Banking Executive Aligning Strategy

As an executive officer with KeyCorp, Katrina Evans leads the teams responsible for a bank with 13,000 employees, $98.4 billion in assets, and a presence in 12 states.

Her colleagues describe her as an accomplished business leader with an indelible civic footprint. They say the quality of her work and character set the bar for her teammates.

“I have consistently sought new ways to innovate and add value in my role over the years. I look at every day and every interaction as a chance to make a difference by defining ‘team’ broadly, working hard and choosing accountability,” she said.

As executive vice president and director of Corporate Center at KeyCorp, Evans has held various senior management positions over past years. “I watched KeyBank cultivate and grow a culture of corporate responsibility, community development, philanthropy, diversity and inclusion. And I knew that I had brought my career to the right company,” she said.

Evans partners with KeyBank’s CEO to create an operating rhythm for the executive leadership team and the board of directors that ensures alignment of strategy and messaging across the enterprise and stakeholder groups. Her leadership is directly responsible for Key being recognized with a variety of accolades and awards.

Under her purview are all segments of Key’s Corporate Responsibility, Communications and Marketing groups including: Data, Client Insights, Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Sustainability, Philanthropy, Community Development, and Diversity & Inclusion.

Words she lives by are in a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are nothing compared to what lies within us.” Evans said the most important quality a rising business woman should have is confidence. “Fight the urge to ask for permission,” she said. “Confidently, yet humbly, approach business challenges and opportunities by trusting your experience, your common sense and your team.”

Evans holds a B.S. in business management and an MBA from Case Western Reserve University. She also has a masters of banking from the American Banker Association Stonier School of Banking at Georgetown University.

Active in the community, Evans volunteers promoting college or post-secondary education for students in low to moderate income communities. She also serves on the Boards of Trustees for CollegeNow, the Cuyahoga Community College Foundation and the Great Lakes Science Center. Evans is also an active mentor in the CollegeNow mentoring program. She is the immediate past Board Chair for the American Heart Association and was awarded a 2015 YWCA Woman of Achievement Award.

“Staying involved with my community helps me keep a balanced perspective on my work and the things in life that matter most. I believe that my community needs my time, talent and treasure as much as my company does,” she said.