First Bank Celebrates Anne Stoneham During Women’s History Month

Anne Stoneham serves as First Bank’s Senior Director of Human Resources, leading Compensation & Benefits, Talent Acquisition, Training & Talent Development, and Internal Communications. Although her path from college to the workforce was anything but linear, she has been fortunate enough to work in the business/banking industry for 39 years.

In her senior year, Stoneham realized that she did not want to pursue a career in her major. Upon graduating from UNC Chapel Hill, she worked at a bank until figuring out what her next steps were. Before this, Anne never even considered banking or business as a career choice, but there she found her love for helping her customers and teammates find the right solutions. She found career direction about a year and a half later when she was offered a position in the training department. There she was able to utilize her strengths, helping her to excel in her field and setting her up for many years of future growth and success.

Anne has been fortunate enough to have a number of smart, strong, and capable women in all facets of her life that have been role models, showing her how to be authentic to who she is and how to navigate an industry dominated by men. Having strong admiration for her aunt and grandmother, Stoneham stated, “They were such great examples of grace and strength. I learned a lot from just growing up around them.” Her mother was also a vast influence on her growing up. As a student graduating from high school at the age of 15, Anne’s mother was a model of perseverance for her, always encouraging her to go the extra mile. Professionally, Anne gives gratitude to two leaders in her life; one who thought strategically and sparked Stoneham’s interest in leadership and the other who showed her how to be a true advocate, valued her opinion, and taught her how to preserve in the workplace. Anne stated, “Role models are all around us if we are just willing to be open and take the gifts that each individual can give us, because you can learn something from everyone.”

When thinking about her role as a woman in leadership, Anne thinks that the greatest responsibility one can have is to help other women get into those positions themselves. The greatest impact on more women working in higher level positions is for other women who are already there to act as mentors and sponsors for those who want to grow. Having experience in these roles, Stoneham knows that it is important to be authentic. “As leaders we are constantly being asked to stretch and change and that’s not always easy. It can make us feel like we’re not being true to who we are sometimes, but I think the last 2 years being an HR Director in a pandemic certainly helped me to adapt and help steer the organization on how we were going to handle it” said Stoneham.

Anne tells others to never stop learning and pushes them to continually work to develop themselves. In today’s time, with a little research and assistance from those around you, there is nothing you cannot find the answer to. Resources are everywhere! As a businesswoman, Anne encourages others to be the person who always shows up, to raise your hand and volunteer, and be willing to take on the work. She feels you will always show up better if you are true to yourself and your values, then if you tried to be something or someone you are not.

Throughout her life Anne reflects on different sayings, but always carries two at the forefront. One from her father who said “Anything worth doing is worth doing well.” She thinks of this daily, knowing that someone is depending on her work and that it will have an impact on theirs. The other quote is one she has carried with her since her 20s – “When people show you who they are, believe them.” (Maya Angelou)

Along with her passion for leadership, Anne enjoys being at the beach, collecting shells, and making homemade wreaths. She realizes her desire to stay active and has found pastimes that fuel her spirit. For her, she continues to learn outside of the workplace because learning is vital to developing yourself and realizing who you truly are.