Limelights and Career Paths

Consumers National Bank recently received the Top Community Bank Lender Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Cleveland District office for the third-consecutive year.

The award recognizes the bank’s outstanding performance making SBA 7(a) and SBA Express loans during SBA fiscal year 2018, ranking first among community banks in the 28 northern Ohio counties serviced by the Cleveland SBA office.

“Earning the SBA ‘Top Community Bank Lender Award’ for the third year in a row reflects our continued commitment to our mission of providing the small-business community with local access to capital. It also honors our lenders, credit and loan processing staff who make our SBA lending program possible,” said Ralph Lober, bank president and CEO.

Consumers National Bank has 10 commercial lenders serving business clients from the bank’s 14 branches in Carroll, Columbiana, Stark and Summit counties and a loan production office in Wooster.

The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber’s JobsNow Workforce Initiative recently received recognition from the Mid-America Economic Development Council at its annual Competitiveness Conference and Site Selector Forum in Chicago.

The MAEDC, which is made up of economic development professionals in 12 Midwest states, honored the initiative as the first-place winner in the 2018 Economic Development Awards’ workforce-development category.

The JobsNow Workforce Initiative was created in 2016 to “help close the gap between the demand for skilled labor and the supply of workforce-ready employees in the Valley,” according to a news release.

CAREER PATHS

Consumers National Bank announced that Jason Dougherty has joined the bank as assistant vice president and consumer loan manager.

Dougherty will manage the bank’s consumer loan portfolio. He will report to Scott Dodds, executive vice president and senior lender.

“We are excited to add Jason to this new position on our growing lending team. His experience and knowledge of consumer credit and lending operations will help us grow the bank’s consumer loan portfolio through product and process innovation,” Dodds said.

Dougherty has several years of consumer-lending experience, including underwriting, compliance, systems and operations.

The Warren-based Tech Belt Energy Innovation Center announced the election of three new members to its board of directors – Phillip Walker, John Lauletta and Bill Merkel.

“They are all entrepreneurial and subject matter experts in the energy and Internet of Things fields, with an abundance of leadership experience nationwide,” said Rick Stockburger, TBEIC vice president and chief operating officer.

“Bill, John and Phillip will raise awareness of our work to a national level while providing meaningful impact and guidance to our efforts in Warren and the Mahoning Valley,” said John Pogue, TBEIC board president.

Walker’s company, Network Solutions Provider, has received numerous accolades and awards.

Lauletta “has been a leader in electric utility measurement technology since 1975,” TBEIC said. He has been president and CEO of Exacter Inc. since 2006.

Merkel, who is currently vice president of planning and marketing at Nidec Industrial Solutions, “is a product and business-development veteran,” according to TBEIC.