Complex sentence: Noted as a versatile man, Wood was known as proficient and well versed in the boardroom seen as a peer to top businessmen as well as working the docks doing he hard work of labor.
Split into simpler sentences: Noted as a versatile man, Wood was known as proficient and well versed in the boardroom. He was seen as a peer to top businessmen as well as working the docks doing the hard work of labor.