It was natural for Chris Haskew to make a career out of banking.
As Business Report details in its latest Executive Spotlight feature, banking is in Haskew’s blood. His father, uncle and grandfather were bankers.
Haskew, 45, is the Louisiana market president and regional commercial banking manager for Capital One Bank. He remembers standing in awe of the bank vault at his dad’s office when he’d get a chance to go to work with him.
“I have always been intrigued with and interested in business, and banking seemed the most appropriate career path given my family background,” he says.
Originally hailing from Chattanooga, Tennessee, Haskew earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and accounting from LSU in 1992. He led Capital One’s north Louisiana market before returning to Baton Rouge in 2015 to head up the bank’s operations for the whole state.
“The opportunity to serve as north Louisiana market president for Capital One, leading a group of over 500 bankers and working year-round with a wide range of elected officials and civic, business and nonprofit organizations, was a valuable building block for my current role as state president,” Haskew says.
He says he’s enjoying the strategic roles he serves for Capital One in Louisiana as commercial banking executive and state president and is focused on growing in both roles, providing leadership to build on the bank’s business momentum in Louisiana and to continue to maximize the bank’s community impact in the state.
Being in business for more than 20 years, Haskew says he has learned to deal with rejection.
“I really believe this experience more than any other taught me the daily discipline and focus it takes be successful,” he says.
Haskew also opened up about lessons he has learned from tough personal experiences.
“Losing my lifelong best friend to a car accident when we were 20 years old was a traumatic experience, which taught me how fragile life is and to never take anything for granted. I still remember that day like it was yesterday,” he says.
Read the full Executive Spotlight Q&A. Here’s a sample of what you’ll find:
What is a great piece of advice you have personally received? Did you have occasion to put it to use?
The best advice I ever received is to always elevate others, and to place their success and well-being above your own; to never think in terms of “I” or “me.” When I first joined the bank (then Hibernia) I had a tremendous mentor who lived this advice daily. This had a major impact on me.
