Scott Polakoff joined FinPro, Inc. in 2011 after more than 25 years of bank regulatory service. Starting with the FDIC in 1983, Scott worked in positions of increased responsibility, including eight years as the Chicago Regional Director and one year on an executive rotation with The Boeing Company, Chicago, IL (Leadership Center, Employee and Labor Relations unit, and Executive Compensation and Benefits unit). He also served as the Chief Operating Officer for the Office of Thrift Supervision in Washington, D.C., for three years. Upon retiring from government service in 2009, Scott joined Booz Allen Hamilton as a Principal in its regulatory practice.

Scott now uses his skills and knowledge to help community bankers operate in a safe and sound manner. He is an expert in negotiating both formal and informal enforcement actions, responding to fair lending and UDAAP allegations, building value through Internal Risk Assessments, evaluating Board and Management performance, validating ALLL methodologies, and establishing robust Corporate Governance practices.

Scott is a sought after public speaker. After many years of testifying before the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee, he now enjoys sharing his perspectives on the future of banking, value creation, risk assessment and mitigation, leadership and talent management to banking groups, trade associations and examiner conferences throughout the country.

As one of the original architects of the FDIC University, Scott believes that training and education is the key to success for community bankers.  He teaches at the Colorado Graduate School of Banking, the Colorado Executive Development Program, frequently hosts FinPro topical webinars, and enjoys speaking at individual Corporate Director Training programs.

Scott earned his B.S. (accounting) from West Chester University, is a 1992 graduate of the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University,  a 1998 graduate of the Federal Executive Institute’s “Leadership for a Democratic Society” and a 2002 graduate of the Management Certification Program at Loyola University, Chicago, IL. He obtained his Series 24, 79, and 63 FINRA licenses in 2012. He achieved his CAMS certificate in 2018.