When you hear “the voice of the hudson valley” (WHUD’s Mike Bennett) on Greater Hudson Bank’s TV and radio commercials, that’s Jenet Ferris’ handiwork. She facilitated the partnership that brought Bennett on board as Greater Hudson Bank spokesperson because, “as a community-focused bank, we wanted to partner with someone with a trusted background in our community,” explains Ferris.
That sense of community comes naturally to Ferris, the bank’s 29-year-old director of marketing, who loves the close-knit atmosphere she shares with employees and customers. She reports directly to the COO, has weekly meetings with the bank’s senior management, and is able to easily execute marketing programs because of the absence of red tape. “One week, I thought, ‘Let’s offer a 14-month CD with a 1.4-percent rate.’ So we made a new product, pushed it out into the market and got a great response,” says Ferris, a proud Syracuse University alumna (who took classes with Knicks star Carmelo Anthony). She was also able to nimbly implement the bank’s current social-media campaign—donating $1 for each Facebook “like” or Twitter “follow” to the local Meals on Wheels.
Ferris was recruited away to Greater Hudson Bank when she was working in marketing at a local hospital, and previously excelled in the PR industry, with positions at renowned agency Ruder Finn and at the St. Regis Hotel in Manhattan.
Her secret to success? Hard work, instilled in her by her mom, a single parent whose family immigrated to the Bronx from Puerto Rico, and moved her family to Westchester seeking a better life for Jenet. “My mom taught me from a young age that nothing would ever be handed to me,” Ferris says. “Her advice always kept me on the right path.”