Wells Fargo 2014 Annual Report Download - page 7

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stud finder, and Franklin Sensors
was born. Working out of his home
and paying out-of-pocket to build
inventory were financially dicult for
David’s small startup company. Enter
WellsFargo banker Flip Klener,
who helped David with a Small
Business Administration revolving
line of credit. Five years later, David’s
company employs 45people in his
community and sells its products in
the U.S. and overseas.
Sometimes the small businesses
we serve become larger companies.
Consider Vermeer Corporation, a
66-year-old agricultural and industrial
equipment company based in Iowa
that started with a single product.
WellsFargo Commercial Banking
Relationship Manager Mark Conway
has worked with Vermeer for 25years,
helping this family-owned business
as it has grown into a global business
that now makes 150models of various
products and employs 3,000 people
(seepage16).
Our Wholesale Banking business
helps companies like Vermeer with
their global needs—we operate
in36countries—through services
such as foreign exchange, treasury
management, asset-based lending, and
investment banking. We have grown
our Wholesale Banking business as our
customers’ needs have increased. We
are the No.1 lender to middle-market
companies, the largest commercial
real estate lender, and one of the top
providers of syndicated loans.
Team members
Our biggest competitive advantage
is our team. This is why we refer to
our people as “team members,” not
“employees.” We believe our 265,000
team members are resources to
be invested in, not expenses to be
managed. We oer competitive salaries
and benefits to ensure we attract and
retain the best talent. For eligible team
members, this includes aordable
healthcare options, 401(k) matching
contributions, tuition reimbursements,
matches for education-related
charitable donations, adoption
Our passion for helping customers motivates our
team members. Itgratifies us when we hear how our
banking and financial services improve lives and
transform businesses.
reimbursements, work-life balance
programs, scholarship programs
for team members’ children, and a
discretionary profit sharing plan.
We also train and develop our talent.
Last year, WellsFargo team members
completed more than 7.5million
training courses. On the stagecoach,
we build careers.
Each year we survey our team
members to understand what engages
them at work. The more engaged
our team members are, the more
connected they are to our culture and
our vision and values. In2014, overall
team member engagement measured
4.22 out of a possible 5, topping the
prior year’s record of 4.16. WellsFargo
is a “Gallup Great Workplace Award”
winner, a distinction that the Gallup
organization, which conducts our
survey, reserves for the world’s most
engaged and productive companies.
Our people also value teamwork.
They expect to work together
across our businesses—as“One
WellsFargo”—as we help customers
achieve financial success. Or, to
quote our Vision & Values: “Our
relationships with our customers are
only as strong as our relationships
with each other.”
This is why I like to say that our
culture is about plural pronouns—
we,us, and ours—instead of I, me,
and mine. The star of the team is the
team, because how the work gets
done is just as important as getting
the work done.
Team members like Keith Shealy set
the example. A WellsFargo financial
advisor in South Carolina, Keith
recently advised a customer who
owns a 60-year-old family business.
Keith understood the customer had
commercial banking needs, so he
enlisted the help of Mike Farmer, a
banker from our Wholesale Banking
business. Keith also tapped Wendy
Brewer in Wealth Management for
help because the customer wanted
guidance in succession planning for
his family and company co-owners.
Without such teamwork, our
customer might have had to deal
with multiple financial services
companies for his personal and
commercial needs. That would have
been unfortunate for him and a
missed opportunity for us. Indeed,
it’s only through such teamwork that
we can hope to live up to a key goal
expressed in our Vision & Values:
“We want to be the first provider our
customers think of when they need
their next financial product.”
Communities
In addition to serving customers,
our team members serve the
communities where they live and
work. In2014, WellsFargo team
members contributed $97.7million
of their own money to schools,
charities, religious organizations,
and other nonprofits. That’s up
nearly 10percent from 2013 and
marks the 12th consecutive year-
over-year increase in team member
donations. UnitedWay Worldwide
has recognized WellsFargo for
having the nation’s No.1 United Way
campaign for six consecutive years
(2009–2014), an accomplishment
I am especially proud of because
WellsFargo ranked 29th on the 2014
Fortune 500 list of America’s largest
corporations.
Team members also volunteer
theirtime—1.74million hours in2014—
foractivities such as tutoring students,
serving food to the homeless, building
homes with Habitat for Humanity,
and serving on nonprofit boards.
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