, the Company is exploring ways to
increase the pool of vendors who are minority owned or have a history of
creating opportunities for minority, disadvantaged individuals or
Veterans, or otherwise address the needs of underserved populations or
communities. As part of this effort, the Company continues to participate
in the Upstate Minority Economic Alliance, the only Minority Chamber of
Commerce in the Upstate New York Region, in order to leverage partnerships
to expand the pool of diverse vendors. In 2023, the Company and its
financial subsidiaries further supported the organization through
providing meeting space and holding clinics in order to strengthen its
relationship with member businesses.
Our vendor management policy has provisions that appropriately respond to
vendors where we identify that their practices do not align with our
principles regarding operating in a socially responsible manner, including
fair labor standards, acting responsibly with the security and
confidentiality of our customer information, engaging in responsible
business practices and acting consistently with our codes of conduct and
ethical behavior.
Commitment to Helping Others.
We remain committed to strengthening the communities we serve through
employee volunteerism and corporate engagement and support with a focus on
serving those who are underserved in the local communities where we do
business. We do this through financial support, in-kind donations,
community engagement, and volunteer service. In 2023, the Company made
over $3.7 million in donations, grants and sponsorships in the Bank’s
footprint of Upstate New York, Northeast Pennsylvania, Vermont and Western
Massachusetts. Our employees also gave generously of their time and
expertise by donating over 16,000 volunteer hours during 2023. They
actively participated in over 900 causes and organizations, with employees
serving on the boards and committees of over 500 community charities and
organizations and supporting these organization in other ways.
In addition to volunteerism, the Bank offers programs that supports its
customers and neighbors. For example, in response to various natural
disasters that impact our communities, the Bank from time to time offers
disaster relief programs to assist customers with repairing property,
cleaning up, and getting back on their feet. In 2023 when a flooding
disaster shut down entire communities in Vermont, the Company provided
recovery assistance in several important forms to businesses and people in
its footprint. The Company contributed $100,000 for grant purposes for
businesses affected by the disaster. Additionally, the Company donated to
area food banks, and provided drinking water in three of its branches in
communities where access to drinking water was difficult to access.
Click here(opens in new window)
to see more information about our Community Involvement initiatives and
our most recent Community Report.
Commitment to Community-Focused Mortgage Banking. For more than 150 years, the Bank has focused on serving the financial
needs of its customers. The Bank offers several lending programs sponsored
by state and federal agencies designed to encourage first time home
ownership, affordable home mortgages for those in lower and
moderate-income groups, and mortgages for those living in rural areas that
would not be eligible for traditional mortgage products. The Bank ensures
its mortgage marketing efforts extend to those who live in economically
disadvantaged areas within its geographic communities. In addition, the
Bank offers mortgages with up to 90% loan-to-value ratios without the
requirement of mortgage insurance (typically required in loan-to-value
ratios over 80%), and a “No Closing Cost” mortgage product that
facilitates the ability of borrowers to attain home ownership with a
product that provides for the Bank to absorb mortgage related closing
costs, such as filing fees, bank legal fees, appraisal, application, and
underwriting/processing fees, provided that the borrower does not prepay
the mortgage within three years of the closing. The Bank also provides
community development lending products such as Veteran Administration
mortgages to create a broader pool of borrowers and help make home
ownership possible for borrowers who may not qualify for traditional
mortgages.
Commitment to Underrepresented Communities and Low and Moderate Income
Households.
During 2023, the Bank made $161.4 million of mortgage loans to low-and
moderate-income households in order to enable sustainable homeownership
which is a major vehicle for building wealth and economic opportunity. In
addition, the Bank offered a special purpose credit product to
underrepresented communities, including borrowers in minority and
low-to-moderate income areas in Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse, New York
that assisted 107 customers in 2023 to obtain residential mortgages on
favorable terms and will again offer the program in 2024.
Financial Literacy Programs.
The Bank’s staff provides financial literacy programs within the Bank’s
footprint with the goal of promoting financial literacy and access to
financial services and products. The Bank offers financial literacy
programs in which employee volunteers present lessons to adults and
children in both classrooms and with non-profit organizations focused on
adults in lower and middle income communities on topics ranging from
making spending decisions to budgeting and the importance of savings. In
the Adirondack New York region alone, employees presented 19 types of
financial literacy classes to more than 700 students in 2023.
Commitment to Supporting Local Businesses and Communities. The Bank’s commercial lending professionals are dedicated to servicing
business owners in under-served markets within the Bank’s footprint with
the goal of providing access to financial services and products. The Bank
continues to focus on the expansion of its Business Banking group to offer
credit support up to $2,000,000 as well as a greater portfolio of small
business banking services. Because small businesses are engines for our
local economies by keeping money close to home and supporting
neighborhoods and communities, the Bank also works with government
agencies to offer lending programs to small businesses and agricultural
loan products. The Bank has financed community development projects that
help enrich and revitalize the communities where it operates, including
financing for health care facilities, solar energy companies, farming
operations, addiction counseling services, places of worship, ambulance
companies, and community theaters. The goal of all of these efforts is to
provide support and opportunities to cultivate robust communities for the
Company’s customers, employees, and stakeholders. In addition, the Bank is
a member of the Upstate Minority Economic Alliance in order to cultivate
the Bank’s relationship with minority owned small businesses and provide
better access to financial services and products for such businesses.
In 2023, the Company pledged $250,000 to the G+E Fund at the CenterState
CEO Foundation specifically earmarked to support entrepreneurs of color,
women, veterans, new Americans and those with low to moderate incomes,
providing them access to flexible capital with borrower-friendly terms to
facilitate the growth of their businesses.
Protecting our Customers’ Data.
