Sandra Pianalto, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland since 2003, says she isn’t quite sure what she will do after she retires early next year.
Pianalto, who turned 59 on Monday, announced Thursday she will leave the Cleveland Fed. She is the longest serving of the current 12 regional bank presidents in the Federal Reserve system.
“I’m finishing up a long career here at the bank,” she said in an interview with the Beacon Journal. She will have 31 years with the Cleveland Fed next February and will have been employed in the Federal Reserve system for 35 years.
Pianalto said she had been thinking about retirement for at least several months. She said she will not consider other job opportunities until her successor is in place.
“We will have a very smooth transition,” she said. The search likely will take six to eight months, she said.
The only hint Pianalto gave about her future is that she intends to stay in the area — she grew up in Akron and lives in Bath Township — and will remain involved in local civic activities. She said she took little time off over the years and was looking forward to doing some international travel.
“I have not had any jobs outside of the [Federal Reserve system],” she said. “I don’t think I will do anything public. I may not do anything full time.”
The Cleveland Fed announced it has formed a search committee and expects to name a successor in early 2014. The district covers all of Ohio and parts of Pennsylvania, Kentucky and West Virginia.
Pianalto said there was no one thing that led to her decision.
“Obviously, I wanted to leave at a time when the bank was on solid footing,” Pianalto said. “Right now the bank is very strong in all areas we work in. ... You always want to leave at the top of your career.”
Pianalto said she was honored to be part of the Federal Reserve as it helped the nation through difficult economic challenges. “That is truly a highlight,” she said.
Pianalto also said she was proud to help the Cleveland Fed’s research department grow into an organization that is highly respected inside and outside of the Federal Reserve system. And she said she was proud to see the Cleveland Fed be focused and relevant to the region.
She cited a study done at her request by the Cleveland Fed’s research department after the 2001 recession. She said she wanted to know why her district was not growing. The study subsequently showed the top two factors determining a region’s income growth over the past 75 years were a skilled workforce and innovation, Pianalto said.
“It’s true today. It’s true 75 years ago. I’m very proud of that work,” she said. “I gave a speech yesterday [Wednesday] that highlighted that work.”
As president of the Cleveland Fed, Pianalto sits on the Federal Open Market Committee, the body that decides national monetary policy.
“It has been an honor to serve as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and to participate on the Federal Open Market Committee during this extraordinary period in our country’s economic history,” Pianalto said in a statement. “I am proud of the bank’s many accomplishments, which would not have been possible without the talented and dedicated employees I have had the privilege of working with.”
Pianalto emigrated to the United States from Italy at age 5 with her parents and two sisters, with the family moving to Akron. Pianalto said she intends to go back to Italy to visit relatives and also see the house where she was born, which remains in family hands.
Pianalto attended St. Vincent-St. Mary High School and graduated from the University of Akron. She joined the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C., as a research assistant shortly after graduating from college. She also served on the staff of the Budget Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. She joined the Cleveland Fed in 1983 as an economist in the research department, and a year later was promoted to assistant vice president of public affairs.
She was named vice president and secretary to the board of directors in 1988, and in 1993 was promoted to first vice president and chief operating officer.
In December 2012, she was named a nonvoting member of the University of Akron board of trustees. She said after leaving the Fed, she will have more time to devote to the university. She has been involved in other nonprofit organizations in Northeast Ohio as well.
“Everybody is undergoing change. We understand we have to keep reinventing ourselves,” Pianalto said.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in a statement that Pianalto has been “a remarkable colleague who has made invaluable contributions” to the Federal Reserve and to the nation.
“We will miss her thoughtful insights and leadership across a broad range of issues, including monetary policy, payments policy and community development,” Bernanke said.
Richard K. Smucker, chairman of the bank’s board of directors, said in a statement that during her tenure, “Sandy has made tremendous contributions to the Federal Reserve System and to the Fourth Federal Reserve District. She has been a central banker during one of the most difficult times in our nation’s economic history.”
Smucker, chairman and chief executive officer of J.M. Smucker Co. in Orrville, added that, “During her distinguished career, Sandy has helped the bank transition from its legacy of excellence in operations to an organization that is highly respected for its research and analysis on economic and banking issues.”
Smucker said Pianalto provided leadership in the governance of the Federal Reserve Banks, and as chairwoman of the Financial Services Policy Committee, oversaw the development of a new strategic plan for Federal Reserve financial services.
“And finally, through her participation on the boards of significant educational, charitable and cultural organizations in the region, Sandy has helped to improve the lives of so many people in our communities,” Smucker said. “She has represented the Federal Reserve with great skill, pride and diplomacy. We all wish her well in her future endeavors.”
The search committee is made up of bank directors and chaired by Christopher M. Connor, deputy chairman of the bank’s board of directors and chairman and chief executive officer of Sherwin-Williams Co.
In addition to Connor and Smucker, search committee members include:
• Tilmon F. Brown, president and chief executive officer, New Horizons Baking Co., Norwalk.
• Harold Keller, president, Ohio Capital Corp. for Housing, Columbus.
• John P. Surma, chairman and chief executive officer, United States Steel Corp., Pittsburgh.
• Susan Tomasky, energy consultant and former president, AEP Transmission, Columbus.
The search committee is expected to hire an executive search firm to help it with potential candidates.
Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com.