'Have Fun Every Step of the Way,' CU Wealth Management VP Says to Younger Self

Name: John Olerio

Credit union: Northeast Credit Union ($1.9 billion, Portsmouth, N.H.)

Title: VP Wealth Management

Number of years at current credit union: One month

Educational background: Bachelor’s of Science in Economics from Boston College; Masters of Science in Financial Management from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pa.

CU Times: What are your key responsibilities in your current role?

Olerio: I manage the Wealth Management team as well as the products, process and operating platforms related to this area of banking.

CU Times: What drew you to the credit union industry?

Olerio: Northeast Credit Union is a vibrant and growing organization. It was immediately evident upon meeting the executive team that we were aligned in shared values and mission. I am new to the credit union space with over 27 years of large regional banking experience. Refreshing and progressive are the two words that stand out to me in regard to my first and ongoing impressions of Northeast Credit Union.

CU Times: What unique skills, experience and attributes do you bring to your role?

Olerio: I bring over 35 years of wealth management experience with strong results in team building in the financial industry. Capturing market share is critical to grow wealth in a credit union. One of my strongest skillsets is listening to members and understanding their unique needs. From there, I have the opportunity to offer personalized solutions to move them toward reaching their financial goals.

CU Times: Which person (or people) do you credit the most for helping and supporting you along your career journey?

Olerio: More so than a person, I would credit an organization, the Bank Insurance and Securities Association (BISA). BISA is the premier industry association for wealth management at banks and credit unions is the U.S. It is a tremendous networking, philanthropic, research-oriented organization with a priority focus on technology, compliance and product trends. I have been extremely active at BISA for over 20 years and am very humbled to take on the role of BISA President in March 2024.

CU Times: What are some of the biggest differences between working in your current executive level role and your previous, non-executive roles?

Olerio: I have been working in an executive capacity for over 20 years. In either type of role, executive or not, the primary focus to ensure excellent results is to focus first and foremost on the customers/members. Listening to what they need and then providing them with recommendations to meet their needs is what is most important.

CU Times: What’s a challenge you faced when you first joined your executive team, and how did you overcome it?

Olerio: It’s still a tremendous honeymoon period of one month, so there are truly no challenges yet. I’m excited to join the team and hopeful that I can make meaningful contributions both short- and long-term. I have a learning curve, but the supportive team at Northeast Credit Union is helping me assimilate a little more each day.

CU Times: How would you describe your current leadership style?

Olerio: I am hands on but at arm’s length. I like to start from where the team is and then establish goals to move forward. I do strongly emphasize the importance of working together as a team. Wealth advisors are individual contributors, but we all need to share the same values with a strong emphasis and priority on serving our members.

CU Times: Do you approach your job any differently now compared to how you did pre-pandemic? If yes, how so?

Olerio: The pandemic has certainly resulted in some important changes related to wealth management delivery. We have expanded our capacity to deliver advice remotely as compared to nearly 100% face-to-face pre-pandemic. With improved technologies and the popularity of video calling, we’re able to meet virtually with more members but can now offer both choices depending on the member’s preference.

CU Times: What’s next for you on your executive career journey? Do you have any specific career goals you’re working toward?

Olerio: Growing the Wealth team at Northeast Credit Union is the current journey. I am looking forward to my industry-level journey as President of BISA and hoping to assist our industry to increase adoption of technology to improve efficiencies while elevating the member experience. BISA is also extremely focused on increased diversity and inclusion of the wealth management industry going forward and I am looking forward to contributing to that process.

CU Times: What big-picture impact do you hope to make within your credit union, as well as for your members and community?

Olerio: Technology adoption to improve the member experience is extremely important. Members as investors want the right balance between personalized face-to-face [interactions] combined with convenient, virtual/online capabilities. Assisting members to realize their financial hopes and dreams is still very simple in that listening and caring hasn’t changed at all and remains the top priority. But financial planning, and the products and services within wealth management, are not necessarily simple and require ongoing training and development of our team to meet members’ needs.

CU Times: What career advice would you give your younger self?

Olerio: Be open to change because it is constant. Have fun every step of the way and don’t underestimate the value of the relationships you are building every day.

Would you or someone you know like to share your journey to credit union leadership? Please reach out to Natasha Chilingerian at nchilingerian@cutimes.com. To qualify, the individual must be a part of a credit union’s leadership team or C-suite, and have a compelling story to share about their rise to their current leadership role.