Monique Prado BerkeMonique Prado Berke, vice president of investment operations for Unum's investment management group, has joined the board of directors at Cornerstone Bancshares Inc., the parent company of the $430 milllion-asset Cornerstone Bank in Chattanooga.
Berke, the wife of Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke, has more than 24 years of experience in consulting and operations in the financial services industry. She currently is responsible for overseeing non-investment related business operations at Unum, the world's biggest disability insurer. She previously was vice president of human resources for global services at Unum, where she served on a six-member leadership team responsible for the company's global technology services organization.
Before rejoining Unum in 2010, Berke was chief operating officer and vice president of external affairs for The Ochs Center for Metropolitan Studies. In addition, she ran her own business, Berke Coaching & Consulting, for eight years. A graduate of Stanford University, she previously worked for Wells Fargo Bank and headed the board of the largest battered women's center in San Francisco.
In Chattanooga, Berke has served on several nonprofit boards, including the Lyndhurst Foundation, Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga and Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, and is a past board chair of the Creative Discovery Museum and Children's Advocacy Center of Hamilton County. She currently serves on the boards of Downtown Chattanooga Rotary and the Slate Foundation. In 2002, she co-founded Aleph Bet Children's Center, a three-star community preschool.
"We are extremely pleased to welcome Monique as a new director," said Cornerstone's President and CEO Frank Hughes. "With her proven leadership abilities, determination and commitment to our community, she will undoubtedly be a tremendous asset to our board."