PHILADELPHIA–A retiring CEO is sharing some of what he learned during his career, including that growth can’t be viewed in isolation and that when leading teams it’s good to remember that life is short. He also has some advice he would pass along if he could go back and talk to his younger self.
Rob Werner has announced plans to retire at the end of the first quarter of 2027, concluding nearly 14 years of leadership at Ardent Credit Union, which said in announcing his retirement that under Werner it has “experienced significant growth” and “embraced innovation.”
During his career Werner oversaw a 2016 rebranding to Ardent from Sb1 FCU and asset growth to nearly $900 million from $500 million. In addition, he led the invention of Ardent CU’s patented modular Upper Providence branch, a small footprint concept that expands on rails at the push of a button.
Below, Werner shares his thoughts on managing people, driving growth, its unique “Cube” branch, the future of credit unions and more as part of the CU Daily’s ongoing Exit Interview series with CEOs.
The CU Daily: How did you come to be involved in credit unions?
Werner: My career leading up to joining the credit union industry was entirely focused on community banking. I initially worked in bank consulting, then at two community banks as CFO, then COO. At the time, I was also coaching a local girls’ softball team and the father of one of the players was the CEO of a local credit union. I started talking with him about the industry, and he gave me the name of a recruiting firm he thought I should contact.
When I reached out, they told me they were in the final stages of interviewing candidates for a local credit union called SB1 (now Ardent), and that if I could get my application in quickly, I might still be considered. I had been a lifelong Philadelphia resident and a career banker, yet I had never heard of SB1. What started as an unexpected opportunity turned into an amazing chapter of my career.
The CU Daily: What have you learned about managing people and leading teams during your career, and has that evolved?
Werner: My overarching principle has always been that life is too short. We spend so much of our lives at work that we should truly enjoy what we do and the people we work with.
When I became CEO of SB1, much of the existing senior leadership team was approaching retirement. That gave me the opportunity, over a relatively short period of time, to build a new senior leadership team. With one exception, everyone I hired remained with me until retirement. I was fortunate to bring together people who shared my belief in the importance of culture, treating people with respect, leading with humility, and maintaining a natural curiosity about how we can always do things better.
Those principles haven’t really changed over the years. What has changed is the environment in which we lead. COVID, in particular, challenged us to find new ways to communicate, collaborate and maintain our culture when we couldn’t all be together. For me, it reinforced that leadership is ultimately about people, trust and adaptability.
The CU Daily: The CU Daily is running a 2026 series called The Growth Imperative. Has your strategy been to set growth targets, or to set other objectives and let the growth follow? Has that evolved or changed?
Werner: We have always established growth targets, but the priorities behind those targets have evolved depending on what the organization needed in a particular year. In some years, deposits were the primary focus; in others, it was loans. More recently, we’ve put greater emphasis on membership growth.
The important thing is that we don’t look at growth in isolation. We evaluate each of our strategic priorities through the lens of how it supports sustainable growth. Whether we’re investing in technology, improving member experience, expanding relationships or developing our people, we want those investments to ultimately strengthen the organization and help us grow.
The CU Daily: Tell us more about your patented modular Upper Providence branch. How has it been used? Have other credit unions used it?
Werner: We were challenged to create a small-format, fully functioning branch that could operate inside the main lobby of a major SEG relationship. We joined forces with an architectural firm and a company specializing in compressed filing systems and began brainstorming what we could create.
It took several iterations; we even went to a corporate furniture provider and used tape on the floor to map out the design and make sure everything would work. Eventually, the concept came together.
The result is a modular branch, which we call the Cube, that opens and closes on a rail system similar to a compressed filing system. There is an office on one side, a teller station on the other, and the center section houses the technology and ITM. It’s a very unique, one-of-a-kind design, and it fits our brand extremely well.
The CU Daily: If you could go back in time and share some advice with yourself on your first day as CEO, what would it be?
Werner: This was probably the most challenging question for me because there are so many things I could say. But if I had to choose one, it would be this: you don’t have to have all the answers.
Being a new CEO in an industry that is constantly changing means you are going to have multiple projects and priorities moving simultaneously. To be successful, you have to have the right people around you and trust them completely.
Surround yourself with talented, passionate people and give them the opportunity to lead. Your job isn’t to have every answer; it’s to create an environment where the right people can find the answers together.
And don’t be afraid of change. Embrace it. Change creates opportunities, and some of the best things that happened during my career came from being willing to try something different.
The CU Daily: What advice would you have for those who also aspire to lead credit unions?
Werner: Get as diversified a background as possible as you progress through the industry. Don’t limit yourself to one area of the business. The more you understand about different aspects of the organization and the industry, the better leader you’ll ultimately become.
Remain extremely curious. Ask questions, keep learning and never assume that the way something has always been done is the best way to do it.
And make time to stay engaged with the industry. Whether it’s advocacy, technology, consumer trends, regulation or the evolving competitive landscape, leaders need to understand what is happening outside their own organizations. The credit union industry is changing quickly, and the best leaders are the ones who continue to learn and adapt.
The CU Daily: What is your view on the future of credit unions, if there is to be one?
Werner: I’m all in and I believe we have the opportunity to build an even stronger credit union industry together.
One of the things that gives me the most optimism is the continued willingness of credit unions to collaborate and embrace fintech. Whether it’s through investments, forming CUSOs or partnering with technology companies, credit unions are finding new ways to compete with the largest banks while maintaining what has always differentiated us: creativity, personal service and genuine care for our members.
Technology is changing the way financial services are delivered, but it doesn’t eliminate the value of the cooperative model. If anything, it gives credit unions an opportunity to combine the best of technology with the trust, service and personal relationships that have always been at the heart of our industry.
