A New Course for Mellon

After his keynote appearance at the Acquire or Be Acquired conference earlier this year, Bank Director talked with Harris Simmons, CEO of the venerable Zions Bank, about corporate governance, M&A, and sticking to your guns during difficult times.

The analysis of the failure of Hamilton Bancorp, a seemingly robust institution before it was closed last year, offers many sound lessons for bank directors. Among them: There’s no substitute for a strong audit function and good old-fashioned risk management.

It’s never been more important to have a great board of directors. But the risks today are real and come from many fronts. How do you make sure your board is protected?

Technology investments won’t pay off with a scattershot approach. The best-laid plans involve developing a strategic target and finding the expertise to manage the process.