Chase promotes Grossman in state
Madison native Brian Grossman has been promoted to a key JPMorgan Chase executive position in the state, the company said Tuesday.
Grossman has been named region manager of middle market banking in Wisconsin. In that role, he will be Chase’s senior executive responsible for midsize companies and others in the state, focused on building and strengthening the bank’s business and brand.
Although his title is different, Grossman will take on many of the responsibilities previously held by James R. Popp, who was Wisconsin market president before leaving last winter to become president of Racine-based Johnson Bank.
“We’ve been serving the Wisconsin market since 1839 and we are proud to have a Wisconsin native with strong ties to the local business community and residents as market leader,” Tony Maggiore, head of the Midwest segment of Chase’s middle market banking business, said in a statement. “Brian’s Midwest work ethic and integrity is integral to serving customers, cultivating exceptional employees and providing leadership in the community.”
Grossman, 44, who lives in downtown Milwaukee and works out of the Chase Tower, said he’ll aim to grow and solidify the bank’s business in the state.
Chase said it has 81,200 business customers across the state and 1.6 million consumer customers. It had $4 billion in commercial banking loans in the state in 2016.
Grossman, who has been with Chase 22 years, said a banking hallmark of Wisconsin is “very strong” credit quality.
“Personal relationships still matter,” Grossman said in an interview. “It’s not just a commodity-type business. We benefit from having a big tool box and local touch, but we’ve got a powerhouse behind us.”
JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the nation.
“Despite being a very big place, it feels like a small place, and it’s easy to get things done as a banker,” Grossman said. “That’s why it’s great to work here.”
Most recently, Grossman was a managing director in corporate client banking, covering clients in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He started his career in middle market banking for Chase in the company’s Madison office. Middle market companies generally are those with annual revenue between $20 million and $500 million.
Grossman received a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a masters of business administration degree from Marquette University. He leads the company’s UW-Madison campus recruiting team.
Grossman is a longtime supporter of Junior Achievement, where he enjoys teaching courses to Milwaukee area students. He said he expects to become involved in more local nonprofit groups in his new role.
Grossman said his best advice in the banking business came from Maggiore: “Anticipate and initiate.”
“Anticipate the future growth of your clients, how their needs are going to evolve. Start talking about it early,” he said.
Chase, which has 69 branches in Wisconsin and 1,500 employees here — 1,140 of them in metro Milwaukee — also has provided $1.8 billion in financing for local nonprofits and governments in the state.
“It’s great to have the feet on the street that we have in Madison and Appleton and downtown and out in the suburbs, and hopefully we’ll continue to grow that,” Grossman said.