BEACON BUSINESS BANK - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Head of Retail Banking & Client Relations Manager
Zahedani, who graduated from Hillsdale High School and attended San Jose State, has extensive senior level banking expertise on the Peninsula. He is also an active member of the San Mateo Chamber of Commerce. He will manage San Mateo retail branch as well as work with local companies to obtain the financial and banking products that will help them grow their businesses.
"Having grown up and gone to school in San Mateo and Foster City," he said, "I am proud to work for a business bank whose core philosophy is to deliver services with a personal touch. This is my home and I want to work to help its local business community prosper."
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board of Directors
- Member of the Chairman of the Board
- Beacon 's Chairman
- Chairman of the Bank
Denis J. Daly, Jr., chairman of the Bank since 2014, is an experienced commercial banker and mezzanine financier with deep roots in the Chicagoland area. He joined Beacon Business Bank in 2000 as a director and has taken on additional board positions including chairman of the ALCO and loan committees. He has spent much of his time over the last 20 years getting connected to the Bay Area.
He is the founder and managing member of Builders Capital, LLC, which is a portfolio equity lender to small residential developers in metro Chicago. Denis has also been an active member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI), Real Estate Investment Association (REIA), Home Builder's Association of Greater Chicago (HBAGC), Chicago Association of Realtors (CAR), Midwest Business Brokers and Intermediaries (MBBI) and National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders (NAGGL). Currently, he is a director of the Chicago Real Estate Council (CREC) and a member of the finance and real estate committees of the Executives Club of Chicago (ECC).
Daley is a third-generation banker and like his father, Denis Sr., has worked his way up from teller through executive vice president and now chairman.
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Member of the Executive Management Team
- Executive Management / Executive Vice President / Chief Financial Officer
Dennis Jang, whose career at the Bank spans more than two decades, oversees all of its financial, treasury, and fiduciary functions. Prior to joining Beacon Business Bank, he worked at the accounting firm of KPMG, where he audited financial institutions. A graduate of UC Berkeley, he holds a degree in accounting and finance and is a CPA.
Currently a member of AICPA, the California Society of CPAs, and the Association of Asian American Bankers, Dennis is a former director of the Chinatown YMCA, the Chinatown Community Development Center, the Progress Foundation, and World Arts West.
"The institutional and community knowledge that I bring to my position," he says, "is a valuable asset for our customers. I have been through several economic upturns and downturns in the Bay Area while working at the Bank. That experience provides me with insights that I can offer to both our senior management team and those who utilize our services."
Job Titles:
- Senior Vice President, Business Development
- Senior Vice President, Business Development & Commercial Lending
J.C. Avakian has joined Beacon Business Bank as Senior Vice President, Business Development & Commercial Lending. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from his previous role as a Commercial Relationship Manager at Fremont Bank and Executive Director Client Manager at JP Morgan's Chase Commercial Term Lending. Before joining Chase, he was a Senior Commercial Loan Officer with Wells Fargo.
Avakian is skilled at developing creative, customized solutions for commercial real estate investors and business owners. He has a B.A. in Economics from Boston University. J.C. lives in San Francisco with his wife and two kid. He is passionate about youth sports, and for the last 15 years, he has coached middle school basketball and officiated high school football games throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
James Westfall has over 40 years of financial services industry experience, including 11 years serving in the chief financial officer position, four of which were at Greater Bay Bancorp prior to its 2007 acquisition by Wells Fargo Bank. Previously he was an Assistant Treasurer at Bank of America for 15 years with capital, interest rate, and liquidity management responsibilities. He is a past president of the National Asset Liability Management Association and prior member of the Bank Administration Institute's Treasury Commission.
Prior to its 2019 acquisition by Heritage Commerce Corp., he served as a member of Presidio Bank's board of directors, chairing its ALCO Committee and serving on its Audit and Executive Committees. He joined the Beacon Bank board in 2021, chairing its ALCO Committee and serving on the bank's Compensation and Executive Committees.
Mr. Westfall has a BA in Economics from Duke University and an MBA from the University of Chicago with concentrations in finance and accounting.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Senior Vice President, Business Development & Commercial Lending
Kristin Ditlevsen comes to Beacon Business Bank with over 30 years of experience in commercial lending and ten years in executive management in the SF Bay Area Banking Industry. She has focused on Commercial Real Estate and Construction financing in her two most recent roles. She is also an experienced C&I and SBA lender. In addition, Kristin enjoys working with clients to help them plan and fund their growth and acquisitions.
