Interview with Jill Castilla: A Different Way of Thinking

Jill Castilla leads Citizens Bank of Edmond as its President and Chief Executive Officer. Jill joined Citizens Bank of Edmond in 2009, transforming the struggling institution into one of the most innovative community banks in the nation. Under her leadership, Citizens Edmond was one of the first in her state to deploy Interactive Teller Machines, and Citizens Edmond recently applied for a provisional patent for the nation’s first unmanned electronic banking facility. Her entrepreneurial and visionary spirit spills over into her community engagement as the founder of “Heard on Hurd,” a Citizens Edmond-sponsored event that draws upwards of 100,000 people into downtown Edmond for a musical festival, local shopping, and food trucks, delivering a $6.2 million economic impact.

On the national stage, Jill serves as an appointed Civilian Aid to the Secretary of the Army (CASA) for Oklahoma and on the board of the American Bankers Association, as well as the content advisory committee for Money 20/20. Jill also serves on numerous local boards to include Allied Arts, Community Bankers Association of Oklahoma, and the Edmond Chamber of Commerce. She recently served on the Governor of Oklahoma’s Transition Team, the Edmond Public Schools Foundation Board of Trustees, the UCO Foundation and Oklahoma Bankers Association Board of Directors. She currently serves as Dean of the Southwest Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University as well as a Presidential Advisor to the University of Central Oklahoma.

Jill is a six-time recipient of American Banker’s “Most Powerful Women in Banking – Women to Watch” and her Citizens team is a two-time recipient of the “Top Team in Banking.” She holds other titles such as “Community Banker of the Year" by American Banker, "Most Innovative CEOs in Banking" by Bank Innovation, "Most Admired CEOs in Oklahoma" by Journal Record and "Business Leader of the Year" by Oklahoma Christian University.

Prior to her career in community banking, Jill served in management roles at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and was an enlisted member of Oklahoma Army National Guard. Jill holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor’s degree in finance from Hawaii Pacific University. She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin's Graduate School of Banking and The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania Executive Leadership Program. Jill and her husband have been married for 25 years, and they are the proud parents to three children. She is an Army vet, an Army wife, and an Army mom.