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Who's who: Matt Burns

Who knew that in the new millennium Web sites and ATMs would have much in common? Growing up on different sides of tracks left a divide between the ATM and online channels that didn't seem penetrable, at least not to the typical black-suited banker. But that polarization collapsed when non-traditional banking types like Matt Burns hit the financial self-service scene.

May 10, 2006

Stop. Close your eyes and imagine for a moment the world as it was 10 years ago. The age of the Internet was here, and every recent college grad wanted to land a job at a dot-com.

The Web was like a bottomless well of earning potential. And companies such as Columbus, Ohio-based CompuServe, which was acquired by America Online in early 1998, were in the lead, and even ahead of their time, some might argue.

A 'sweet opportunity'

By 1986, when recent college grad Matt Burns landed a job with Compuserve, the company had already broken ground in a number of markets. For a kid with a double major in English and chemistry, Compuserve was a "sweet opportunity." And, as it turns out, a great place to brush off the hard knocks that were molding him for a job in the financial realm.

"The Web was just starting to get off the ground," Burns said. "I had a friend who always wanted to start new things. He said, 'What if we had a Web site for CompuServe?'"

So the pair put Burns' editorial expertise to work and developed a site. And that was the easy part, Burns said. Convincing corporate heads that the Web could be used as a marketing tool was another story.

Matt Burns

"While we were getting the site together, we constantly had the CEO looking over our shoulder," Burns said. "We had to do a lot of evangelizing, even within our own company, to get everybody excited and happy about the possibilities for the Web site. And after we convinced everyone, we had to figure out how to effectively reach customers."

Burns didn't know it at the time, but his experience convincing others of the Web's importance was going to come in handy later, when he would use those honed skills in his vice-president's role at National City Corp.

"It was a sweet opportunity to play with the Web," Burns said. "And there are a lot of comparisons in the ATM space."

Bringing the Web and ATM channels together has been one of Burns' accomplishments at National City, said Phil Talmage, a National City vice president and manager of the bank's Small Business CheckCard division.

"He got personalization at the ATM and why the experience at the ATM needed to be similar to the banking experience online," Talmage added. "He came in and convinced people that we needed to be doing this."

When Burns joined the bank in 1997, he was unique. And in many ways he still is.

Like most banks, National City doesn't have a lot of non-banker types hanging around.

"I feel more in the minority, as far as banking goes," Burn said. "Most people in this industry have been in ATMs and banking forever. I see a lot of fairly seasoned people in the ATM space. But as we do more channel integration, I think we'll see more people crossing the platform."

Coming from a different background has its advantages, Burns said, especially where ATMs are concerned.

"The ATMs were dormant for a while, but now they are changing, and they're changing a lot," he said. "We've added more functionality on the ATMs. Before, consumers had to constantly hit 'Next' on the menu, and that wasn't convenient."

"People are always looking to do things in the fastest way possible, and the ATM is changing to meet their needs. It's the same thing with online banking. You have to ask, 'What's the best way to get people to use it?'"

That kind of thinking was easy for a marketing guy like Burns, who grew up in a cyber-tech environment. From technical and copy writing to Web management, Internet marketing and advertising management for an online services launch in France, Burns stepped onto National City's playing field ready to swing.

Now National City's senior vice president of electronic banking, a position that allows him to focus his energies on ATMs and network management, Burns has dabbled in debit cards and online banking services.

"I thought he learned the business very quickly," said Talmage, who was a product manager under Burns in the ATM and debit card space. "And Matt has always epitomized what it means to come at something from a different perspective."

A dichotomy that works

Matt Burns and his 14-year-old daughter, Katie, vacationing in Cape San Blas, Fla.

Combining art and science is one of Burns' keys to success, said his wife of 21 years, Gail Burns. "He likes combining what he knows from one area with a new area or one that's not typically connected with the first," she said. "He likes to use his communication skills to demystify and sell up new technologies to groups both techie and business-minded."

And his big brother Robert, with whom Burns shares the same birth date, simply credits his brother's varied interests to family dynamics.

"I think Matt is like our dad in a lot of ways," Robert Burns said. "My dad had a number of interests, too. He finally ended up in law school, and I think he graduated when he was in his 40s. He did everything from selling pots and pans door-to-door to teaching."

Perhaps Burns' interest in science came from his mother - a registered nurse and retired caseworker.

Or maybe it was growing up in a home with an autistic brother that taught Burns there is always more than one way to view the world.

Either way, Burns said he believes that outside-the-box thinkers will soon become the norm in the ATM space.

"I think there will be more and more people coming into banking like me," Burns said. There is absolutely no reason why an ATM should be treated any differently than a company treats a Web site."

**Matt Burns will be leaving National City at the end of October to manage JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s core debit card portfolio. Burns will be based out of Columbus, Ohio.