Retiring in Stages

“I’m high-energy — I have to be doing something all the time,” says Vice President and Big Bear Lake Branch Manager Carol Mulvihill, who officially retired from her branch manager position on June 30. “I’m not ready for ‘idle’ mode.” Fortunately, Carol didn’t have to bring her career to a full stop. She has found a way to transition from a busy, successful role at Union Bank by taking advantage of their Phased Retirement program. Through the program, Carol has entered a new assignment as Community Relations Manager and will be able to continue contributing the skills she has developed over 38 years in the financial services industry by working about 17 hours a week. The position is a perfect fit for her and offers distinct advantages to both Carol and the bank. “We have an 86 percent market share in the Big Bear Valley, thanks in large part to Carol’s expertise and her deep community connections,” says SEVP Pierre Habis, head of Retail Branch Banking. “It would be a shame to ask such a talented, enthusiastic banker to withdraw from the field all at once and lose the valuable resource of her market knowledge.”

Phased Retirement

The bank’s Phased Retirement program enables selected retirement-eligible employees throughout the company to transition to part-time employment or, if they have already retired, to return to work on a part-time basis or in a temporary position. The opportunity is geared toward employees whose business skill set and customer connections are capable of continuing to generate profit for the bank. Tailored to the individual, the work may be for a short-term, specific assignment or an ongoing assignment with no established end date and is subject to normal bank policies and programs related to compensation and benefits. About 35 people in the bank’s workforce of more than 10,000 participate. They include VP Maria

Pasquale, who retired from her position as regional director of the Sacramento Private Bank in 2009. Maria returned to work part-time to help with high-net-worth clients who need specialized services. “I’m still doing what I really like about the job — serving clients — and it gives them some continuity,” she says. Says Market President Stuart Bernstein, whose division includes Big Bear Lake: “Union Bank has a wealth of institutional and market knowledge in our many long-term employees, some of whom have been with us for 40 years or more. Phased retirement is ideal for the Retail Bank.”

Carol agrees

“Happiness to me is building my market share,” Carol says. In her 18 years at Big Bear Lake, a community almost 7,000 feet high in the mountains northeast of San Bernardino, she raised the branch’s deposits from $12 million to $147 million, recently boosted by a flourishing new Priority Banking Office. Branch staff handle more than 15,000 transactions every month. Carol has previously been honored as Manager of the Year in her division, and is a six-time recipient of the Manager of the Year award in her region. Her new title suits her well. She works with all seven government organizations in the valley, all of which bank with her branch. Her goal is to bank more of the government employees as well as the organizations they work for. She has a high-potential prospect list that she calls on monthly to “check in” so she will be ready to solicit business as soon as an opportunity arises. Carol has been on the Chamber’s executive board for 15 years and started its economic partnership program with area businesses. She has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Soroptimists and other community organizations. As a Big Bear native, married to a city councilman who has been Mayor three times, Carol knows the community inside and out and knows how to cultivate business with persistence and discretion. “Carol is an ideal employee for the strategic advantage that phased retirement offers the bank,” says Stuart. “She continues to do work she loves, and we benefit from her market expertise.”