Southwest Virginia Higher Ed Center

RACHEL BEVERLY

A lunch break at a local Mexican joint may have changed Rachel Beverly’s career trajectory forever.

The summer after she graduated from Chilhowie High School and before she entered her first year at Virginia Highlands Community College, Rachel had a chance encounter with an employee of a local bank when she went out to lunch, who asked if she would be interested in working part-time as a teller. Rachel took her up on the offer, and soon found that she enjoyed the world of banking and wanted to make a career of it. She entered Virginia Highlands in 2009, majoring in business administration. After completing her associate’s degree with honors, she transferred to Old Dominion University’s business program through the Higher Education Center, completing classes through a combination of online coursework and in-person instruction in the evenings. Rachel was married at the time and starting to become established in her career, so not having to leave the area was key for her. During her time at the Higher Education Center, Rachel transferred over to Truist Bank in Chilhowie, knowing that the national bank had more opportunities for growth. She quickly rose through the ranks at Truist, going from a teller to a loan assistant. Having accessible education close to home proved to be invaluable to Rachel both personally and professionally. “It gave me such a diverse experience to already be in the workforce that young and have those classes along the way,” said Rachel. “I was 20 years old and colleagues thought I was 25 or 26 because of how I was speaking.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, even more doors began to open for Rachel professionally. She advanced in her career while working from home, eventually moving to cover wealth incentives, which she manages today as wealth incentive manager and senior vice president. In her role, Rachel helps design incentive plans for 3,500 Truist employees across the nation, combining business and strategic planning with human resources to reward employees for their hard work. She credits her online coursework in part for her success in the teleworking world, especially the discussion boards she had to take part in for her classes. “It made me be engaging and put myself out there,” she said. Rachel is thankful for the flexibility that both her education and career have offered her over the years, affording her the opportunity to maintain a work-life balance while having access to the connections and experiences available at a large corporation. “I want my children to be able to grow up with the family support that I have at home,” said Rachel. “But to be able to have the access to that corporate ladder that I wouldn’t otherwise have had has been so personally fulfilling.” Rachel works from her home in Chilhowie today and continues to shine as an outstanding employee at the national level with Truist. She was recently chosen as one of the company’s Purpose to Performance winners for 2024, edging out more than 40,000 employees for the award. She is thankful for the education and community that helped her along her professional journey. “I’m very blessed to do the job that I do in this really small town,” she said.

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Great People, Greater Stories

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