When Melanie Ferragut began working at PNC five years ago, she immediately fit right in.
Ferragut, the Banking Center Manager at PNC’s Severna Park location, shares similar values of the bank, including: striving for excellence; a better quality of life; celebrating differences; and teamwork.
“The volunteering and community connections are a big part of what I tend to go above and beyond my branch role,” said Farragut, who moved from Virginia to the Baltimore area.
“I think the core values of PNC, one of which is diversity and inclusion, is a big part of things,” she said. “It is something that’s not just on paper and not just something that’s talked about. It’s real. We have a big focus on inclusion, so I think that’s what attracted a lot of people.”
As the banking center manager, Ferragut helps to generate new consumer and business development opportunities, and she plays an integral role in driving loyalty through proactive interactions with PNC customers.
“Customers should know that I’m very accessible to them. I genuinely care about everyone; in fact, I care about them on a deeper level. I’m here to assist with their financial needs or any issues that come up,” Ferragut said. “So, the thing I would say is that our customers need to know the most is just how available I am to them and how much I genuinely care.”
Given the size of PNC Ferragut says it’s essential the bank maintains its Main Street focus.
“So, we’re very much involved in the community. We know who our customers are, we know who are business community is, and we strive to be a part of that,” she said. “It’s a critical part of what makes us PNC, and the fact that we are still that mainstream and people know we are here and we are available.”
Ferragut also noted that PNC officials have long recognized that it’s the collective power of the company’s unique differences that provide strength.
It’s a powerful testimony, one that helps PNC nurture an open and inclusive culture, empowering all of its employees to have a positive effect on their communities.
“We’ve worked with Annapolis Green, and we’re working with a therapeutic riding academy and other nonprofits, and organizations like St. John’s College, the Mitchell Gallery, and the Maryland Heritage Center,” Ferragut said.
“With the Maryland Heritage Center, we see what we can do together with this being an important year as far as the women’s suffragette and the vote.” she said. “We continue to look at what type of things we can do. Partnerships to continue to help bring more knowledge into the community.”
Ferragut says she is proud of PNC’s Employee Business Resource Groups – or EBRGs, which are unique groups composed mostly of employees who share a common dimension of diversity, such as gender, sexual orientation, heritage or military service.
Particularly impressive is the Women’s EBRGs, which gives female employees opportunities to grow personally and professionally through networking,
mentoring, workshops, speaker series, community engagement and other events, according to Ferragut.
“So women can build up leaders, can get support and education within PNC to do everything they dream of doing whatever their aspirations may be, and they will find the support to do that,” Ferragut said.
For more information about PNC Financial Services Group, or PNC Bank, visit: www.PNC,com