Carla Trombly, 36

Carla Trombly got into banking the traditional way: She listened to her mother.

Trombly was just getting started in her career 14 years ago, she recalls, when her mom told her about a leadership program for potential banking industry managers, in New England. A Massachusetts native and onetime U.S. Army solider, Trombly wasn’t sure at first. But she soon knew she had found her career.

“The minute after I got there I knew I was going to do this for the rest of my life,” says Trombly. “It had everything. It had finances, working with people, helping people and customer service.”

When she relocated to the Naples area with her husband, Trombly got a job with Bank of America. She worked in the bank's Change Management department, and traveled almost every day of the week. Trombly says she sought a job with less travel. “I was looking for a local bank that I could grow with,” she says.

She found it that in Weston-based Florida Community Bank, one of the largest independent banks statewide. She ran training and sales development, and now oversees FCB’s 46 retail teams spread across Florida. On the training side, one of Trombly’s top accomplishments was the creation of the FCB Masters Program, a six-month training program that develops a host of skills, including credit underwriting and relationship management.

Florida Community Bank has $10 billion in assets. The bank and her position there not only offers Trombly less travel for work, but also a deeper sense of working in conjunction with others toward common goals. “It’s the people here that motivate me to come to work,” Trombly says. “At FCB it’s like working for one big family.”

(This story was updated to reflect the correct order of jobs in Trombly's career; the name of one of her departments; and the assets of  Florida Community Bank through Aug. 22.)

— Mark Gordon

Survey says

Name: Carla Trombly

Age: 36

City of residence: Naples

Employer: Florida Community Bank

Title: SVP, Retail Sales Director

Birthplace: Massachusetts

Years on the Gulf Coast: 11

Marital status/children: Married for 13 years with a beautiful 8-year-old daughter

Alma mater/degree: United States Army

Best place to network: Circle of Influence and LinkedIn

Messy desk or clean workspace: Depends on the day of the week

Eat lunch out or at your desk: At my desk or in the car

Best business lesson ever learned: Perception is reality

Weirdest job you’ve ever had: Shampoo girl

A website that makes your job easier: Google

App you use the most: Email app (Outlook & Gmail)

One thing you do every day: Google…I’m known as the Googler

Community group you’re most involved with: St. Elizabeth Seton Parish & School

Favorite off-hours activity: Reading and Shopping

Two people, dead or alive, you’d like to have dinner with: Jesus and Thomas Jefferson

What you would be doing if you could pick another career: Teacher or Broadway Star

Top item on your bucket list: I don’t have a bucket list. If there’s something we want to do, we do it. Why wait?

Your happy place is: When I’m with my family and friends, laughing and enjoying the little things.

Your biggest fear: Poor health for family, friends and anyone I care about.

Favorite Ted Talk: John Wooden’s The Difference Between Winning & Succeeding. Also, Richard St John’s 8 Secrets of Success (it’s short and to the point)

Skill you’d like to learn: Pivot Tables

Who would play you in a movie about your life: Mila Kunis

Describe yourself in three words: Passionate, loyal and driven