Katie Crawford, CLFP,
Vice President, Equipment Finance Specialist,
Arvest Equipment Finance
Katie Crawford began her career in finance as a bank teller while studying economics at the University of Louisiana – Monroe. From there, she served in various customer service, branch management and consumer lending roles for 10 years until taking a nine-year break to focus on being a mom to her two daughters, who are now 15 and 11.
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VISION FOR THE FUTURE: “Giving back to my community is huge! They have provided a great life for me and for my family. I have served as a member of mercy health foundation’s women with a mission through the support of Arvest Equipment Finance. This philanthropic endeavor uses 100% of annual dues toward the purchase of medical equipment to be donated to mercy hospital.” |
Crawford relaunched her career in 2015 as a commercial banker trainee at Arvest Bank. The pilot program trained participants in every facet of commercial lending, which proved to be a pivotal experience. After completing the program, Crawford served as a member of Arvest’s private banking team for two years before being recruited by Arvest Equipment Finance (AEF). She served in both vendor and bank sales roles and was promoted to vice president in 2019. She currently serves as a vice president and equipment finance specialist for five Arkansas markets.
Crawford recently earned the Certified Lease & Finance Professional certification, which she says was one of her most challenging and rewarding professional accomplishments. Additionally, while maintaining a goal of $46 million in new production, Crawford has assumed marketing duties for AEF. The challenge of balancing both roles has been demanding — but rewarding — and Crawford is proud to have contributed to both AEF’s increased brand recognition and its current $623 million portfolio.
Among other civic endeavors, Crawford recently graduated from Leadership Benton County. This program targets future leaders and provides training and community service projects in the areas of economics, government, education and agriculture.
Today, Crawford’s professional mission is to be a driven, inspiring leader who is known for the way she builds up others and makes them feel valued, all while contributing to AEF’s growth. Crawford aims to inspire her daughters by showing it is possible to be both a mother who is present and nurturing and a successful leader in the equipment finance industry.
“Katie is one of the reasons that the equipment finance industry has such a bright future. Her creativity, compassion and energy bring a great deal of value to our customers and to the industry. This is a well-deserved honor and AEF is proud to have Katie on the team,” John Bradford, director of sales at Arvest Equipment Finance, says.
