How to Become a Commercial Loan Officer

A commercial loan officer is a lending professional who specializes in working with private companies, government agencies and non-profit organizations. She helps secure and process loans to help businesses update their technology and equipment or broaden their customer base through new services. As with consumer or mortgage loan officers, those who work in the commercial sector usually begin their banking career with a lower level job and work their way up to become lending officers. Certification is recommended for a commercial loan officer, but not required.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bachelor's degree

1. Attend an accredited college or university that has a solid program in finance, economics or accounting. Graduating from a top program helps attract interest from employers in the banking industry.

2. Find a job as a bank teller, internal auditor or bank customer service representative. Use job posting boards that cater to the financial services field.

3. Let your supervisor know early on that you would like to become a commercial loan officer. As he evaluates your abilities through your current job, he can become a mentor and recommend courses or training opportunities.

4. Train in a lending program as soon as you are eligible. Each bank or financial institution has different requirements for entering training.

5. Transition into your role as commercial loan officer upon completion of your employer-sponsored training.

6. Investigate certification possibilities after working for 2 to 5 years in lending. The Institute of Certified Bankers (ICB) bestows a Certified Lender Business Banker (CLBB) certificate for commercial lending officers. Requirements vary based on your level of education and length of time on the job. The ICB website contains information about the certification qualifications (see Resources below).

7. Ask your supervisor to write a professional reference letter to be used as part of the CLBB application packet. Working with you closely, she is aware of your strengths and weaknesses as a lender.

8. Complete any coursework that may be needed before taking the certification exam. Contact the ICB to determine if you need additional classes.

9. Study topics in commercial lending such as credit analysis, laws and regulations, products and services and loan structures. These are topics that will be covered on the certifying test.

10. Take the CLBB certification examination. The test consists of over 100 multiple choice questions. The exam is usually offered twice a year.

Tips & Warnings

• Marketing skills are an asset to commercial loan officers. A large portion of their job is to generate business by convincing companies to use their bank for their next loan.
• Research each company thoroughly when they are applying for loans or when you approach them as possible loan candidates. Showing a knowledge of their operations will help be confident that your bank is the right place to take their business.

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Resources

• Certified Lender Business Banker requirements at ICB