Reliance Bank invited Scott Nelson, PhD, chief digital officer for Tamarack Technology, to join its advisory board. In his role on the advisory board, Nelson will provide Reliance Bank with guidance on the adoption and advancement of digital technology.

“Reliance is a community bank that has grown rapidly, building face-to-face relationships with our customers, but we realize that this approach isn’t enough anymore,” Todd Markman, president of Reliance Bank, said. “Scott’s guidance will be instrumental in helping us evolve to meet our customers’ digital expectations. We couldn’t be more excited to have him along on this journey.”

An expert in technology strategy and deployment, including Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, Nelson will help Reliance Bank expand its services for customers through digital innovation with new offerings and the application of new technologies.

“What excites me about this is the opportunity to bring technology to another part of the financial world,” Nelson said. “In order to compete with large banks and fintech corporations, banks like Reliance must lean into technology. Reliance has both the culture and the entrepreneurial spirit that will benefit tremendously from digital technology.”

Nelson has more than 30 years of product development, product management and entrepreneurial business growth experience as a technology and business leader. Prior to Tamarack, he served as the chief product officer and vice president of product at Digi International, a provider of business and mission-critical IoT products and services. In his role, he defined the business strategy to drive growth by working with customers and marketing to understand needs and trends. He was named a “Titan of Technology” by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal in 2015.

A doctoral graduate of Cornell University, Nelson is a speaker and contributor on topics related to innovation, design thinking and digital transformation. His writings have appeared in Harvard Business Review, CIO Magazine, IoT World and other media outlets. Nelson also has been a mentor with Silicon Valley’s Alchemist Accelerator since 2014.