Westfield Bank Announces Seven Promotions

WESTFIELD — Westfield Bank announced that Richard Hanchett has been promoted to senior vice president/Commercial Loan officer. Meanwhile, six other Westfield Bank employees have been promoted to vice president, including Bryan Cowan, Cathy Jocelyn, William Judd, Sarah Medeiros, Kelly Pignatare, and Rick Zabielski.

A 34-year veteran of the local banking industry, Hanchett joined Westfield Bank in 2007 as vice president/Commercial Loan officer. As team leader of the bank’s Commercial Loan Division since 2015, he manages a group of seven lenders in addition to maintaining a large loan portfolio. Prior to joining Westfield Bank, he spent 24 years at the former Westbank, rising through its Commercial Credit Department to senior credit analyst before becoming a Commercial Loan officer in 1986.

Civically engaged, Hanchett currently serves on the Springfield Chamber of Commerce legislative steering committee and education & workforce development subcommittee, and is on the board of the Work Opportunity Center in Agawam. He is a graduate of Western New England University.

Cowan, who has been promoted to vice president/Finance, started his career at Westfield Bank in 2001, advancing to accounting associate, then staff accountant by 2005. He was named assistant vice president in 2014 as he developed his skills in financial reporting, forecasting, interest-rate risk, liquidity management, and data analytics. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Westfield State University and an MBA and master’s degree in finance from Northeastern University.

Jocelyn, now vice president/Marketing manager, joined the bank eight years ago as Online Banking coordinator; shortly after, she moved to the Marketing Department as Marketing coordinator, was promoted to Marketing manager, then assistant vice president/Marketing manager, in which position she holds responsibilities for bank advertising, branding, sponsorships, and charitable giving, among other duties. She has extensive experience in the banking industry, and holds an associate’s degree from Bay Path University.

Judd, who has been promoted to vice president/Credit Administration, started with the bank as a teller in 1997, moving to the Commercial Loan Group in 2001, becoming Credit Department manager in 2007. In 2012 he was promoted to assistant vice president/Credit Administration; in that role, he has been instrumental in the development of the bank’s commercial-credit underwriting process and in training new credit analysts. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Westfield State University and an MBA from Northeastern University.

Medeiros, now vice president/Commercial Credit, began her banking career in 2011 as a commercial credit analyst at Chicopee Savings Bank, quickly advancing to Credit Department manager, then assistant vice president in 2013. She has been instrumental in the development of a credit-administration structure to support Westfield Bank’s $1.1 billion commercial portfolio. A former CPA with PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP and director in Risk Management for Forest City Enterprises, she holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting with a minor in Finance from Providence College.

Pignatare, who has been promoted to vice president/regional manager, joined the bank in 2007 following five years of experience in the local banking industry as an online banking and cash-management specialist, branch-administration manager, and business-development officer. At Westfield Bank, she quickly advanced to assistant vice president, Small Business Sales manager, then regional manager and assistant VP, Sales Administration and market analyst. She attended Holyoke Community College.

Zabielski, now vice president/Underwriting and Processing manager, has been with the bank since 1996, holding a number of positions before his most recent role as assistant vice president/Underwriting and Processing manager for Retail Lending; he has experience as a consumer loan underwriter, mortgage originator, and manager of the bank’s loan center. In his new role, he is also responsible for underwriting and processing of residential lending, home-equity, and consumer loans.

“I am delighted to announce these well-earned promotions,” said James Hagan, president and CEO of Westfield Bank. “Rick Hanchett is a natural leader and a talented banker who will continue to strengthen our relationships with local businesses. Many of our customers count on Rick for clear, effective advice when making their most important decisions, and he’s earned that trust. And when I look at our new VPs, I’m impressed by their hard work and dedication to always putting our customers first. These qualities have resulted in successes for the people they serve, and for Westfield Bank — guiding us successfully through our recent merger with Chicopee Savings Bank, and helping us rise to the top echelons of our region’s banking industry. They’re role models and simply great bankers.”