Jeff Weiler has been named Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Cornerstone Bank in Fargo. He assumes the role as outgoing COO Deneen Axtman transitions to Executive Officer ahead of her planned retirement at the end of the year.

Weiler most recently served as Chief Risk Officer and has been with Cornerstone Bank since September 2022. He has 30 years of experience and has held many leadership roles across banking. He’s currently serving his third year as Chair for the North Dakota Banker’s Association Services Board.

As Weiler moves into his new role, Cornerstone Bank welcomes Christy Steffenhagen as Chief Risk Officer in Bismarck. She brings over 25 years of internal audit and risk management experience, including 13 years of leadership experience with 6 of those years in executive leadership. Steffenhagen holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, along with a minor in Speech Communication from North Dakota State University.

Additionally, Jenni Lang has joined Cornerstone Bank as Internal Audit Manager in Bismarck. She steps into this role as previous Internal Audit Manager Janel Lee has recently retired.

Lang brings over 25 years in the financial industry, with many of those years in leadership roles. Throughout her career, she has built deep expertise in compliance and credit review. Lang is a Certified Community Bank Compliance Officer and Certified Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering Professional.

“Christy and Jenni bring extensive experience and strong alignment with our company culture. They are outstanding additions to our team. Meanwhile Jeff Weiler’s leadership, experience, and strategic mindset position him to excel as our Chief Operating Officer,” remarked Cornerstone Bank President/CEO Jeff Thomas. “I am grateful to Deneen and Janel for their years of commitment and contributions to Cornerstone Bank and to our industry. We look forward to celebrating their remarkable careers with them,” Thomas continued.