John Goman

Two decades ago, John Goman worked for a company called Yegan Associates. Yegan had put together a turnkey auto-leasing program for banks, offering software and expertise to banks looking to get into that segment of the industry. North Shore Bank had signed on with the program, contracting the other company to handle its auto leasing.

“I’m working for Yegan, out on the street, representing North Shore Bank,” John remembers. And he clearly impressed someone here, because when Yegan started having troubles and the bank brought its auto leasing program in-house, NSB offered him a job.

“I just jumped at the chance,” John says. “It was the best move I ever made.”

Same dealers, less driving
Now John is an assistant vice president in charge of dealer relations. His job has changed since he came on board 20 years ago. When he started, he spent most of his time on the road, visiting and selling to the bank’s indirect dealers — auto, RV and boat dealers who sign up their clients for financing through North Shore Bank. He says, “I used to tell my kids when they asked what my job was: ‘I drive around in my car, drink coffee and talk to my friends.'”

Today he spends his days in the office at Corporate, helping those dealers figure out issues with their contracts. “I help them clear up mistakes, teach them how to do things right,” he says. There’s always change, because dealerships regularly hire new people. “And there are always unusual circumstances. It makes it fun.”

Hit hard by the economy
Because of the industries John works with, the economic crash that began in 2008 had a noticeable effect on his department. “When you’re looking at the RV and boat business, those are toys, so when there’s a downturn in the economy, their business got hurt tremendously,” he says. “We saw some of our good dealer partners go out of business. They just couldn’t adapt.”

Others were luckier — and North Shore Bank was a part of that. Cash flow is highly important to dealers, so John and his team came up with ways to expedite the funding process when new contracts came in. And the bank was strong enough to make that work.

“The nice thing about working here is, we’re consistent. We’re a conservative bank when it comes to lending. Because of that, we’re still here,” John says.

More than clients — friends, working together
John reports to Mike Kellman, senior vice president of consumer credit sales, and Mike calls him an integral part of the department. “First of all, he’s an incredibly dedicated employee who is willing to do whatever is asked of him,” Mike says. “Second, he was around as leasing took off, and he knows everything there is to know about it. Any question there is about leasing, I go to him first. I have labeled him ‘the Godfather of Leasing.'”

Besides Mike, John credits former bosses Dave Potter and Ron Pipping with helping shape his successful career at North Shore Bank. And he is grateful for the bank’s overall atmosphere, how it focuses on building relationships rather than simply selling.

“We’re creating partnerships with our dealers, by understanding what their needs are, how their business works and what they need to effectively sell their products to the end user,” he says. “We’ve got marine and RV dealers that have been with us for 25 years. It’s so much fun, because we’re dealing with our friends, people that we know, and both sides are working toward a common goal.”

And he doesn’t plan on the fun stopping any time soon.

“This is it,” John says. “I want to retire here. Eventually. Not for a while, though.”