Wayne F. Holly

Wayne F. Holly

President and Chairman, Sage Rutty and Company, Inc.

Years in current role: 28

What do you enjoy most about your role?

I very much enjoy helping our advisors grow their practices and grow their professional areas of expertise. There is nothing more gratifying to me than witnessing their personal and professional growth and watching that translate into a blossoming financial advisory practice.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve dealt with over the past year?

Like many, I am sure that navigating the COVID pandemic and all that came with that. We have been working through the new remote work challenges, finding quality candidates for a number of open positions and determining what our future workplace will look like in our new reality. We have had a number of retirements accelerated due to the added stress and challenges brought on by the pandemic, so we have been working hard to shift those plans up a notch.

What do you see as the biggest changes in the banking and finance industry in the next 3-5 years?

Technology, technology, technology! The speed of change in technology is fast and getting faster. Staying ahead of it would be a great place to be, but just keeping pace with it will be challenging. No one likes a lot of change, but that is our new reality with technology. What new tools to use, how to pay for it, training our people and embracing its adoption. Buckle up, I say. It will not be slowing down.

What is the No. 1 tip you would give to people or companies about planning their finances amid uncertain times?

Be patient and know that time is your ally. We can’t control the investment markets, but you can be rewarded by understanding the long-term impact of compounding returns and the power of owning growing companies’ common stocks. And if you are not living within your means, make the hard choices to get there. Don’t worry about what your neighbor is doing!

What community organizations do you support as a volunteer and why?

I support many community organizations, but my favorite is the Bivona Child Advocacy Center. They help to heal children who have been either sexually or physically abused. We have a big family ourselves and continue to be foster parents. Our heart breaks for these children knowing that by no fault of their own, they are put in these horrible circumstances. We may never be able to prevent the bad stuff that happens to children, but we are fully in charge of how we respond when we see it.

This profile is part of Rochester Business Journal's Power 30 Banking & Finance list for 2021. Information used in this profile was sourced from the honoree. View the full list at https://rbj.net/2021/12/17/rbjs-power-30-banking-finance/.