Sean Puckett describes his job as being “the face” of Mechanics Bank in San Diego.
As the senior vice president for commercial banking, Puckett considers his role to be the client’s “advocate” in arranging complex depository structures and securing loans for business clients and in following through with support teams at the bank’s Southern California headquarters in Irvine.
He has deep roots in San Diego, with a communications degree from the University of San Diego, extensive experience at San Diego-area banks and a life-long love of surfing.
Puckett came to Mechanics Bank (formerly California Republic Bank) four years ago to be “the point of the spear” in developing commercial banking in San Diego. Previously, he was Senior Vice President at Regents Bank, Vice President of Commercial Banking at California Bank & Trust, and Vice President of Commercial Lending at Union Bank of California.
One of his roles is to be the contact for Sage Executive Group members as a Sage sponsor.
His path dovetails with Mechanics Bank, which was founded 114 years ago. The bank completed a strategic merger in 2016 with California Republic Bank of Irvine and is now private equity owned. With a goal of becoming a dominant statewide regional bank, Mechanics Bank will merge Rabobank into the family on September 1.
Puckett’s interest in banking was sparked by his college education in communications and his interest in sales and people. He realized his earnings potential in banking was greater than as a college professor (his original passion.) Those communication skills continue to be an important factor in developing banking business. “They have a lot to do with client advocation,” he said, so that “the bank bends toward what is best for the client.”
Puckett, 44, and his wife Catherine and two boys, Connor, 10, and Mason, 8, live in Point Loma where Puckett is close to the ocean. His love of surfing started when his father, a judge advocate for the Marine Corps, who was stationed at Camp Pendleton when Sean was 10. During his high school years in Okinawa, Japan, he became a serious surfer and while at USD a statewide competitor, saying with a laugh, “that’s my super power.”