NORWICH – The Board of Directors of NBT Bancorp Inc. has elected President and CEO Martin A. Dietrich to the position of chairman on May 3, 2016, following the retirement of Daryl R. Forsythe. Dietrich also announced his intention to retire from active employment in December 2016. Dietrich began his career in financial services with NBT Bank, N.A. in 1981. He joined the Bank’s senior management team in 1995.
Dietrich became president of the Bank in 2000; advanced to president and CEO of the Bank and president of NBT in 2004; and ultimately became CEO of NBT in 2006. He joined the Bank Board of Directors in 1993 and NBT’s Board of Directors in 2005. Dietrich is a graduate of Colgate University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics.
The NBT Board of Directors also unanimously endorsed a succession plan that calls for the promotion of John H. Watt, Jr. to the position of president of the Bank effective immediately and expanded roles for other members of NBT’s Executive Management Team.
Upon Dietrich’s retirement from active employment, Watt will succeed him as chief executive officer of NBT and the Bank.
“NBT has benefited from consistent leadership for several decades,” said Dietrich. “We are pleased to have the resources within our organization to create this succession plan. The Board’s unanimous endorsement of the plan speaks to the high level of confidence they have in John Watt and NBT’s entire Executive Management Team.”
Watt joined NBT in 2014 to lead the Bank’s expansion into Maine and establish a regional headquarters in Portland.
Since joining NBT, his role has expanded to provide executive leadership for credit administration, consumer lending, marketing and product development. He was promoted to executive vice president and joined NBT’s Executive Management Team in 2015.
Watt has over 30 years of experience in financial services. Prior to joining NBT, he was executive vice president of commercial banking, investment management and bank operations at Alliance Bank, N.A. through the merger with the Bank in 2013. He was also a member of the Board of Directors for Alliance Bank and Alliance Financial Corporation.
