Role and industry
Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager Recruiters for Regional banks
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
Financial Headhunters: How to confirm a commercial lender has the discipline to originate and manage complex loans.
This is what we do all day: recruit accounting, finance, banking and insurance professionals.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
- Controller
- CFO
- VP Finance
- FP&A Director
- Accounting Manager
- Director of Accounting
- Assistant Controller
- Tax Director
- Treasury Manager
- Internal Audit Director
- Senior Accountant
- Financial Analyst
- Head of Financial Reporting
- Commercial Lender
- Chief Credit Officer
- Business Systems Finance Lead
- No upfront fee
- Pay only if you hire
- Accounting, finance, banking and insurance
- We reach people who aren’t on job boards
- Replacement terms on standard searches
01
What does this hire really come down to?
This role depends on one factor. Can they originate commercial loans that close? You need a producer who balances a relentless sales pace with the discipline to keep credit quality high throughout the entire loan lifecycle.
They spend their time identifying leads, meeting business owners, and structuring deals that fit your credit box. They must write the memo, present to the loan committee, and manage the relationship after the funds move. It is a full-cycle business development job.
We ask these questions. What is the average size and complexity of your current originations? Describe a deal rejected by your committee and why. How do you handle a borrower experiencing a sudden downturn in cash flow or collateral value?
You need a concrete method to assess if a candidate can truly generate revenue for your bank. Avoid asking about their general industry knowledge during the interview. Instead focus on their specific process for deal origination. Ask the candidate to explain their exact workflow for a recent complex transaction. Demand they walk you through the deal from the initial prospect contact to the final funding. Require them to produce evidence of their underwriting capabilities by describing how they handled the credit memo components. Specifically ask how they addressed the debt service coverage ratio or loan-to-value calculations in their written proposals. Press them on how they countered objections from their own internal credit committee. If they blame the committee for failed deals ask them to identify one specific weakness in their own initial proposal that likely caused the hesitation. You must determine if they can manage risk effectively while keeping a pipeline moving. Check if they have specific experience with the industry niches or collateral types you prioritize. Look for clear evidence of their ability to maintain compliance with federal regulations such as those mandated by the FDIC or OCC. During this scope conversation explore their actual history with existing banking software for portfolio management and reporting. If they cannot explain how they track their own lead sources or manage their existing book size you have your answer. Test their practical judgment by presenting a hypothetical scenario involving a commercial client experiencing a sudden cash flow decline. Ask them to describe their first three steps to protect the bank interest. Require they identify which specific financial statements they would request first and why. Evaluate if they understand the difference between restructuring a credit and recommending a formal exit. Assessing their ability to defend their loan decisions in front of your loan committee is the only way to avoid the mistake of hiring a salesperson who cannot underwrite.
02
What do we check before you see anyone?
We verify these six items to save your time.
We begin with a scope conversation where we define your precise lending authority limits versus the size of deals the candidate currently manages. We confirm if they operate as a lone wolf or require a dedicated credit analyst to push deals through committee. You face a direct trade-off between volume and depth. A high-volume producer often delegates memo writing and lacks deep grasp of collateral nuance while a technical lender preserves asset quality but may struggle to keep the pipeline moving. We force the candidate to explain their exact reliance on internal support staff to close a transaction.
- 01Portfolio growth metrics. We confirm they hit targets without sacrificing asset quality.
- 02Formal credit school completion. We verify evidence of institutional training programs to confirm they apply risk assessment standards.
- 03Regulatory knowledge. We verify they know FDIC, OCC, or Fed exam requirements for loan documentation.
- 04Structure expertise. We confirm they know how to handle C&I structuring or complex CRE deals.
- 05Relationship management. We verify they retain existing borrowers while finding new ones.
- 06Specific software application. We require demonstration of past use of bank-specific underwriting and reporting interfaces.
03
Where do we find them?
We source from other regional banks, credit unions, and independent commercial lending offices. Professionals look to move when their current institution restricts their decision-making authority or when the bank size limits the deal capacity they need for their clients. They also move if the bank changes its risk appetite, making it impossible for them to get their deals approved.
04
Which hiring mistakes should you watch for?
- 01Hiring someone with only sales experience who cannot write a defensible credit memo.
- 02Ignoring the lack of local market presence and hoping they magically find leads on day one.
- 03Overlooking poor portfolio quality or past regulatory compliance issues during the vetting process.
05
The search in three steps
- 01Identify active lenders in your specific geography who hold the right loan types.
- 02Screen against your credit standards and specific collateral or industry niches.
- 03Present candidates for your review and manage the interview process to offer.
06
Which related hiring decisions are worth comparing?
How your Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager search runs
How does The Six-Step Search work?
One sequence, from a well-defined seat to a shortlist you can judge.
Search Calibration
We start with a call about the seat, the books, the owners and the people the hire will work with. We learn what the role must fix in the first year and what would make a candidate wrong even if the resume looks right.
You get: A written search brief: scope, must-haves, deal-breakers and the pay range, agreed with you.
Market Mapping
We map the companies and institutions where the right people already work: similar size, similar ownership, similar complexity, in your market and in others.
You get: The target list of companies and institutions we will search, reviewed with you before outreach.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We find direct ways to reach the people on the map. Most are employed and not reading job boards, so reaching them takes real research.
You get: Direct routes to people who are not on job boards, researched for your search.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We call and write to people individually and follow up. Interest varies, so we discuss the actual opportunity rather than promising a particular response.
You get: One-to-one conversations about your actual role, followed up, never a mass email blast.
Live Candidate Qualification
We speak with every candidate before you do. We check scope, systems, reporting lines, compensation expectations, location and why they would move.
You get: Only candidates we have spoken with, checked on scope, systems, pay, location and motive.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You receive a short written brief on each finalist covering what they have done, where they are thin and what they want. Then we help with interviews, references and the offer.
You get: A short written brief on each finalist, plus help with interviews, references, counteroffer risk and the offer.
Questions people ask
When do I pay for finding a producer to originate new commercial loans that actually close?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
How do you verify if they can really bring business?
We look at their history of loan production and the types of deals they have closed. We ask for specific examples of how they built their current book.
How does the grade of the lender affect my decision?
Title and grade depend on the asset size of the bank. Higher grades often manage more complex C&I deals or larger CRE portfolios.
Do you provide contract or interim lending staff?
We focus on permanent contingency placements. If you need interim executive help, we refer you to the Interim Executives team.
What is the fee for a Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager search?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. The fee and terms are agreed in writing before we start.
How soon will I see a Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager shortlist?
It depends on the seat, the location and the pay. We give you an honest read after the calibration call and we do not promise dates we cannot control.
What about counteroffers on a Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager hire?
We ask every Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager candidate early why they would move and what their employer might do to keep them. Counteroffer risk goes in the written brief before you make an offer.
What is your guarantee?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What don't you do?
We do not post your Commercial Lender / Relationship Manager job and forward whoever applies. We do not send stacks of unscreened resumes, and we do not recruit outside accounting, finance, banking and insurance.
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No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
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