New Leaders You Should Know: Brian Bozak

Brian Bozak took the reins from long-time Franklin Savings Bank President Ronald Magoon in January after serving as the bank’s senior vice president and CFO since 2016. Bozak says he learned much from his predecessor and will carry those lessons forward. “Ron’s a really, really smart person, and a smart banker,” he says. “Sometimes people get caught up in trends. … Ron always steps back and evaluates. [His] approach really sticks with me.’”

Bozak, a lover of languages who speaks Japanese and is currently learning Hungarian, grew up in Western Massachusetts. He attended college in Florida and earned an MBA and a master’s in international studies. It was in Florida where he began his 20-year banking career as a teller at a community bank and later as a CFO.

Bozak, 43, says his decision to come to NH from Florida, happened at a time when many banks were consolidating. “The bank I was working for at the time was in the process of being sold” he says, adding his interview with Franklin Savings Bank had a different feel than others. “I’d never even heard of a mutual bank before, so I did some research. It was too good to be true, the idea that a bank could not be sold. In my mind, at that time, that was just unheard of.”

While interviewing at Franklin Savings Bank, Bozak was struck not only by the beauty of the area, but by a sense of trust in the people he met. “I don’t know how else to say it, people were just genuinely nice,” he says.

Franklin Savings Bank, which has eight branches and close to $800 million in assets, has been serving the Lakes Region community for 154 years. Bozak says what makes the bank different from others in the area is its progressive focus on helping small businesses.

An important piece to the bank’s progressive approach is its ability to offer investment, insurance and financial planning services through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Independence Financial Advisors. “They can do annuities, 401k’s, investments, and then of course there’s our side of it too with deposits and any other small business assistance they need,” he says. “That’s why we define ourselves as progressive.”

Franklin Savings Bank invests in communities. This summer the bank is sponsoring the Merrimack Parks and Recreation Summer Concert series every Wednesday for 10 weeks talking to people and doing giveaways. Looking to the future, Bozak says part of the bank’s strategic plan is to focus on employee engagement and opportunity. “We’re also hoping to identify people who are great leaders so they can move up and have opportunities,” he says.