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Published on: 10/1/2006
Last Visited: 10/10/2006
Jim Jensen, Zions Bank
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James T. Jensen took his father's place on the board 18 years ago, giving the Jensen family a 32-year history leading Utah's staple financial institution. The board is smaller now than when Jensen joined in 1988-reduced from 18 to 12 members-but the size is seen as a benefit for members who are able to enjoy more dialogue and participation in the board activities."The last thing a company needs is a director who comes and sits and collects a fee," Jensen says. With scandals swirling around America's top corporations, participation and integrity among the executives and boards of directors is a top priority for every organization, Jensen says."Locally and nationally, the expectation is that a board member will come prepared and will discuss issues and spend time thinking about the issues and resolutions to them," he says.
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Jensen joined his father's legal practice before graduating from the University of Utah in 1968 and counseled the Carbon Emery Bank prior to it being acquired by Zion's in 1973. Outside of his board service-which includes current work with the Utah Mining Association and the Utah Safety Council and prior service for the Utah Trucking Association-Jensen is employed by Savage Companies as executive vice president and general counsel and sits on the materials management company's board."I love to work," he says, adding that many of his weekends are spent helping his brother run 1,100 head of mother cows at a family-owned ranch near Price, Utah."It's a nice balance that lets me recharge my batteries." But the satisfaction of hard work isn't the only benefit Jensen draws from his corporate activities.As he says, "I should probably be paying Zions Bank or the Savage Companies for the opportunity to be on these boards because it is such a learning process.
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"Jim has all the qualities a management team looks for and expects in a director: He is a participant; he is a contributor; he is up to date; and he is inquisitive." The learning process began early in his career, however, during his initial days in practice with his father."We were in practice for 22 years together," Jensen says.
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