We are committed to providing a high level of customer care including
measures to safeguard our customers’ data. The Company has developed a
cybersecurity program and framework which is administered by a team of
experienced professionals, including the Company’s Chief Risk Officer and
Chief Information Security Officer (“CISO”), and supported by external
technology and consulting services. The Company’s Risk Committee, which is
made up of the entire Board of Directors, is responsible for the oversight
of the cybersecurity program. Directors Ms. MacPherson and Ms. Skerritt
have cybersecurity oversight experience and have received the
Cybersecurity Oversight Certification issued by the National Association
of Corporate Directors. In an effort to remain vigilant against
cybersecurity attacks, the Company further provides annual and ongoing
training to all of its employees so that they have an understanding and
appreciation of the cybersecurity environment and risks and the Company’s
policies to combat such risks. Such training includes annual mandatory
training sessions on cybersecurity for all employees, periodic
informational notices regarding emerging threats, and periodic testing to
ensure employees are reporting suspicious activities and are diligent in
their efforts to avoid phishing attacks and cybersecurity breaches. The
CISO also conducts and participates in annual table top exercises with
management and on occasion, with representatives from the Board, in order
to be prepared in the event of a material cybersecurity event.
Improved Digital Banking. The
Bank continues to devote significant resources to expand our digital
banking services to include powerful, flexible and easy to use technology.
Our customers are seeking efficient and convenient solutions to manage
their finances and digital banking has emerged as a transformative force,
offering a wide range of benefits to busy consumer and commercial
customers. In 2023, we enhanced the consumer digital banking platform with
the addition of a complimentary credit monitoring service to provide our
customers a convenient way to make routine credit checks available in
order to assist them with seeing where their credit stands, spotting
problems that could suggest identity theft or fraud, and enabling them
with information to take measures to improve their credit scores.
Ethical Business Practices and Balancing Business Risk.
Our Code of Ethics and the Code of Conduct make clear our expectations for
the conduct of our Directors, officers and employees. We recently amended
the Code of Ethics to clarify the Company’s commitment to compliance with
anti-corruption and anti-bribery laws. As of March 22, 2024, the Company
has not been fined in connection with any violation of any anti-corruption
or anti-bribery law. We ensure compliance with these Codes through
training and monitoring so that we can maintain our track record of
business success based upon the highest level of ethics and
professionalism. Our banking employees are required to complete online
training and testing to verify their understanding of the legal
requirements, including training on unfair, deceptive or abusive acts and
practices, fair lending, and anti-money laundering.
Our risk management team, with Board oversight, carefully monitors
Enterprise Risk Management. The risk management process includes active
engagement among different areas of the Company. This combined with
oversight by various Board Committees ensures that risk management is
supported by appropriate information gathering and monitoring.
Investment in Solar Tax Equity Fund.
We invested $5,000,000 in a solar tax equity fund to participate in
regionally-based small- to mid-size solar projects primarily designed to
promote public welfare, including the welfare of low- and moderate-income
communities or families.
Other Environmental Initiatives.
The Company supports environmental and sustainability objectives by
encouraging recycling and responsible waste management practices
throughout the organization. We continue to evaluate opportunities to
reduce energy consumption in areas such as facilities, equipment, and
operations by moving to more efficient equipment, HVAC systems, lighting
and use of technology solutions to reduce our energy usage. The Company is
focusing on the use of improved lighting in the build out of its new
DeWitt, New York headquarters and the new branch locations that it will
open during 2024 and 2025. We recycle all of our electronics through
appropriate channels to ensure that harmful substances do not pollute the
environment, and in 2023, we recycled 66,000 pounds of electronic
equipment. We continue to migrate our data to additional secure, cloud
based solutions which minimize the energy use at our data and disaster
recovery centers.
The Company has an ongoing initiative to eliminate paper from its work
streams and move to completely digital documentation in its business
activities where possible. The Bank provides and encourages the use of
digital banking and e-statements to its customers, has expanded the use of
online platforms for account opening, lending products, communications,
remote deposit capture, and various statements and notices. We expanded
the digital workflows and robotic process automation technologies in our
internal operating and administrative systems, including the migration of
mortgage documentation to a fully digital documentation and storage
process. In 2023, the Bank saw a 13% increase in customers using its
online banking platform.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
We are committed to strong corporate governance policies, practices, and
procedures designed to make the Board more effective in exercising its
oversight role. The following section provides an overview of the
Company’s corporate governance structure, including key governance
documents that guide the Board and management in the performance of their
duties which are regularly reviewed by the Board.
Click here(opens in new window)
to see our
Annual Proxy Statement for more information about our corporate
policies, practices, and procedures.
BEST PRACTICES
The Board and management regularly review best practices in corporate
governance and are committed to a structure that fosters principled
actions, informed and effective decision-making, and appropriate
monitoring of risk, compliance, and performance. The Governance Committee
is responsible for the review and oversight of the Company’s corporate
governance practices and is responsible for updating the Board on best
corporate governance practices.
The Company is dedicated to being a financial industry leader in corporate
governance and business ethics. The Board is composed of independent
Directors, other than the current and former CEOs, with diverse
backgrounds who bring a wealth of knowledge and business experience to the
Company. The Company has significantly increased the Board’s ethnic and
gender diversity and the level of identified skill sets over the last
several years. We will continue to consider a diverse pool of candidates
in our Director nomination process to further enhance the diversity on the
Board and add appropriate skills and experience in connection with
succession planning at the Board level.
From the top down, the Company is committed to fostering an effective risk
management environment to serve the interests of the Company, its
customers, and its Shareholders. The Board has adopted the Code of Ethics
and the Code of Conduct to make clear its expectation for the conduct of
our Directors, officers and employees. The Company ensures compliance with
these Codes through training and monitoring so that the Company can
maintain its track record of business success based upon the highest level
of ethics and professionalism.