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| In the old days, people kept close personal relationships with their bankers. A visit to the bank was more than an errand, it was often a social event. Times may have changed, but Lincoln Square has a bank where personal service still matters, and where customers are treated with respect that's not dependent on the size of their account balance. |
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Since it began as Commercial National Bank in 1945, Corus Bank has served Chicago's neighborhoods. Its first branch at the corner of Western and Lawrence Avenues was located in the heart of Lincoln Square, where many Greek immigrants were settling at the time. In the 1950s, the Western and Lawrence branch hired a new savings teller from Greece named Chrissie Grievas. As the newest employee, she was assigned a seat at the very last window in the lobby.
When her new Greek-speaking customers opened their accounts, Chrissie took the time to teach them a few words in English and how to write their names. By the time word got around the Lincoln Square community that there was a new Greek teller to see, soon Chrissie had the longest line of anyone at the bank. "There was a line from my window all the way to the door," recalls Chrissie, who still serves customers at Corus Bank today. She gave her customers such personal attention, that back then, some even mistook Chrissie for the bank president. |
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| In addition to its Western and Lawrence location, Corus Bank operates nine branches. Four branches are located throughout Chicago's north side in neighborhoods such as North Center and Lakeview, one is located in the Loop, and four are located in the suburbs. Each of these branches operated under independent names until 1997, when the bank's management decided to unite the branches under the Corus name. Despite the name change, each of the branches has maintained its community focus. |
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| But its community focus is only part of Corus Bank's drive to serve its customers. When Vice President and Branch Manager Mary Kay Phillips was hired in 1995, her first task was to launch a new phone center to serve bank customers with Ultimate Money Market accounts. In the age of endless, impersonal voice mail systems, Corus made the decision to provide their customers with live operators who handle customers' needs. After launching the first phone center in only three months, Mary Kay's next project was to remove the switchboards from all nine branches and create a single, unified Corus Bank phone center. This required pulling together everything from the phone systems, to the scripts, to hiring and training all of the operators. "It was quite an undertaking," said Mary Kay, "but we got it done." Now the phone center employs 13 people and handles an average of 10,000 to 11,000 customer calls every month. |
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Corus Bank's commitment to customer service radiates from its owners, management and staff. Both Mary Kay and Chrissie agreed that the bank has a "family feel" and that all of its branches share this quality. Many Corus Bank tellers start working as their high school job and stay with the bank for many years afterward. Mary Kay attributes this to the fact that the owners care about the employees and that the employees care about their customers. Mary Kay has been in banking since 1973, and has worked for other banks in the Loop and the suburbs. But she speaks highly of her experience at Corus. "The staff here sincerely cares about their customers. We will find some way to make you happy," she says. To this day when Chrissie Grievas travels to Greece, she says that she often runs into former customers who have fond memories of her and of their experience with the bank. |
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If you're looking for a bank that provides friendly, attentive service, Corus Bank offers a full range of commercial real estate and retail banking services. Their range of personal bank accounts serves just about anyone's needs and includes checking, savings, CDs, IRAs and Money Market offerings. Corus also provides convenient online and telephone banking services. Whether you are an existing or a new customer interested in learning about any of their banking services, call the Corus Bank Telephone Banking Center at 1.800.555.5710 during business hours. Or visit your local Lincoln Square branch at the corner of Western and Lawrence to speak with a Corus Bank representative.
Corus Bank
4800 N. Western Avenue
Chicago, IL 60625
773.832.5215
www.corusbank.com
Telephone Banking Center
1.800.555.5710 |
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