Michele Riccobono

Director and Loan Portfolio Manager, Wells Fargo Capital Finance

Biography:

Michele is director and loan portfolio manager for Wells Fargo Capital Finance’s Retail Finance team.  She has been a Wells Fargo Capital Finance team member since 2005, holding a variety of portfolio and underwriting roles in the Retail Finance Division. Michele has 21 years of commercial finance experience with previous portfolio management and underwriting roles at Paragon Capital (acquired by Wells Fargo in 2001), and CapitalSource. Michele is involved in the management of bank group syndicates for companies of varying capital and ownership structures. Michele’s leadership is instrumental to the group by supporting and helping the development of her analyst team through a combination of regular individual mentoring and external training courses – these opportunities have been critical in developing and motivating a new generation of credit analysts.  

Michele is actively involved in the Secured Finance Network, Turnaround Management Association, Wells Fargo Capital Finance’s Mentor/Mentee Program, Wells Fargo’s Women’s Team Member Network, along with charitable organizations in her community.  Michele is a wife and mother of two young children.

What advice would you offer to women just starting out in the industry?

Be inquisitive and seek out individuals within your organization that are well respected and knowledgeable about what you do. You will find there is a wealth of information around you and tapping into it results in gaining more than just an answer to a question.  Expect that you may find yourself as a minority in a room, but, know you have earned the right to be there and don’t shy away from speaking up.  In fact, prepare ahead of time so that you give yourself a voice by asking a question, making a point or finding a way to be a meaningful part of any conversation.  Build a network of mentors not because you have to but because you want to.  View networking as an opportunity to make “new friends” rather than as a job or task that you have to do. The relationships you develop and connections you make can pay dividends in your life beyond the workplace.         

What do you know now that you wish you knew in the beginning of your career?

Building relationships both inside and outside of your organization as well as with senior leaders across the company are more important that you might realize. Having influential people in your life that can offer an opinion on your talents, what you bring to the table, understand your “brand”, and why you might be the right person for a job will open doors and provide opportunities that you had not previously considered.  Your network can also be excellent resources when evaluating career changes or challenges.  Seek out mentors and those individuals that are doing the job you aspire to or that impress you.  Find out what tools/tips they can point you to that have served them well and contributed to their success. If there is a quality, attribute, or skill that you want to improve upon, find the person that you believe does it the best and ask them how they do it. More often than not, people enjoy being mentors and helping younger people starting out in their career in any way they can.         

How do you balance work/personal time?

Hold yourself accountable to the timeframe you want to commit to work and the time you want to commit to yourself and/or your family.  Be prepared and plan your day; when do you want to be in/leave by and commit to it.  Women have an amazing ability to become more efficient when less time is involved.  Block the time on your calendar as family time when you get home-—no phones/no email.  Know that it is ok to set boundaries as to when you will make yourself available for a call or an appointment. No apology is necessary and no one needs to know why a certain block of time may not work for you.