About Us | History | Directors | Organizers | Executive Management & Officers

Professional, Experienced Bankers – Focused on Service, Strength, Stability

Pinnacle Bank's management team brings years of financial, industry and entrepreneurial experience and all have deep roots in our community.

Susan K. Black, President and Chief Executive Officer
Ms. Black brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in the banking industry to Pinnacle. Past assignments include serving as President of the Community Banking Group of Greater Bay Bancorp in Palo Alto, as well as serving as President and Chief Executive Officer of Mid-Peninsula Bank, and as an Officer of the Greater Bay Bancorp Foundation.

Bruce H. Kendall, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Kendall has over 25 years of experience in financial management positions including 15 years as the chief financial officer or senior level financial officer for commercial banks. Most recently Mr. Kendall was a director, executive vice president, corporate secretary and chief financial officer for Legacy Bank in Campbell, California. Mr. Kendall has worked at Silicon Valley Bank and Coast Commercial Bank as their chief financial officer. Mr. Kendall began his career with Deloitte & Touche and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Robert C. Blatter, Executive Vice President, Chief Credit Officer
Mr. Blatter began his career in banking in 1985 with Bank of America. At the beginning of 1989, Mr. Blatter joined Bank of Salinas as a loan officer. He considers this a milestone year as one week after starting with the bank the first of his two daughters was born. Over the next 17 years, as Bank of Salinas became Community Bank of Central California, Mr. Blatter became SVP/Loan Administrator and was instrumental in contributing to it's growth. Mr. Blatter graduated from Colorado State University and received his MBA degree from Santa Clara University. Mr. Blatter has extensive community involvement both in the Hollister and Salinas areas.

Denise Brown, Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer
Mrs. Brown has over 20 years experience in the banking industry and brings a wealth of knowledge in the areas of client service and operations. Prior to joining Pinnacle Bank, Mrs. Brown held the position of Senior Vice President of the Service Management Group for Greater Bay Bank. Mrs. Brown is a graduate of Pacific Coast Banking School.

Jeffrey Payne, Executive Vice President, Director of Business Development
Mr. Payne began his career with County Bank and Trust where he advanced to Senior Vice President during his ten year tenure. Through mergers, Jeff continued his career with Pacific Western Bank and then Comerica Bank. Prior to joining Pinnacle Bank, Jeff served as Executive Vice President, National Manager, SBA at Comerica Bank. He has achieved loan sales volumes over the last three years exceeding $1 billion and was nationally ranked in the top 10 SBA lenders for the last five years. Mr. Payne resides in Gilroy.

Antony Marandos, Senior Vice President, Senior Relationship Manager
Mr. Marandos began his career at Wells Fargo Bank as a credit analyst and loan examiner before joining Pacific Capital Bancorp in 1995 where he rose to Senior Vice President/Private Banking Division Manager of their Wealth Management Group. Anthony received his M.B.A. from Monterey Institute of International Studies in 1992. Mr. Marandos resides in Gilroy with his wife..

Doug Moffat, Senior Vice President, Senior Relationship Manager
Mr. Moffat, is a graduate of the University of Southern California and Santa Clara University, where he received his MBA in Finance, began his career with Wells Fargo Bank, where he advanced to Vice President and Business Banking Area Manager during his nine-year tenure. Before joining Pinnacle Bank, Mr. Moffat worked for Citibank as their Senior Vice President and Business Banking Area Manager. Mr. Moffat ranked in the top 10 for all Area Business Banking Managers across the country.

Steve Wotherspoon, Senior Vice President, Real Estate Manager
Mr. Wotherspoon has over 27 years of real estate and construction lending experience. This experience covers the whole real estate spectrum from residential/subdivisions to retail centers and industrial projects. He has been active in markets from Silicon Valley/ Bay Area to Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz counties. Mr. Wotherspoon was 1st Vice President/Manager of the Real Estate Department with Community/ Rabobank before joining Pinnacle Bank. Mr. Wotherspoon currently resides in Salinas with his wife and two sons.

Cliff Dennett, Senior Vice President, Relationship Manager
Mr. Dennett has over 10 year of banking experience. Mr. Dennett began his career in Erie, Pennsylvania working for National City Bank in a variety of positions. Before leaving National City Bank, Mr. Dennett managed a large portfolio of high net-worth clients. He joined Comerica in Palo Alto in 2001 as Assistant Vice President, Private Lending where he continued to serve the banking needs of the affluent community. Prior to joining Pinnacle Bank, Mr. Dennett worked for Santa Clara Valley National Bank as Vice President, Commercial Lending where he managed a sizable portion of the bank’s commercial portfolio. Mr. Dennett currently lives in Morgan Hill with his wife.

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