Justine Sakou, Private Client Banker on Influential Women

Influential Woman · Banking

Justine Sakou

SIE

Private Client Banker, KeyBank

Edmonds, WA

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Bachelor's Degree in Accounting and Finance Degree Master's Degree in Accounting and Finance Degree Career Work Ready Program (3 weeks) Degree Bank Work Program (8 weeks) Degree LEAP Program (Licensed Banker Training) Cert Series 6 Cert SIE Cert Insurance License

Her Story

About Justine

Every day at the bank, my main goal is to make that connection with every client as soon as they step into the branch. I work to understand their needs and make sure I'm helping them take care of those needs, no matter their background or situation. With KeyBank, our core focus is building relationships with clients, and that's what I bring every day to any client and any situation. Right now, since I have more experience compared to my new teammates, I'm coaching them and helping them make sure everyone has the same type of knowledge and resources to help clients. My role focuses on working with higher net worth clients, from $250,000 to $2 million, though I work with everyone. I help clients on their financial journey, and my main satisfaction comes from having that connection with every client I help, being able to learn their story, understand them, and help them in any way I can. At the end of the day, when they're happy with my service, that's my main satisfaction.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Justine

01What do you attribute your success to?

I attribute my success to my commitment and my faith. I'm spiritual, a believer, and my faith in God helped me a lot. I also love to learn - if I don't know something, I have to learn it, so I try my best to learn everything to the best of my knowledge. Learning is something I can never stop. I love to be challenged, and when I'm challenged, I need to find a way to overcome that challenge through learning. That's my main strength - I like to learn and I never stop learning. And I like to teach, because for me to know that I'm really learning something is to be able to pass it on. When I learn something, I'm not learning just for myself. The way I measure that learning is to be able to pass it over, to teach others the same things.

02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?

The best career advice I've ever received is to always learn and never stop learning. Another important piece of advice is that attitude makes a difference. Having a positive attitude in any situation makes a difference.

03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?

The biggest challenges I face right now are the language barrier, since English is my second language. I've been in this country for a long time, but I'm still learning English and getting better with my English, so sometimes it's not easy to connect with people. Language barrier can be a challenge sometimes, but I try to do my best, and since I love what I do, I try to improve myself every day. Another big challenge is balancing work and family. I'm married and have 4 kids - one in 10th grade, one in 8th grade, one in 6th grade, and one in 4th grade. It's kind of difficult for me to balance work and family, so those are my big challenges at this moment.

04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?

The values most important to me are fairness, honesty, integrity, and responsibility.

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