Officers & Directors
Senior Management
James H. Sills, III
President and Chief Executive Officer
Randall C. Hall
EVP and Chief Financial Officer
Valerie M. Quiett
Corporate Secretary
Valerie M. Quiett, Esq. serves as SVP/Chief Legal Officer/Corporate Secretary for the Company and M&F Bank. She has been with the Bank since 2000 and also serves as the Bank’s BSA Officer and CRA Officer.
Board of Directors
James A. Stewart
Chairman
James A. Stewart has served as a director of the Corporation since 2008, and of the Bank since 2002. He is Chairman of the Board and the Bank Board. He has served on a variety of committees of both the Corporation and the Bank and presently serves as Chairman of the Strategic Issues and Planning Committee, the Executive Committee, and the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. Mr. Stewart is a commercial real estate broker/consultant, and is associated with the following firms: Stewart Investment Properties, Inc. (Principal); Majaja, Inc. and Clearview Housing Corporation (President); Clearview Commercial Properties, LLC and Camellia Associates, LLC (Member/Manager); MAJAJA Siler City, LLC (Manager) and Doverwood Associates, LLC (Manager). He previously was a real estate broker with Anthony & Company (now Colliers International). Prior to entering the brokerage business, Mr. Stewart served in various positions in engineering and marketing with the IBM Corporation from which he retired in June 2000.
He is a graduate of the Directors’ College and has attended courses at the Advanced Directors’ College. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Business Administration, both from North Carolina State University. Mr. Stewart serves on the boards of Triangle Community Foundation, Majaja Inc., Clearview Housing Corporation, and the Board of Visitors of North Carolina State University.
Connie J. White
Vice Chair
She is a graduate of the Directors’ College and has attended courses at the Advanced Directors’ College. She has received a Certificate of Education from the National Association of Corporate Directors. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Hampton University and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Ms. White has served on the board of the Durham County ABC, and currently serves on the Board of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus Foundation, of which she is Treasurer.
Willie Thomas Closs Jr.
Willie Thomas Closs Jr. has served as a director of the Corporation since 2002, and of the Bank since 2005. He has served on a variety of committees of both the Corporation and the Bank, and presently serves as Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee. Mr. Closs is a certified public accountant, with over 30 years’ experience in corporate accounting. He provides financial consulting services to NC Mutual and other organizations, and was re-elected to NC Mutual’s Board of Directors in 2010. Previously, Mr. Closs was Executive Vice President and Controller of NC Mutual, and prior to that, was an auditor with both Deloitte & Touche and Arthur Andersen.
He is a graduate of the North Carolina Bank Directors’ College (“Directors’ College”) and has attended courses at the Commissioner of Banks’ Advanced Directors’ College (“Advanced Directors’ College”). Mr. Closs has attended the North Carolina Bankers Association Bank Directors’ Assembly (“Directors’ Assembly”). He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from Morehouse College and a Masters in Business Administration from Duke University.
Michael Lamont Lawrence
Michael Lamont Lawrence has served as a director of the Corporation since 2006, and of the Bank since 2005. He has served on a variety of committees of both the Corporation and the Bank, and presently serves as Vice-Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee, and Chairman of the Information Technology Committee. Mr. Lawrence is a certified public accountant, with over 20 years experience in accounting. He has served as Chief Financial Officer of NC Mutual since January 2012. Between 2003 and 2011, Mr. Lawrence served as the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of NCM Capital Management Group, Inc. (“NCM Capital”).
Between 1993 and 2003, Mr. Lawrence was an auditor with Deloitte & Touche serving the financial services industry. He is a graduate of the Directors’ College, and has attended courses at the Advanced Directors’ College. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from North Carolina State University. He has served on the North Carolina State University Investment Fund Board since 2010. Mr. Lawrence served on the Board of the Self-Help Credit Union from 2005 to 2010.
James H. Sills, III
Previously, Mr. Sills served as Executive Vice President of MBNA America Bank (now Bank of America), the largest credit card institution in the world. In this capacity, he served as the Director of Corporate Technology Solutions for the $80 billion US Card Division. Prior to relocating to Wilmington, Delaware in June of 2001, Mr. Sills served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of MemphisFirst Community Bank (now Landmark Community Bank) in Memphis, TN. Mr. Sills received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Morehouse College and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. He is also a graduate of the University Of Wisconsin School Of Banking. Mr. Sills also serves on the Board of the North Carolina State Chamber of Commerce.