Stephanie Lyles Finds Her Dream Job as Chief Credit Officer of TransPecos Banks, SSB
By Antonio Gutierrez
Photography by David Teran
Stephanie Lyles has a favorite quote by Charles Swindoll she abides by: “Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it.”
“Everyone goes through challenges in life, and some things are out of your control,” she explains, “but you can control your attitude. Your mind is very powerful, and a positive attitude will take you far in life. I try to teach my kids that, too.”
Those words of wisdom have helped guide Lyles, 40, throughout life and have opened doors for her in her professional life in the banking industry over the last 18 years. Her path to success has now led to her role as chief credit officer of TransPecos Banks, SSB, which she assumed in June of this year. TransPecos Banks is headquartered in San Antonio and has branches in West Texas, including Alpine, Pecos, and Marathon.
At TransPecos Banks, SSB, Lyles leads the credit team and holds responsibility for the management of all credit activities of the bank.
“I’m excited about the opportunity, and it’s my dream role,” Lyles said. “I’m still learning a lot, but I’m enjoying it because it’s a bigger picture from my last role. I’m learning about the finance side, workout loans, and getting to meet one-on-one with customers.”
After graduating from Texas A&M University in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in finance, Lyles began her career straight out of college with Frost National Bank in the Austin area, where she grew up. At Frost, she received her formal introduction to commercial credit underwriting and graduated from Frosts’ Financial Services University.
“Frost’s credit analyst training program was pretty intense,” Lyles said. “It’s specific to commercial lending, analyzing businesses and their cash flow and projections. It’s been a great foundation that has carried me all these years.”
In 2011, Lyles moved to the Alamo City when she was hired by Broadway Bank as a credit analyst. While at Broadway, she was promoted to VP, Business Banking Underwriter before being promoted to VP, Commercial Credit Department manager in 2016. In this role, Lyles was responsible for hiring, developing, and leading the commercial credit underwriting team.
In addition to numerous other activities, Lyles is the president of the Risk Management Association (RMA) – San Antonio Chapter, where she’s been an active board member since 2012. The RMA is a not-for-profit, professional association whose mission is to advance the use of sound risk management principles in the financial services industry. For information about becoming a member, visit www.rmahq.org or the LinkedIn page under RMA San Antonio Chapter.
Lyles also recently graduated from the North San Antonio Chamber Leadership Lab, a one-year training program that helps professionals develop leadership skills and team building.
Away from work, Lyles enjoys traveling and being outdoors with her husband, a San Antonio firefighter, and their three children, McKenna, 14; J.D., 11; and Parker, 11.
Get to Know Stephanie Lyles
- First Job: Sonic Carhop
- First Car: Nissan Altima but I upgraded as quickly as possible to a Firebird Formula (6 speed) with T-tops
- Guilty Pleasure: Finding the best pizza place in town (Florio’s is at the top for me as of now), shopping, crafting, and watching Hallmark movies.
- Best Advice Your Parents Ever Gave You: This isn’t really advice per se, but it’s what my dad taught me by his actions. He taught me what hard work, dedication, and loyalty are by his actions in his career and in life.
- If You Weren’t in the Banking Industry: I’d be a vet.
TransPecos Banks, SSB
112 E. Pecan, Ste 800, San Antonio, TX 78205
(877) 445-9550
