When Luke Yancy III agreed to sign on as president and CEO of the Mid-South Minority Business Council in Memphis, Tenn., the career banker thought he would stay on for about two yearstopsto help the struggling economic-development agency get back on its feet.
That was 10 years ago, and today, Yancy, 61, remains as passionate and committed to his job and the potential the agency has to make a difference in the lives of minority- and women-owned business enterprises (MWBEs) as the day he signed on.
“I felt like the glorious career I had in banking was preparation for this,” says Yancy, who left banking after a successful 30-year career, where he served as president of West Region at AmSouth Bank and, prior to its acquisition by AmSouth in 1999, First American Bank. “I thought my banking career was really the highlight of my life, but I realized after I got here that my banking career was the training ground to do what I’m doing now.”
