Relationship Manager - Commercial Banking
Posted Jun 15, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 4, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
Walk me through how you built your current portfolio of commercial middle market clients. How did you find them and get in the door?
What they are checking: whether the candidate has a real, repeatable business development process versus relying on inherited relationships
Tell me about a time you cross-sold a non-credit product, like treasury management or capital markets, into an existing relationship. How did that come about?
What they are checking: actual track record of deepening relationships beyond lending, not just claiming familiarity with the products
Describe a relationship you lost to a competitor. What happened, and what would you do differently now?
What they are checking: self-awareness and ability to learn from losses in a competitive middle-market space
How do you stay involved in the community or with centers of influence to build a referral pipeline?
What they are checking: whether COI involvement is genuine and active or just a line on a resume
Tell me about a time you had to partner with specialists in wealth, capital markets, or treasury to close a deal. How did you manage that internal coordination?
What they are checking: ability to work cross-functionally rather than operate as a lone wolf
What would you do
Say a long-standing client wants a loan that doesn't fit our risk guidelines, but they're threatening to move their whole relationship elsewhere. What do you do?
What they are checking: whether the candidate protects credit quality and bank policy under revenue pressure
A client's business is showing early signs of financial stress, but they haven't missed a payment. How do you handle that relationship and the internal reporting?
What they are checking: judgment on early risk identification and honesty about escalating credit concerns
How do you prioritize your calling efforts and prospecting time each week when you're also managing an existing book of business?
What they are checking: time management and discipline around consistent new business development
What's your process when you disagree with Portfolio Management on a credit decision during the approval process?
What they are checking: how the candidate handles internal friction and defends or revises their credit judgment professionally
About the work
Tell me about a loan request you had to structure that was more complicated than usual. What was the deal and how did you approach the credit structure?
What they are checking: depth of hands-on credit analysis skill and comfort proposing structures, not just reading them
How do you evaluate a company's financial statements when deciding whether to bring a loan request forward for approval?
What they are checking: whether the candidate actually knows how to analyze financials rather than delegate that entirely to credit staff
What do you know about treasury management products, and how do you explain their value to a client who's never used them?
What they are checking: working knowledge of non-borrowing products the job specifically requires
Have you worked with corporate middle-market clients above $25 million in revenue? What's different about managing those relationships compared to smaller companies?
What they are checking: whether the candidate's experience actually matches the preferred client size and complexity for this role
Practice this interview out loud.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Associated Bank.