Sarah Becker

Vice President - Underwriting, Citizens Asset Based Lending

40 Under 40 Category: Underwriting

Message from Sarah Becker

Biography:

Sarah is a vice president for Citizens Bank’s Asset Based Lending group working on the underwriting team in Boston. Sarah joined Citizens in 2012 as a member of the Commercial Banker Development Program.  She has also held roles on the analyst, originations, and portfolio management teams for the Asset Based Lending group.  Sarah has experience working on ABL loans for publicly and privately held companies in a diverse range of industries and capital structures.  Sarah is also a leader for Citizens’ women’s network and the New England Chapter president for SFNet. 

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations – Economics from Wellesley College.  She lives outside of Boston, MA, with her husband, Tyler, and their two young children, Avery and Jameson.

What is the best professional advice you have been given and how have you implemented it? 

If nothing else, be dependable.  Be dependable in your work product, your time management and your reliability as a team member.  Too many people over-extend themselves and over-commit.  If you say yes to something, plan to show up, be prepared, and complete it to the best of your ability.  Do not be afraid to say “no” if you cannot commit a reasonable amount of your time and talent to the project or team.  Most people I have encountered would prefer you are upfront with them rather than relying on you and having your work fall short due to over-commitment.  

To implement this, every so often I re-evaluate my commitments.  If necessary, I step away from organizations or projects where I have not been able to commit my time or with which my interests no longer align.  I have also had to practice saying “no” when an opportunity arises for which I do not have the time to fully commit myself.  

Additionally, last year at a conference I heard a great piece of advice – actively plan out and manage your calendar by setting rules.  For instance, book only one day of your weekend or one after-hours event during the week.  I have tried to set rules for my schedule and stick to them so that I can dedicate myself to my work, family, and extracurricular organizations and projects without over-extending.  

What effect has the COVID crisis had on your professional life? 

During COVID, I was temporarily re-assigned to our portfolio team to assist with any and all modification requests.  Our originations, underwriting, and portfolio teams work closely together, so shifting team members to help out was relatively seamless but still had a large impact on our day-to-day work.  Fortunately, I generally work remotely a few times each week, so I have a dedicated workspace where I can step away to focus.  I did, however, have to set up another temporary workspace in our playroom so that I can work while keeping an eye on the kids!  Managing this balance between two young kids and working at home has been the hardest aspect of this crisis.  Most people have been very understanding and recognize that we are all facing challenges.  My husband and I have tried to vary our schedules to keep the kids entertained while the other one works, so this has made us both much more efficient in using the limited time we have.

How do you define a good leader? 

Good leaders coach their teams while simultaneously challenging them.  They embrace change and “rally the troops” to maintain a positive environment.  Leaders push team members to be their best through ongoing feedback – both positive and negative – and support.  They actively seek opportunities for their team members that will challenge them and advance their skills.  Additionally, good leaders embrace diversity, recognizing that a diverse group of people brings various viewpoints and solutions to the table.  

I have had the benefit of working with various leaders throughout my career.  They have found opportunities for me to take on and, although I haven’t always felt ready, they pushed me to complete these tasks and helped me to succeed and grow. They’ve encouraged me to take on new and challenging transactions, keep an open mind to varied solutions, and push myself to learn and ask questions to truly understand each transaction.  I also step up and ask for more responsibility to stay challenged and engaged.  They’ve also encouraged me to speak up when I want more responsibility and stay curious to develop my skills and keep the day-to-day interesting.