May 03, 2000 | Webster Financial Corp. welcomed an outsider to the family that has run the company for 65 years.
William T. Bromage, 54, has been named the first non-Smith family president of the Waterbury-based financial institution.
Webster also recently announced the appointment of Michael G. Morris, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Northeast Utilities to Webster's board of directors.
Harold Webster Smith founded Webster in 1935 as First Federal Savings and Loan of Waterbury.
In 1995, Smith completely turned the reigns over to his son, James Smith, in the same year that Webster Bank became the name for First Federal and various other acquired banks.
While James Smith is still chief executive officer and chairman at Webster's, the company's expansion prompted him to split some of his duties, according to Bromage.
"We're complementary," the Granby-resident said. "Webster is a great company and I appreciate the opportunity to help it grow."
The bank went from 10 branches and $708 million in assets in 1990 to 130 branches and $11 billion in assets now.
Bromage said his responsibilities will be more in the day-to-day operations at Webster, freeing Smith up to pursue strategic and future growth interests.
The bank is also taking on more commercial accounts as opposed to just consumer, an area in which Bromage is well-tested, said Mike Bazinet, a Webster spokesman.
"[Bromage] has demonstrated expertise in that area," Bazinet said.
Much of Bromage's career was spent at commercial/consumer bank Shawmut National Corp. which is now part of Fleet Financial Corp. He most recently worked in Aetna's real estate division.
But Bromage said he considers himself a bank man, and jumped at the chance to work at Webster four years ago. He rose from head of business banking to executive vice president in 1997 and then senior executive vice president in 1999.
Bromage's business bent is evident in his extracurricular activities. He is on the board of directors at the Connecticut Technology Council and Connecticut United for Research Excellence Inc., which represent the state's technology and bioscience businesses respectively.
Bromage has proven a man of his word at the technology council, said President Laura Kent, who noted that he always honors promises.
"To a non-profit that's like gold," Kent said, praising the bank's support of technology companies in general.
Though Bromage and Smith will both have a community presence, Smith remains the head of the bank.
"This is clearly the number two position," Bromage noted.
Which makes it of little consequent to stock value, said Jack Rooney, a bank analyst with Legg Mason Wood Walker in New Haven.
"I don't see much significance," Rooney said of Bromage's appointment. "Jim Smith is the chief honcho and I don't see any change there."
