Clear vision of CRBT’s local mission propels James Klein to ‘Most Influential’ leader

Even after decades as a prominent leader in the Corridor banking community, James Klein says he still brings an “attitude of gratitude” to his professional endeavors. “I’m very humbled to receive this award,” says Mr. Klein, president of Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, who has been selected by Corridor Business Journal readers as the 2022 […]

Even after decades as a prominent leader in the Corridor banking community, James Klein says he still brings an “attitude of gratitude” to his professional endeavors. “I’m very humbled to receive this award,” says Mr. Klein, president of Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, who has been selected by Corridor Business Journal readers as the 2022 Most Influential leader in the Corridor. “There are so many wonderful people in our community. I'm just grateful about life and my career. I've been really blessed.”

Local roots run deep

A Cedar Rapids native and lifelong resident, Mr. Klein credits his parents for instilling the “ethic of hard work” into his life – both worked at local factories throughout his formative years. After graduating from Regis High School in 1991, Mr. Klein attended the University of Iowa, receiving a bachelor’s degree in finance in 1995, before answering a newspaper ad from the former Perpetual Savings Bank seeking a bank teller. He worked with Perpetual for four years, moving from teller to assistant vice president and “learning the business of banking from the ground up.”

After Perpetual was acquired by Commercial Federal Bank of Omaha, Mr. Klein moved on to Liberty Savings Bank for two years before joining CRBT in 2004, a bank that had been formed in 2001 by a group of local banking professionals, including current CEO Larry Helling. And Mr. Klein is effusive in praising Mr. Helling, “my boss for the last 18-and-a-half years,” for nurturing his career success. “He has often pushed me to try and do things when I wasn't sure I was ready for it,” Mr. Klein says. “He has been a great mentor, coach and leader. He created a place where culture is king, and we keep pushing that. We know that people are our greatest assets, and there’s a lot of employee focus. Larry's just been great to me and given me tons of opportunities.” Mr. Klein worked his way up the ladder at CRBT, most recently serving as the bank’s executive vice president and chief lending officer before being named president in January 2019. CRBT’s focus on local support has been a key factor in his career. “I learned early in my career that I am a community bank person,” he said. “I feel a responsibility to help my local community, and I've been fortunate to do that here at CRBT. Being a community banker was top of the list for me, and CRBT was the answer.” And in an era of bank consolidation and outside ownership, Mr. Klein highlighted CRBT’s community support for its ongoing growth – CRBT is now the Cedar Rapids area’s banking market leader, with five area locations, a market share of 16.59% and more than $2 billion in assets under management. “There were four guys that started CRBT in 2001, and it was clear from the start that they wanted to create a great culture where people felt comfortable,” he said. “We have great expectations for our staff and hold them accountable to do the right thing, but we also want it to be a place where our employees or clients walk in and there's a feeling that we want to come up with great solutions for you, no matter where you're at in your journey.”

Among Iowa’s first diversity-certified bankers

Awareness of the significance of diversity, equity and inclusion has become a common theme in today’s business world, but Mr. Klein embraced the concept early.  In April, Mr. Klein and Wendy Nielsen, CRBT’s first vice president of marketing and employee experience, became the first within the banking industry in the state of Iowa to earn their Certified Diversity Professional credential. The credential is issued by the Institute for Diversity Certification after candidates pass a 170-question, multiple choice exam and submit an approved candidate project. Mr. Klein said he feels the certification is significant for a locally-focused institution like CRBT. “I truly believe the more you can learn, the more you can appreciate differences, help people and get new ideas,” he said. “It's the right thing to do. I think we both approached it more individually at first, (wanting) to learn more and be better. But it certainly has transpired to help CRBT and our community as a whole.” In Mr. Klein’s view, equity in local investment is about more than supporting one segment of the community at the expense of another. “So many situations in life can be win-win,” he said. “It doesn't have to be win-lose. It’s about taking a holistic view and seeing how we can all work together and find ways that we can all win, instead of somebody having to lose. We can all get there together.”

Learning an eternal process

Mr. Klein now describes himself as a “lifelong learner,” and added to his bachelor’s degree with a master’s degree in finance from the University of Iowa in 2005. But he readily admits it wasn’t always the case for him. “To be honest, as a younger person, I probably wasn't as much into learning,” he said. “But when I got into business school at the University of Iowa, I really fell in love (with learning).” He again cited his longtime mentor, Mr. Helling, who once told him, “'if you love the study of business, banking is a great career.' I think that's so true.” Mr. Klein has continued to explore his professional interests. He has completed the Graduate School of Banking in Boulder, Colorado, the Iowa School of Banking, Iowa Banker’s Commercial Lending School, American Bankers Association (ABA) Commercial Lending School and the Leadership Institute.  He’s also learned what he doesn’t enjoy – for example, he’s not an avid golfer. “For many years, I thought, ‘well, I'm a banker, so I’ve got to like golf and be good at it,’” he said. “I tried, and I just never loved golf that much. For a long time, I thought I should play, but I decided, ‘No, I don't like it, so I'm not going to do it. I’m going to put my passion toward my strengths.’” So he’s taken to embracing one of his true passions – education.  “From my career perspective, just learning about different businesses and all the different ways to run and operate a company, a nonprofit or an organization fascinates me,” he said. “And quite honestly, especially in the last 10 years, I’ve dug deeply into reading and meditating and the philosophy of stoicism. All those have continually piqued my interest in learning about human interactions and leadership and being the best person you can to serve others.” And that passion has extended from learning to teaching. Mr. Klein teaches finance at the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business and also teaches at the Iowa School of Banking, Iowa Bankers Consumer Credit School and Iowa Commercial Banking School. “I really love teaching, and honestly, I've learned much more from the students than I probably teach them,” he said. 

Passion for nonprofit organizations

Mr. Klein’s community involvement is exemplified through his extensive work with local nonprofit organizations.  He currently chairs the board of directors for Theatre Cedar Rapids and works with the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, Kids First Iowa and the Catherine McAuley Center. He also serves on the board of trustees for United Way, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Junior Achievement, as a commissioner of the Downtown Cedar Rapids SSMID, and volunteers for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish and Knights of Columbus. He also serves on the Policy Board for the Downtown SSMID and Economic Alliance. Working with Junior Achievement, he said, has been especially gratifying. “It’s one of the earliest groups I got involved with,” he said. “I believe that was the first time I was the chair of a board, and it’s near and dear to my heart because I was able to teach all three of our children Junior Achievement, from first grade up to seventh grade, and I see financial literacy as valuable in our community. I learned so much, and I still use a lot of those skills today, but every one of the nonprofits I've served with has been rewarding.” As his career continues to evolve, Mr. Klein hopes to inspire the next generation of leaders through the lessons he’s learned in his own career and from mentors like Mr. Helling and retired Brenton Bank market president Ron Larson. “My motto is ‘do the right thing,’” Mr. Klein said. “Being a good father, a good husband and a community supporter are really important to me. My goal every day is to help our staff and leaders at CRBT to continue to deliver on our mission of being a relationship bank. And I hope to lead CRBT in such a way that when myself and other leaders give the keys to the next group of leaders, we have no doubt they will do it way better than we have ever done it. That's really important to me.”