Paula Morris is the Best Bank Manager of Miss-Lou. The Vice President at Concordia Bank & Trust Company. won this award in the Natchez Democrat’s annual Best of Miss-Lou 2022 Awards.
Paula says the award means a lot to her, adding, “The people voted and chose. It means I am respected on both sides [the bank and customers]. I truly appreciate that.”
But when Paula was growing up she did not desire a career in banking. However, her successes in banking and 27 years at Concordia Bank show she has been on the right path all along.
Paula grew up in the small Mississippi town of Prentiss. On its size, Paula comments, “Prentiss is not even large enough to have a McDonald’s. Natchez has two.” Her mother was from New Orleans and her father was from Maryland; working as Bible educators brought them to Prentiss. Together they raised Paula along with her sister and brother.
Becoming a Banker
After graduating at the top of her class, instead of pursuing a college degree, Paula decided to teach people about the Bible for a few years. A chat with a friend who got a job at a bank led Paula to apply for a vacancy at the same bank. This started her career in banking, at People’s Bank in Magee, Mississippi.
Then Paula got married and moved to Natchez, leaving her old bank behind, but leaving her open to land a job at Concordia Bank. Paula has been a loan officer for 21 years. She is the only
African- American Vice- President serving in the capacity of a lender/branch manager.
What does that mean to Paula?
She responds, “I don’t think about it most of the time. I appreciate having the opportunity to answer questions about financing. I enjoy helping customers. I work with an amazing group of ladies. I enjoy what I do. I don’t see color at all. Nobody else’s color matters to me; I just see people.”
Family
Paula, a mother to a son and daughter, shared that a benefit of Concordia Bank is that it afforded her family the life she wanted to give them. When her children were younger, it gave her the flexibility to pick them up from school and attend any activities that involved them.
“I have always been a part of school life. Whatever was going on at their school, I was in the middle of it. I still am.”
In navigating both her career and family life, Paula said she “just worked hard”.
“I just decided to be a part of whatever I could be. I got up early. I took them to school every morning. I picked them up every afternoon. That way I could say I love you as I am dropping them off and ask how was your day as I pick them up. They never rode a bus to school.”
Paula, who is an avid cook, said most nights she cooked dinner and especially on weekends. Her favorite meal to cook is ribs with baked beans, macaroni cheese, potato salad along with a pound cake.
“Cooking and baking is my therapy. I love the kitchen. I love cooking.”
Paula said when her children were younger, she would come home and go straight to the kitchen and not sit down until about 8 pm.
“I didn’t want my children, my family, to miss out on anything, and I didn’t want them to have to eat fast food for me to work full time, so I cooked…that’s important to me.”
“For everybody I love, I just push myself for them. You don’t think about it, you just do it. I just do what I got to do.”
Her experience balancing motherhood and work allowed Paula to have a deeper appreciation for her parents, now deceased. She said they lived long enough for her to write a letter to both of them to say: “I get it. I appreciate you. I see what you were going through. Thank you.”
Women in Banking
How important is it for more women to get into banking and finance?
Paula says while many women are involved in banking, most are employed as tellers and in supporting roles, not leaders.
“Banking, largely, is a male-dominated profession when it comes to administrators and executives. But if more women are involved in banking, then it may bring a type of compassion to banking that may be lacking.”
Paula also says that women have a different perspective and that view, that slant, is necessary for decision-making.
“Women are bright, we catch on quickly, so I definitely think women should be involved in banking.”
Her advice to men?
“Work together, share knowledge. Be open to suggestions. The more diversity you have the better product you have. Encourage women to bring their unique points of view to the table for the betterment of the banking industry.”
Business, Balance, and Faith
Paula says one of the biggest challenges she has encountered while working in banking is striking a balance.
“When I became the branch manager, I thought a supervisory role was fairly easy. I didn’t think there was much to it. But it has been a huge challenge in learning to supervise and do it well,
while trying to be efficient and still be the kind of supervisor I would want.”
She is still working hard at achieving this balance but says her faith plays a significant role.
Paula takes some of the guiding lessons of Christ along her journey in banking, especially now as a supervisor.
“The Bible teaches us to be loving, to be kind, to be like Christ – the qualities he embodies. As I work on that, it helps me better fulfill whatever role I am in.”
Paula says her biggest takeaway thus far has been cultivating qualities that “we should have anyway”, like empathy, compassion, and “having salt on my tongue.”
“It made me work on myself, and try to be a better me. I am always working on myself. This has helped me in whatever capacity I find myself in. But it has a lot to do with spirituality too…I try to be the kind of person that I want people to be to me.”
