Mary McGovern bio box
Updated: September 30, 2024
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2024 Outstanding Women in Business
Outstanding Women in Business: McGovern has grown a $1.5B bank
Photo | Matt Wright
Mary McGovern, president & CEO at Country Bank
By Susan Shalhoub
Mary McGovern is not only reaching milestones. She helps other women (and men) reach their goals by encouraging volunteerism, gentle mentoring, exhibiting leadership, and blasting out of her own comfort zones with confidence.
All continue to pay off: In January, McGovern became Country Bank’s first female president. Then, in August, she became the first woman to lead the Ware bank in its 174-year history when she succeeded CEO Paul Scully following his retirement.
“I am very competent. I have taken over newer divisions,” said McGovern. “I know enough about the bank to trust its leaders and help them get to the next level. I am leaning in, reading books. Is it scary? It certainly is scary.”
Of the 25 largest banks in Central Massachusetts when ranked by local deposits, Country Bank is one of four to be led by a woman.
McGovern is “whip smart and incredibly intelligent,” said Katie Crockett, a member of the bank’s board of trustees.
Prior to becoming the bank’s leader, McGovern served as its CFO since 2011, later adding the title of chief operating officer in 2022 before becoming president and CEO. During her time as CFO, bank assets grew 30%. Loans are up 66% to $1.5 billion, and deposits are up by 68% to $1.4 billion as of Aug. 31.
“When she was CFO, she reported to us monthly on strategic planning, a rigorous process,” Crockett said. During this time, the bank transitioned to an asset-based model from an investment-related platform, she said, with McGovern taking the lead.
In 2022, when she was promoted to Country Bank’s chief operating officer, McGovern oversaw finance, operations, facilities, retail banking delivery, and technology.
“She was very deferential to Paul. It was an interesting process to see her management style, which was more delegated. She was quick to develop an organizational chart, another strength aside from her financial prowess,” Crockett said.
Though McGovern gives credit to Scully for laying the groundwork, she took the ball and ran with it in creation of the founding partnership with the Worcester Red Sox. She also championed the addition of six bank locations.
As a volunteer in the community, McGovern has served on the Baystate Health Foundation board in Springfield and just joined The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts board as well. She is active in Be Like Brit, the Worcester nonprofit named after Britney Gengel, established to build an orphanage in Haiti after Britney’s death at age 19 following an earthquake during a mission trip there. McGovern went on a humanitarian trip to the country in 2015 with the organization.
“When she volunteers for something, she is thoughtful and puts 120% into it,” Crockett said. “Rather than racing around, she puts time where she will have an impact.”
On a large scale, bank philanthropy has reached almost $10 million over the past decade on McGovern’s watch. Giving back creates a stronger community, stronger customers, and a stronger bank, McGovern said. Colleagues coming up through the ranks see her show up time and time again – even with a hectic schedule – to learn how volunteering enriches their lives.
“I have tried to lead by example,” McGovern said.
Being a mentor, to McGovern, is to make herself available. She finds it rewarding to be a sounding board to others.
“I offer myself to someone if they are in a difficult situation. It’s gratifying to have a CEO come into a role and do something different than I would. That’s exciting. You kind of want them to make it their own,” she said.
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