Bank CEO tries to keep cultural values central

At a construction site, two workers are laying bricks. When asked what they were doing, one man answered, "Laying bricks," while the other optimistically remarked, "Building a cathedral."

Richard Carrion used this anecdote to inspire audience members at his lecture last night to work diligently toward their goals and to inspire others with their passion.

Carrion - president and CEO of Popular, Inc., which owns Banco Popular bank - spoke at Huntsman Hall about his experiences at the company.

The lecture was sponsored by the Puerto Rican Undergraduate Student Association - Carrion is Puerto Rican - as well as SPEC, La Casa Latina and the Association of Latino Alumni.

Gil Casellas, one of Penn's Charter Trustees, introduced Carrion. He noted that the current Penn applicant pool had "the largest number of Puerto Rican applications in the University's history" and encouraged Puerto Rican students to remain active leaders on campus.

Carrion, a 1975 Wharton graduate, spoke about the challenges of making Banco Popular the largest Latino financial conglomerate in the U.S. and one of the top-30 financial institutions in the Americas.

Other accomplishments of his include installing the first network of ATMs in Puerto Rico and being a member of the International Olympic Committee.

Throughout the lecture, Carrion focused on maintaining Puerto Rican values in the corporate world.

"Banco Popular is an institution dedicated exclusively to work for the social and economic well-being of Puerto Rico and inspired by the most sound principles of good banking," he said.

Carrion's list of important tenets to keep in mind included social commitment, integrity, excellence, innovation and customer service.

He added that Banco Popular has a "people department" and not a "human-resources department" because the focus should be on the individuals that use the bank's services.

Although he initially did not want to work for the bank - despite it being his family's business - Carrion said he has learned to appreciate and thrive in his position.

After the lecture, Carrion answered questions from the audience such as how to market Banco Popular to non-Latino customers.

College sophomore Veliz Perez said Carrion was "motivating" and "successfully managed to put values and financial growth together."

College freshman Christine Nieves echoed these sentiments.

"I came to hear Carrion because he is an example of a leader. I can learn from his experiences and, hopefully, one day follow in his footsteps," she said.

This event was the first of a series of guest lectures scheduled by PRUSA.

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