Employee Profiles – Ashley T

Sometimes things turn out to be even greater than you think. Like starting a career at ESL. We spoke to several ESL employees who told us how their roles as tellers and tele-bankers have turned out to be so much more than they ever expected. Start your search for a career as unique as you.

Ashley T: As a Tele-Banker, Putting Skills to Work

You worked as a Tele-Banker for a while, what did you think about that?

I started as a Tele-Banker I, and then I was promoted to a Tele-Banker II position. Since then, I’ve been promoted to a Loan Payment Solutions Specialist.

I think people believe bankers (and Tele-Bankers) are just someone who gives out balances. We actually help our members better prepare for their future. You know when you are able to help someone and it makes you feel great.

You are not going to be successful unless you love what you do and...I really do love what I do.

What brought you to ESL, and what do you think of your experience so far?

I came from another bank where it was “just go to work and get your paycheck.” No one talked to you or cared as long as you went to work. I was bored and I didn’t like it there. My friend suggested since I had banking experience as a teller, I should come over to ESL. As a Tele-Banker, I would be working with members over the phone. I was a little worried about that but I thought, okay, I’ll give it a chance.

A lot of companies and people say a company may be a great place to work, but it isn’t always. But here at ESL, it’s different. I really believe it is a good place to work.

Have there been skills you’ve been surprised to find you used in your day to day work as a Tele-Banker?

Yes! As a Teller or a Tele-Banker, we are the first people members talk to so we really are the front line. You have to make a great impression so communication skills are very important. Someone may say they want a certain product, and it may not the best product for their needs, or they don’t understand what other products we offer. We give them advice, and they really appreciate that.

Next, I’d say problem solving. For example, we would get a lot of people that call because they can’t get logged into their accounts online. It would be a struggle since we couldn’t see what they were doing as they tried to log on, but we would try to help them (by asking lots of questions.) Other times, we might need to do a lot of research to understand what has happened on their account.

Finally, teamwork. We constantly worked with other ESL departments to get answers to members’ questions.