John Ikard often is asked to talk about how he got into the banking industry.
The truth isn’t what most people expect, the longtime CEO of admits, with a flash of the humor for which he is known.
“People think, ‘Oh gosh, John, come tell us your story about how you always wanted to be a bank CEO,’ ” he said. “Nobody sits around their dorm room thinking ‘I want to be banker.’
“I answered an ad in the newspaper,” he said. “I thought, ‘OK, I’ll try this for a year.’ And it was OK. It wasn’t really great, but after a year I started to really enjoy it.”
Three decades later, that enjoyment is evident as. He’s worked at FirstBank his entire 35-year career, the last 17 years of which he served as chief executive officer of the bank’s holding company.
By any number of measures, it’s been a successful tenure. FirstBank has grown to become Colorado’s second largest bank by deposits, behind only San Francisco-based Wells Fargo. Bank assets topped $17 billion in 2016, the 10th consecutive year of record profits for the privately held bank.
“Even through the financial crisis, we had record profits. Itap really a pretty simple business model — we didn’t do subprime loans. We stayed away from all the Wall Street-type shenanigans,” Ikard said. “Plus, being here in Colorado makes you look really smart. Banks just reflect their communities.”
Over the years, Ikard also transformed the bank’s charitable giving efforts, and that commitment to the community has been a hallmark of his leadership, those who know him say.
Since 2000, FirstBank has contributed more than $55 million to area nonprofit organizations — including more than $4 million in 2016. Before Ikard took over as CEO in 1999, the bank had donated roughly $5 million total over its previous 36 years, a bank spokeswoman said.
“He really is the epitome of the hometown boy makes good,” said Don Childears, CEO of the Colorado Bankers Association and a longtime friend.
“We have a slogan here at CBA about banks helping Coloradans realize dreams. Every loan regardless of its purpose is a way to facilitate someone’s dream. If it’s a student loan, it’s education. If it’s a home loan, it’s buying or remodeling a home. If it’s a small business loan, itap the business you’ve dreamed of starting for decades,” he said. “FirstBank has stuck with that model of lending and by doing that and looking at their community service, John has really helped a lot of Coloradans realize their dreams.”
Ikard himself is quick to mention that FirstBank is the second largest corporate giver in Colorado — of all companies in all industries.
Some people, he said, think the bank gives away too much, but in Ikard’s mind, that’s what makes it successful.
“We’re only going to be as strong as our community. Ninety-five percent of our assets are in Colorado. If Colorado does well, we do well,” he said. “Itap a little bit selfish, too. When we give and invest in our community, it makes for better bank customers.”
It’s not just money, either — Ikard has fostered a culture of volunteerism at FirstBank, himself a past chairman of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, Denver Area Boy Scout Council and Denver Economic Development Corporation. On a national level, he has served as chairman of the American Bankers Association, the nation’s largest financial services association, and on the Federal Reserve Board of Kansas City.
“The bank itself is a model of what it means to live and work in your community,” said Kelly Brough, CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. “We don’t just make our living here. We make our lives here.”
On a personal level, Brough said she will never forget Ikard’s support after she was hired as the chamber’s CEO in 2009. Some community members publicly questioned the decision, but Ikard took it upon himself to express “unwavering confidence” that she was able to do the job both to Brough and her critics.
“I needed some help to get my confidence back — he was there and helped me. He delivered the confidence I needed until I got my own back,” Brough said. “Thatap an incredible gift to give someone and John does that naturally. He is one of the most thoughtful leaders I’ve ever had the benefit of being mentored by.”
Whether Ikard is talking to corporate CEOs or new hires, that personable nature shines through, said Jeff Plagge, CEO of Iowa-based Northwest Financial Corp.
Plagge and Ikard served on the ABA board at the same time, often traveling to events and conventions to talk to bankers about the changes and challenges facing the industry at a time when it was “knee-deep in the implementation of ” he said.
“John just had this ability to reach out across all size aisles and have people listen to what he had to say,” Plagge said. “His personality is such that he just attracts people to conversations that others sometimes wouldn’t.”
Under Ikard, FirstBank has earned respect up and down the industry ladder from small community banks to midsize regional banks to large money centers, Plagge said. A strength is the bank’s commitment to growing talent from within.
That’s apparent in the upcoming leadership transition. Ikard’s successor, chief operating officer Jim Reuter, who officially takes the reins as CEO on Feb. 1, started his career at the bank in 1987. The incoming COO, Emily Robinson, joined FirstBank in 1993.
“They have one of the most interesting and successful cultures in banking,” Plagge said. “That starts at the top. Whether John would take any credit, he has a lot to do with that.”
FirstBank employees are even allowed to give out Ikard’s phone number to customers.
“I don’t get that many calls,” Ikard said. “A lot of times when someone calls you, they’re just upset. Maybe you didn’t approve a loan but they’re not mad about that. They’re mad because their business is failing or their wife has left them. You just let them blow off steam, treat them with respect.”
The future of banking is all about technology, he said. Years ago, as many as 40,000 people a day came through FirstBank’s lobbies. Today, it’s maybe half that.
“Banks have become technology companies that deal with money. I have four kids — they wouldn’t even know how to write a check. They use debit cards. They use online banking. They use mobile apps,” Ikard said. “If you’re not really good in that space, you’re not going to be successful.”
What will the longtime banker do after his last day of work March 31? Ikard said he isn’t sure, but it won’t be retirement.
For one, he joked, his wife doesn’t want him hanging around at home, interrupting her routine.
He serves as chairman of business advocacy group and will remain on FirstBank’s board of directors.
“Lucky to the organization he says yes to,” Plagge said. “He’ll go at that with the passion he’s had throughout his career.”