TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, recently announced that Allison Robinson and Andrew Stuart will jointly oversee the U.S. Consumer Bank. Allison will serve as Head of Retail Distribution, responsible for TD's more than 1,100 store locations and retail operations, while Andrew will be Head of U.S. Consumer Products, Auto Finance and Wealth, in addition to overseeing the Bank's more than $130B in consumer deposits across more than eight million customers.
But what does that mean for our customers and colleagues? It means they will get two powerful leaders heading up the Consumer Bank that have a strong belief in listening over talking, continuous learning, identifying solutions from unique and distinctive perspectives, all while maintaining a balanced life.
As you'll quickly learn, these two dynamic leaders are two sides of the same coin, who have quickly found a rhythm of collaboration and vision for the future of TD's Consumer Bank.
We spoke to Allison and Andrew about the new roles, what One TD means to them and much more.
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TD is all about collaboration and One TD. How do you think your partnership will lead to success within the Consumer Bank this year and beyond?
Allison – The exciting part is Andrew and I bring very different areas of expertise to the partnership. And quite honestly, from day one, we have jumped in and been full Consumer Bank partners. But I think each of us have distinct areas where we bring expertise and enthusiasm. We'll get more done because of this collaborative structure versus one of us trying to do it on our own.
Andrew - I was smiling to myself because Allison's answer was almost exactly what I was going to say. We bring different strengths to the table. Allison has deep experience in retail banking. My background is rooted on the lending side with experience in auto finance, as well as the deposit business. So, we're coming at it from different, yet complementary perspectives.
It seems like you've just immediately hit the ground running in such a great way. How does this collaboration play into each of your leadership styles?
Andrew – I've always said that I take my work seriously, but I don't take myself too seriously. This has really helped in my career as I've tried to be a collaborative leader and encourage my teams to work together to win across the businesses. Another critical element of leadership is to be a good listener and I'm really trying to do a lot of listening in the early days. It's important that we bring our leadership teams together to hear what and where we are delivering, but also be willing to challenge the status quo and identify areas of opportunity to improve business results and better serve our customers.
Allison and I talk all the time, and this helps to make sure that we are on the same page from a leadership perspective. We're very transparent with each other and trying to set a similar tone of openness for our teams.
Allison - The thing I would add on to Andrew's response is the core of leadership is the service to others. It's less about your title and your structure. It's more about how we serve those that are in our care – our customers, our colleagues, and the communities where we operate. As a leader, the risk you run is thinking you must have all the answers, rather than surrounding yourself with talented colleagues and teams to deliver on our goals.
Andrew and I have the benefit of getting to serve and partner with incredible leaders here at TD. It's creating the space for them to be at the table as we shape the future of the Consumer Bank at TD. Our job is to help move our business forward collaboratively and we are in a great space to deliver on that.
What are your visions for 2025 and beyond?
Allison - Part of our Consumer Bank journey is to compete in a different way. Whether it's transforming our operating models, our product offerings, or our processes and routines, the world is evolving quickly, and we must adapt as well.
This is an inflection point for us to say, "How do we want to compete differently? How do we want our brand to show up differently? Are we willing to do the hard work to prioritize so that we can win in a very focused way?" These are the types of questions that are guiding us.
Andrew - The Consumer Bank is a very complex business. As we look across our traditional banking business, wealth, credit cards, auto finance, lending and deposit businesses, as well as our retail distribution network of 1,100 stores and our digital channels, our focus needs to be on serving the customers how and where they want to be served. Whether it's in a store or engaging with us digitally, we need to be able to help them address their needs with the right guidance, products and solutions no matter where they are in their financial journey.
We mentioned One TD earlier and we also hear One Consumer Bank. What does that mean to both of you?
Andrew – From my perspective, it's ensuring we have alignment across all areas of business within the Consumer Bank. It's about providing solutions for our customers and helping them manage their financial lives by bringing them together through a consistent and comprehensive approach.
Our goal for the Consumer Bank is that customers can engage with us through multiple channels and find answers to their financial questions. They should also find that it is easy to have a deep relationship across our business areas like core banking, credit cards, mortgage, and wealth. These are the points of intersection that are necessary for us to deliver a connected experience for our customers.
Allison – From my view, the sum of the whole is more than the individual parts. When we do this really well and are highly collaborative, we're going be able to make a bigger impact for customers and our stakeholders than we could if we tried to go this journey independently. When you execute with this mindset, it's exciting because the impact is greater than one could ever imagine.
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What are some passions outside the bank that you bring to work each day?
Allison - You can only be your best in your work environment if you're doing the things to care for yourself that make you feel good. That might be taking a walk and spending time with your family. Maybe you're on a health journey.
When I think about my passions outside of TD, it's my three Bernese Mountain dogs. They are very large, so they are more like roommates than pets. What brings me great balance is when I take the time to walk them each day. And because they are 100 pounds each, I must walk them individually and I'm able to spend quality time doing what I love.
Andrew - Doing the things that allow me to be fresh when I come to the office and to take care of my mental and physical health.
For me, it may mean going for a walk every morning before work with my wife and our dog or it may mean spending time with my three kids. I get a lot of joy out of having a conversation with them about whatever is happening in their life at the moment. On the weekends, it probably looks like going on a bike ride for a few hours with my cycling friends and enjoying breakfast and coffee afterwards. Those are kinds of interactions that help invigorate and keep me balanced when I come to the office every day.
We're going to end with the beginning. Can you share your personal stories of how you got into banking and finance and how you ended up in your current role?
Andrew – Like many of us, I did not take a traditional path. Banking and finance were not my original plan. I started off working in a car dealership and then I transitioned into the finance and insurance side of the business. I was doing that when I joined the corporate world as a district manager with a major automotive group. For more than 22 years with that company I had the opportunity to serve in a variety of leadership roles across sales, marketing, finance, and operations. I was CFO and Head of Operations at that company before becoming its President and CEO. And then in 2014, TD Bank asked me to lead its U.S. Auto Finance business.
Over the past 10 years, I have spent most of my time leading TD Auto Finance but have also had the opportunity to lead Corporate Operations within the Corporate Transformation and Operations (CTO) team at TD Bank Group, and most recently led the U.S. Consumer Bank's Consumer Deposits Payment Products (CDPP) business. As of February, I have been on this new, exciting journey alongside Allison to lead the next chapter of our Consumer Bank.
Allison – My journey was a little different than Andrew's. My mother spent her first half of her career as a banker and the second half of her career in education. And it's just me and my sister, and I'm a banker while my sister is in education.
Like Andrew, I did not start in banking and finance. I actually was studying to pursue a career in computer programming. I was doing programming and I'd come into college classes and was always very social. One of my professors suggested I may be better suited in a career where I can best utilize my total skillset and desire to help others. As a result, I pivoted to business school and my path to finance started. I joined another financial institution in a training program out of college. And that's where I spent my first 21 years of my career.
Most of my career was saying yes to new opportunities or a change. My best advice to people is that if you are presented with an opportunity that might feel uncomfortable, it's probably the right opportunity to help you grow, both personally and professionally.
Today, I couldn't be more excited to partner with Andrew on our continued journey to elevate and drive the Consumer Bank forward, delivering a better Consumer Bank for our colleagues, customers, and communities.