Senior Teller

Job Description

Job Description

Overview

At Community Financial System, Inc. (CFSI), we are dedicated to providing our customers with friendly, personalized, high-quality financial services and products. Our retail division, Community Bank, N.A., operates more than 200 customer facilities across Upstate New York, Northeastern Pennsylvania, Vermont and Western Massachusetts. Beyond retail banking, we also offer commercial banking, wealth management, investment management, insurance and risk management, and benefit plan administration.

Just as our employees are committed to helping our customers manage their finances, we’re committed to our employees. After all, they make it happen for our customers every day.

To ensure our people can enjoy long and successful careers here at CFSI, we offer competitive compensation, great benefits, and professional development and advancement opportunities. As an equal-opportunity workplace and affirmative-action employer, we celebrate and support a diverse workplace for the benefit of all: our employees, customers and communities.

Responsibilities

The Senior Teller serves as the primary leader for teller and transaction operations within the branch. This role provides daily guidance, coaching, and support to frontline staff to ensure exceptional customer service, operational accuracy, and adherence to bank policies and procedures. While not a direct supervisor, the Senior Teller acts as a subject-matter expert and role model, helping develop staff skills in operations, customer engagement, and relationship building to ensure the team consistently delivers high-quality service aligned with branch goals.

The Senior Teller performs all standard teller functions while overseeing cash operations, vault management, and operational controls. This role leads the operational integrity of the branch’s transaction environment, including cash handling, control of negotiable items, and fraud prevention. The Senior Teller exercises decision-making authority on non-standard issues or exceptions within assigned limits and escalates higher-risk matters as appropriate.

Essential Responsibilities:

Customer Service & Relationship Building

• Model strong relationship-building behaviors and coach frontline staff on effective customer conversations and opportunity identification.
• Perform customer transactions accurately, efficiently, and with a professional, customer-focused attitude.
• Create a positive banking experience by engaging customers, understanding their needs, and offering appropriate solutions.
• Actively listen for opportunities to promote bank products and services, making referrals based on customer needs.

Operational Leadership & Coaching

• Serve as the primary resource for frontline staff performing teller and transaction functions, providing daily guidance, coaching, and support on procedures, service expectations, and operational standards.
• Maintain a visible presence within the transactional area, actively observing staff interactions and providing immediate feedback to support customer opportunities and branch goals.
• Observe and coach staff to ensure consistent adherence to policies, security protocols, cash-handling standards, and customer relationship-building behaviors.
• Assist in training new frontline employees and supporting ongoing skill development for existing staff.
• Take ownership of personal performance, development, and continuous improvement while serving as a role model for adaptability and ongoing learning. Adapt positively to change and actively support new tools, processes, and initiatives.
• Activelt participate in branch meetings, training programs, and professional development opportunities, including travel to training locations as required, to enhance knowledge and skills.
• Coordinate workflow and ensure appropriate coverage across all transaction areas.
• Exercise judgement on low-risk transactions or requests, including providing overrides within assigned authority limits, and escalate issues as appropriate.

Cash & Operational Management

• Lead and oversee branch cash operations, including vault cash, teller cash drawers and ATM (as applicable).
• Balance branch cash and reconcile discrepancies within established operational standards.
• Manage Federal Reserve cash shipments and orders.
• Maintain working knowledge of ATM balancing and operational procedures.
• Enforce proper procedures for cash control and negotiable items, dual control requirements, and security protocols to reduce risk of loss or fraud.
• Monitor for unusual or suspicious activity and take appropriate action to prevent fraud or operational loss.

Branch Support

• May assist with account opening and maintenance, service requests, debit card issues, stop payments, loan inquiries, and other customer support needs as required.
• Prepare required regulatory, internal, and operational reports.
• Participate in audits of key branch functions and support audit readiness.
• Maintain proficient knowledge of, and demonstrate ongoing compliance with, all laws and regulations applicable to this position, ensure ongoing adherence to pertinent policies, procedures, and internal controls, and meet all job-specific training requirements in a timely fashion.

Other Duties:

• Provide support to other branches as needed to ensure proper staffing and service levels.
• Perform other related duties as assigned or directed to support branch and bank objectives.

Ancillary Duties:

As an integral member of Retail Banking, this position is responsible to provide assistance wherever necessary to help the Branches and the Bank in achieving their annual goals. This may include traveling to other branches in the area and to ensure proper staffing and service levels.

Qualifications

Education, Training and Requirements:

• High School Diploma or GED required
• Strong internal knowledge of bank products, services, and operational procedures
• Reliable transportation
• All applicants must be 18 years of age or older

Skills:

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to engage customer professionally
• Strong attention to detail with accurate and proficient math skills
• Clear thinking and sound judgement in a fast-paced, customer-focused environment
• Ability to understand directions and adhere to established policy and procedures
• Demonstrated leadership qualities, including the ability to influence and coach without direct supervisory authority
• Thorough knowledge of bank products and services
• Must be able to consistently demonstrate the Company’s core values: Integrity, Excellence, Teamwork, and Humility

Experience:

• Minimum three (3) years of teller experience normally required

Other:

• Ability to work flexible hours based on branch needs
• Travel to nearby branches may be required to support staffing and business needs
• Ability and willingness to travel to training sessions, meetings, professional development programs, and company-sponsored events, as required.