Oct. 16, 2019

This paid piece is sponsored by MetaBank.

Every year, MetaBank community banking president Kathy Thorson challenges her team to choose a word that captures their focus for the 52 weeks ahead.

JoAnn Linn has stuck with the same word the past couple of years.

“It’s ‘balance.’ How do I balance family, how do I balance work, and how do I achieve my best in both — and give all I can to both — without compromising the other,” said Linn, MetaBank’s director of mortgage lending.

“It’s hard. But it’s doable if you have the right support system.”

For Linn, that support extends from her family to her employer and has helped her create a career she loves.

 “I so value JoAnn and the skill set she has developed in the mortgage area,” said Thorson, who has known Linn since she came to Meta part time in 2012.

“She has outstanding skills for the mortgage industry, but she also brings skills of organization and service that she utilizes as a wife and mother too.”

There was a time when Linn wasn’t sure what path her career would take. The Faulkton High School graduate grew up north of Miller and originally considered going into health care. When she realized that wasn’t for her, she landed at Southeast Technical Institute, where she earned a two-year degree in financial services.

“I grew up on a farm, and an instructor at Southeast Tech told me her husband was looking for a credit analyst in the ag lending department at U.S. Bank,” Linn said. “So I went to work for him and learned a lot in the four years I was there.”

She continued her career at Farm Credit Services of America, but the office closed as she was having her third child. Her husband, Jim, was deployed overseas with the Army National Guard, and she became a stay-at-home mom.

“It was a blessing, especially with him overseas, but we decided once our youngest was in kindergarten I would get a part-time job,” she said.

“I remembered one of my former co-workers worked at MetaBank, so I looked him up, and he encouraged me to apply for a part-time banking assistant job.”

She met with Thorson right away and worked part time for about a year. Then, it evolved to about 30 hours per week as she began helping one of the mortgage lenders.

“About a year and a half later, they decided to add another mortgage lender, and Kathy asked if I would like the opportunity to take that position, which really said a lot about how Meta promotes from within,” Linn said. “They try to give opportunities to employees who are here. So I dove in headfirst and said I’ll do it.”

She was mentored by a co-worker, “and it’s just been a great path ever since,” she said. “I’ve just grown in my position. After a couple years, I moved into a supervisor position.”

She’s now director of mortgage lending, overseeing a seven-person team in Sioux Falls and Brookings.

“Every customer that comes through the door is different,” she said. “I feel like we take a very personal approach. We look outside the box and do our best to help our customers. We know not everyone is the same, and we need to adapt to those differences. And the people I work with are phenomenal.”

Good management is key, she added.

“I have great leaders who I look up to for leadership and guidance,” Linn said. “Kathy is just amazing. I report to Keith Portner, and he’s also an amazing person. He knows how to look at deals from an angle you might not have thought of, and he has taught me so much over the years.”

Linn has an extremely strong record of customer satisfaction, Portner said.

“It’s due to her knowledge, people skills and resourcefulness,” he said.

“JoAnn and I work closely with borrowers on construction-to-permanent financing, and she has a great ability to adapt to changes in the project and is skilled in communicating and calming in stressful times for future homeowners.”

Meta’s culture has proven the right fit too, Linn said.

She’s especially drawn to Meta Vets, the company’s internal group of employees who support military members and their families in the workforce.

“It’s an organization that includes anyone who is in the military, has a family member in the military or is passionate about the military,” she said. “We recently did a drive for homeless veterans, and we’re hosting bingo at the VA, so it’s really fun. I enjoy being a part of these benefits and enjoy getting to connect with the military community, especially as a military wife.”

Her role as a wife and mother matters at Meta, she emphasized.

“The flexibility we have is great,” she said. “Family is very important to our leadership, and if there’s ever anytime we need to have more time with our family or flexibility with our schedules, they’re very understanding — and that’s not something you find often in the workplace. Meta actually stands behind the importance of family.”

While she continues to strive to keep the concept top of mind, Linn said she has found the “balance” she seeks at Meta.

“I couldn’t ask for anything more. I’ve had people mention I should consider working elsewhere, but I know I would have been giving up something really good. It just doesn’t appeal to me to go anywhere else,” she said.

“My husband is very supportive — as is the bank. I have the best of both worlds.”