Most recently, Kristin held the position of Senior Vice President Managing Director of Business Development at Liberty Bank in South San Francisco. She has experience in both community and regional-sized banks, including 18 years at Comerica Bank. "I look forward to introducing customers to Beacon Business Bank. This organization is highly customer focused and can make decisions very quickly."
Kristin will be working from our San Mateo office, focusing on new business acquisition and community involvement. She currently serves as the President of the Board of Directors for the South San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and is on the Board of Directors for Sitike Counseling Center in South San Francisco. In addition, she has formerly served on the Boards for United Way of Santa Cruz, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Capitola Aptos Rotary Club.
Kristin is originally from the Santa Cruz area; she holds a BS in Finance and Economics from San Jose State University. She enjoys spending her spare time with friends and family and loves to travel.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Richard A. Pimentel, a CPA, has over 35 years of experience in accounting and management consulting and applies his expertise in profitability and management performance to his board position. His specializes in forensic accounting. Among his consulting clients are the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), major utilities, national cable television firms, as well as many small to mid-sized companies and their owners.
"I joined the Board when businesses were finding a difficult time getting financing from larger institutions. I believe there is a place for a local bank like ours to make a difference in today's marketplace."
Currently, the principal/president/managing partner of Management Consulting Solutions, he holds a BA in accounting from California State University, Stanislaus, and an MS in taxation from Golden Gate University. He has lived in the Bay area for over 35 years. He joined the Beacon Business Bank board in 2012 and is a member of the ALCO, audit and loan committees.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- President of Technology Channel Management Group, Inc
Richard Rodriguez is the president of Technology Channel Management Group, Inc. (TCMG) and works with investors, entrepreneurs and boards to evaluate, develop and implement strategic sales, marketing, financial and operational strategies.
An accomplished senior executive, he has over 30 years of diverse senior management and board experience within venture-backed startups, family businesses and mid-sized public companies.
"I have been involved with closely held organizations for most of my career. My background includes helping companies navigate through difficult regulatory situations and to return to a healthy and growth-oriented phase. My experience as a director and executive in a variety of heavily regulated industries including education, wireless/cellular, credit card processing, transportation and security allows me to provide significant continuing value to the bank and the companies it services."
Rodriguez has served on the board of Beacon Business Bank since 2008 and chairs its audit committee as well as serving on its ALCO and loan committees. He also currently sits on the board of Charge Anywhere, LLC, and is trustee at the Pacific Education Foundation.
Job Titles:
- Relationship Manager
- Vice President
Stacy Diep joined Beacon Business Bank in March 2020 as Vice President, Relationship Manager. She brings 24 years of banking experience working with large national banks, as well as medium sized and small community banks. Her background includes operational, managerial, and lending, which makes her a well-rounded Relationship Manager.
She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from San Francisco State University.
Stacy has volunteered with the National Kidney Foundation, Aids Walk, Special Olympic, the Pulmonary Society and the American Cancer Society. She is a resident of San Mateo County and will be working out of the San Mateo Branch.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Member of the Executive Management Team
- President
- Executive Management / CEO / President
Steve Andrews joined Beacon Business Bank in June 2023. Beacon's Chairman, Denis Daly, expressed the board's enthusiasm at attracting and retaining a community bank leader with profound ties to the Bay Area. "Andrews' impressive track record as the CEO of four community banks, three of which are in the Bay Area, establishes him as a well-regarded figure in the industry."
Bringing more than three and a half decades of banking experience, Andrews has held significant positions within the industry. His most recent position was as the President and CEO of the California Bankers Association. Throughout his career, Andrews has advocated for the industry at both the State and Federal level and has served as an instructor at the Pacific Coast Banking School, and at the China America Business and Education Center of Cal-State East Bay. He has also successfully guided numerous community banks to success.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Steven Leonard, a 30-year veteran Northern Californian real estate executive, is currently a Managing Director at Cushman & Wakefield and has completed more than over $150 billion in commercial real estate leasing and sales transactions in the Bay Area during his career. He is recognized as a leading authority in several real estate segments, including office buildings, industrial buildings, office development land (tenant) representation and industrial development land.
Among the most prominent property transactions that he has directed have been the BioMarin Pharmaceutical campus in Novato, and Athleta division of GAP consolidation in Petaluma, and the BioMarin Pharmaceutical acquisition of the San Rafael corporate center. During his career, he has completed more than 700 office lease transactions, representing over 4.2 million SF of office space.
"Because I am involved multiple commercial real estate transactions at any given time," he says, "I bring a very hands-on, deeply-involved perspective to the Board. Combined with our business development and loan officer day-to-day interaction, my independent view provides our customers with a level of experience and expertise that is uncommon at a community bank.