Centennials New NWA President Values Personal Connections

As online banking and mobile banking tools continue to evolve, the personal bond between the bank and its customers is still important, Scott Hancock said.

Personal connection remains vital, but all banks are facing the challenges of striking the right balance between heightened technology and lowered customer contact, said Hancock, the new Northwest Arkansas division president of Conway-based Centennial Bank.

“We have a lot of customers who are very technology-driven, and they’re OK without a branch bank and a person as long as technology works,” Hancock said recently during a sit-down from his Fayetteville office on Joyce Boulevard. “On the other end is the customer who says, ‘I have a smartphone [to do my banking] but I still want some face-to-face time.’

“There will be a need for [both] branches and heightened technology. Both will serve a need for a particular customer.”

Hancock, 43, was officially announced in December as Centennial’s top local executive, the result of the largest in-state bank merger in Arkansas history.

In June, Home BancShares Inc. of Conway — holding company for Centennial Bank — announced its acquisition of Jonesboro-based Liberty Bancshares Inc., the holding company for Liberty Bank.

The new company now has approximately $7 billion in total assets, $5.4 billion in deposits, 153 branches and 1,500 employees across Arkansas, Florida and south Alabama. 

The merger also created the second largest bank holding company headquartered in Arkansas. 

The $280 million acquisition was approved by federal regulators on Oct. 24, and all 46 Liberty Bank locations in Arkansas — including 10 in Benton and Washington counties — began operating as Centennial Bank on Dec. 9.

In addition, four Liberty Bank branches in the Fort Smith/Van Buren market were folded into the NWA division, giving Centennial 14 branches with about 130 employees in the region.

Hancock’s promotion meant the exit for longtime bank executive Howard Hamilton, who’d been the NWA regional president and chief operating officer of Liberty Bank since 2004. Hamilton is now in private business as owner and manager of Hamilton Family Investments in Fayetteville.

Hancock was executive vice president and chief lending officer for Liberty Bank. He has been with the company since 2001 and in Northwest Arkansas since September 2005.

He has worked diligently in Northwest Arkansas and knows the community, according to Davy Carter, Centennial Bank’s regional president.

“I am very excited about Scott leading our Northwest Arkansas division,” Carter said in a company news release in December. “He is a strong leader in a market that is very important to Centennial Bank.”

Hancock said there hasn’t been anything eventful about the transition.

“Overall, it’s been smooth,” he said. “Every merger provides its own opportunities, but the teams that have been in place have worked to make it as smooth as possible.”

Within the NWA division, Hancock said the bank’s top executives in specific markets are Matt Hicks (Rogers/Bentonville), David Glass (Gentry/Siloam Springs) and Greg Rotter (Van Buren/Fort Smith).

Bryan Smith, senior vice president and retail manager for the NWA division, will also play a critical role. All four are holdovers from the Liberty Bank regime.

Hancock said Centennial Bank will distinguish itself in the market by building relationships and being competitive in the rate environment.

“On a given deal, we might not be the cheapest, but we’ll price it accordingly and take care of the customer,” he said. “We aren’t going to be able to be everything to everybody, but we weren’t everything to everybody. But ask our existing customers and our employees, and [they will say that] we are very good at meeting customer needs.”

Being civic-minded will still be important to Hancock in his new role. He serves on several local boards, including the Arkansas Community Foundation, and is chairman of the board for The New School in Fayetteville.

Hancock also wants to be a role model for his children, who are 9 and 5.

“My wife and I have been involved in numerous things over the years, and that will continue for the Hancock family,” he said.