Throughout Art Wood’s 40-year career with credit unions, he’s learned a lot of life lessons.
When he got his first break into the business, he found that taking the initiative could get him far.
“Even if you don’t know how to do it, if you can figure it out tell them you know, and then go figure it out,” Wood said.
He never forgot his first break, either. Through his decades as CEO for different credit unions, he carried on the same attitude that was shown to him early in his career.
“You have to give people the opportunity to advance,” Wood said. “You have to create an opportunity for others because someone gave me a chance.”
Now, after 17 years, Wood, the president and CEO of $281 million Railroad & Industrial Federal Credit Union, will be retiring. But, he has no plans to stop learning more life lessons — only at a slower pace. After Wood retires in October, he plans to spend more time with his grandchildren, take a class as a master naturalist and build a wooden boat — even if it never makes it out of the garage.
And, although he’s excited for the down time, he looks back on his history proudly.
“It’s been a great career,” Wood said. “I had a lot of blessings. I know I worked for my luck.”
ASCENT
Originally from Connecticut, Wood was raised in South Florida. After earning his master’s degee in management from the University of Florida, he entered the U.S. Air Force as an officer while the Vietnam War was raging.
After his service, Wood worked for four years at the University of Virginia in administration. During that time, he began volunteering with credit unions.
“As I started volunteering with credit unions, I liked the kind of work of giving back,” Wood said. “It’s not just making money for a stock board. You give back to someone.”
So, Wood decided to turn his volunteerism into a profession. He scored a position with a military credit union in Jacksonville. After two years, he became antsy and ready for a new challenge. When a position opened for a branch manager, he asked his boss for it. His boss gave it to him, but he had keep doing his other job, too. For two years, he balanced his dual responsibilities.
Once he conquered that mountain, it was on to the University of Miami Credit Union. Her served for 18 years as CEO there, before coming to Tampa’s Railroad & Industrial Federal Credit Union. He found that the credit union wasn’t as progressive as it could be.
Wood set out to upgrade it, implementing a service culture with emphasis on the customer.
“It was a very intentional effort,” Wood said. “What we did differently is, the customers we serve are the owners. We could make an impact on their lives, because they are our owners.”
Instead of making growth the No. 1 priority, Wood focused on the customer. Each employee told a customer something new to help with his or her banking needs every time there was an interaction. He hired people with the right attitude and trained them on the technicalities. If the customers were happy, then growth would follow.
“That became a whole woven culture,” Wood said. “It turned out to be a great business model. We survived the recession. There were no layoffs, no office closures.”
SUMMIT
During Wood’s tenure, Railroad & Industrial has more than doubled its assets, membership base and branch locations. Operating as a traditional Separate Employer Group-based credit union, the number of companies that the credit union serves quadrupled as did the potential membership.
While the Plant City resident was leading the way at Railroad & Industrial, he also served as a community leader. He was on the unit board of the Plant City Boys & Girls Club, served on several Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce committees and was the St. Clement Catholic Church finance counselor.
But, the pinnacle of his service was his political involvement with the Hillsborough County Republican Party. He and his wife, Mary, started helping with signs and petition cards. Then, they moved on to campaign planning. His business background served him well in planning. They also host fundraisers at their homes. The highlight for Wood, was serving as the 2012 chairman of the Hillsborough County Republican Party during the Republican National Convention in Tampa.
In retirement, Wood has no plans to stop his lifelong tradition of volunteerism. He is looking forward to having the time to be involved in more civic clubs in Plant City as well as volunteer at the University of South Florida’s botanical gardens.
