Chairman and CEO of Regent Bank and one of the principal organizers of Regent Capital Corporation, Sean Kouplen has lead the company since 2008. Kouplen previously served as Oklahoma’s Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development and remains active in numerous local and statewide leadership roles. We caught up with Kouplen and got his thoughts on …
… his proudest accomplishments.
I wish everyone could have the opportunity to live out their dream. My experience with Regent Bank has been just that. From raising the initial capital and purchasing a small community bank in Nowata in 2008 to entering our fourth state and eclipsing $2 billion in assets earlier this year, serving as CEO of Regent Bank has been one of the greatest blessings of my life. I am extremely grateful.
We have experienced so many wonderful accomplishments including surviving the great financial crisis of 2008-2010, expanding rapidly, serving our communities and winning so many awards. But the highlight of my Regent Bank experience has been bringing my faith into the workplace. This has given our employees a greater purpose and a new level of care in our workplace. I’ve watched it change lives and save marriages. There’s nothing better than that, and this is why we developed the 94X faith at work movement so we can help other businesses experience the same blessing.
… how his leadership style has evolved since his early days.
Hopefully, it is a 180-degree difference. I have always loved people, but early in my career, I was very insecure. I was always trying to prove myself and make myself look good. I felt that I always had to be right and I was way too concerned with my personal brand.
As I’ve grown older, I’ve learned that none of this makes a great leader. Leadership is about serving your employees. Today, I try to focus on listening well, being vulnerable and asking for help. Glorifying God and serving our employees is much more important than my personal reputation or standing. I am still very competitive and have high expectations, but I realize that a great company is really about building the best culture and team. The president or CEO gets way too much credit when a company is successful.
… the responsibilities local banks have to their communities.
Where you bank really does matter. In 1990, there were over 15,000 banks in our country. Today, there are 4,379. The top ten U.S. banks control over 60% of the assets. This is concerning because community banks like Regent Bank are proven to charge lower fees, provide more credit to small businesses and support their local community at a higher level. The value of community banks is really an issue of proximity. We are all most focused and generous in our hometowns, and this is where community banks live, work, worship and play. The executives of national institutions may have never even visited Oklahoma, so they just aren’t going to be as committed to our communities. I believe the community bank is the cornerstone of the community. Providing competitive products and access to credit for local business, nonprofits and families is critical, but so are donations of time and money to charities and involvement with local charities.
… what Oklahoma businesses need most right now to grow.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time as Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development, and I’m very grateful to Gov. Stitt for giving me the opportunity. However, I believe that the greatest impact in our community or state actually comes from the private sector. We have made tremendous progress as a state, but I was never successful in convincing our state leadership to fund a marketing plan for Oklahoma. We are competing with every other state for talent and investment, yet we don’t invest materially in developing our brand on a national scale. I think Oklahoma is one of our country’s best kept secrets and we need to do a better job of telling our story.
When you study the largest companies in Oklahoma, you find that almost all of them started here. I believe our state should focus less on recruiting large new businesses into the state and focus more on helping our existing businesses to grow. Regent Bank has added over 220 new jobs to our economy since we started, and our state would pay millions to attract a company like that. I believe state incentive dollars should shift to help new businesses get started here and reward existing companies for growth. Finally, to grow and thrive, Oklahoma businesses need a quality workforce. Our educational rankings are unacceptable and our state should make education the highest priority at all levels: K-12, career tech, trade schools and college/universities.
… the future of Regent Bank.
I believe Regent Bank is just getting started. We just acquired a wonderful community bank in North Central Florida and hired a fantastic team of bankers in Dallas. We are so blessed to continue attracting remarkably talented people. The bank has grown to a level where our lending limit is over $50 million per client and we can serve almost any business in our market area. We also have the resources and expertise to deploy the best in technology so our clients can enjoy the personal touch of a community bank and the best digital experience as well.
The banking industry is evolving very rapidly, and we are making some exciting investments to serve our clients more efficiently. Our executive team is one of the youngest in the industry. We are innovative and have a collaborative culture.Regent Bank is built to last for the long haul, and I truly believe the best is yet to come.
… how he resets at the end of the day.
I love to call my extended family, or my girls who are at college, on the way home. That always puts everything into perspective. I also pray at the end of every day to thank God for the many blessings he gave me during that day. When we live a life of gratitude, a lot of the little things that bother us during the day tend to fade away.
