Paul Elenio on professional development
From Arbor Employee Success Story: Paul Elenio, CFO · · Ivan Kaufman
“Arbor taught me everything I know today about how to conduct yourself professionally, how to manage people, work as a team, and handle multiple things at one time.”
On , Paul Elenio, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer at ARBOR REALTY TRUST INC, spoke about professional development during Arbor Employee Success Story: Paul Elenio, CFO on Ivan Kaufman.
About Paul Elenio
Paul Elenio, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Arbor Realty, has reflected on his 27-year career at the company in a pair of employee-focused videos from 2017. He stated that he joined Arbor in 1991 as a staff accountant and was promoted to CFO in 2005. Elenio attributed his professional growth to a work ethic instilled by his parents and to Arbor's culture, which he described as "energetic, dynamic, entrepreneurial" and supportive of employee development. He noted that he was recruited by former CFO John Martello, whom he called a mentor. Elenio offered advice to young professionals, emphasizing the importance of "work ethic, pride, and commitment" and recommended aligning with a company that encourages growth. He described his own career progression as a "human success story" but said such trajectories are common at Arbor, where he said many employees have similar long-tenured careers. He characterized Arbor as providing a platform for professional and economic advancement that he suggested is not available at every company.