The ONE

Sales Process: The Golden Key to Revenue Growth
Brett Jackson, Systemax and Trisha Turner, LimeBank

Financial institutions seeking to boost deposits and revenue can benefit from a well-defined sales process. This framework helps increase deposits and lending options while retaining existing clients. Trisha Turner, President and COO of LimeBank, and Brett Jackson, CEO of Systemax, will share insights on developing effective sales strategies. Learn how LimeBank achieved a 68% deposit growth in 22 months, far exceeding the national average of 1.4%. Discover how to better understand customers, create revenue-driving strategies, and address areas of underperformance.

Using AI to Increase Deposits, Grow Customer Wallet Share, and Enhance Relationships
David Cieslak, Aunalytics

With the help of AI technologies, community banks have successfully been able to strengthen relationships, reduce churn, increase deposits, and improve ROI enterprise-wide by utilizing the data they already have at their fingertips—and your organization can, too. However, successful digital transformation can be a major challenge for midsized and community-based banks. Adopting new technologies, shifting operational mindsets, and hiring the talent necessary to build and execute upon AI-based marketing solutions is a major endeavor. Many banks do not even know where to begin. In this presentation, we will talk about the steps and considerations for aggregating data across your bank to create a 360-degree view of your customers, why that is important, and ways other community banks have found success through analytics initiatives.

Proven Lead Generation that Attracts New Relationships
Dan Marks, Infusion Marketing Group

If you have been frustrated by random tactics to attract new relationships with lackluster results, we invite you to learn about best practices and a proven approach to implementing a disciplined, predictable, accountable process to capture more new relationships and keep more of them. See case studies and examples from banks that that have successfully doubled new household generation while halving the cost to acquire.

The Bank Marketing Olympics: Gold Medal Strategies That Stick
Bailey Ronnebaum, forbinfi

Discover top performing strategies in different areas of bank marketing that will earn your bank a gold metal - with some friendly competition included. Whether it’s winning the SEO marathon or claiming victory in the content marketing gymnastics, this presentation offers tried-and-true marketing tactics that deliver results. By the end, attendees will have a winning playbook of strategies they can implement at their own institutions to stay ahead of the competition.

Unlocking GenZ
Bo Osburn, Visa

This session presents insights from Visa Consulting & Analytics' 2024 research on GenZ customers, based on a survey of 2000+ financial institutions. Participants will understand GenZ trends and their relevance to financial institutions, including their growing workforce presence and significant spending power. The discussion will cover GenZ preferences in banking relationships, financial literacy, products, and experiences. Attendees will gain valuable insights to attract and retain this crucial customer segment, which is estimated to account for $12T in spending power by 2030.

The Cultural Connection: Creating High Performing Teams
Carmen Schwab, Haberfeld

Employee expectations are ever evolving, but that evolution has been accelerating in recent years. The ascendancy of new generations in the workforce and the powerful forces of the pandemic make us rethink our approaches to the workplace. How will we equip and support organization leaders and team members to thrive in this environment?

2025 HR Survival Kit
Michael Gifford & Emily Bennett, Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC

HR is experiencing significant changes in 2025, with updates to federal and Illinois laws. This presentation covers critical developments in leave laws, the Illinois Human Rights Act, wage and hour regulations, and non-compete agreements. We'll explore new protected classes, FLSA requirements, FTC rules on non-competes, and key amendments to personnel and employment statutes. Stay informed to navigate these changes and avoid potential legal pitfalls in your HR practices.

The View from the New Hire: Creating a Better Onboarding Experience
Carmen Schwab, Haberfeld

According to Gallup, only 12% of U.S. employees say their company does a good job of onboarding. How does your financial institution compare? If onboarding new hires is a challenge for your financial institution, this session is for you.

A Human Resource Officer’s Strategic Compensation Plan
Matt Brei, Blanchard Consulting Group

This session explores how HR leaders can strategically allocate compensation dollars. Topics include salary structures, incentive plan design (cash and equity), and employee/executive benefits. We'll briefly cover executive and director compensation issues and discuss HR's role in assisting the Compensation Committee. The presentation provides HR leaders with market best practices, educational information, and strategies to enhance their position at the organization's strategic table. Attendees will gain insights on optimizing compensation strategies to align with organizational goals and market trends.

Demographic Disruption: Banking in an Aging America
Joe Sullivan, Market Insights, Inc.

America faces a looming demographic crisis affecting society, economy, and banking. With falling birth rates, rising death rates, and an aging population, older adults will outnumber children by 2034. Financial institutions are unprepared for the challenges and opportunities presented by an aging and shrinking customer base. Bankers must rethink their strategic plans to ensure long-term relevance and success, adapting to changing consumer spending, borrowing, and saving patterns considering these demographic shifts

Rethinking the Role of Culture & Strategy
Jim Perry, Market Insights, Inc.

To be future-ready, financial services must embrace new mindsets and behaviors. This session presents a framework for transforming an institution’s culture to foster collaboration, innovation, and adaptability. Additionally, it offers a fresh approach to strategic planning that encourages strategic thinking and supports effective implementation. Equip your institution with the tools needed to thrive in an ever-evolving industry.

Become a More Influential Leader: Develop a Culture that Engages, Enlightens and Energizes Your Team
Joe Micallef, Grow UP Sales

Are you an Influential Leader or simply a Task Manager? Do you reactively support your team as needed or do you proactively empower your team to achieve extraordinary success? Bank leaders today are required to be powerful coaches that can engage, enlighten, and energize their team to embrace better approaches to achieving success. But do you know how? As a successful bank leader and coach for over 25 years, Joe Micallef will share with you some rocket-fueled ideas that will boost your team’s performance.

Inclusion Matters: How to Create an Environment Where Everyone is Welcome
Leslie Drish, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago 

In today's world, fostering an inclusive environment is more important than ever. This session will explore practical strategies and actionable steps you can take to create a welcoming atmosphere. Join us to discover how you can make a positive impact and ensure everyone feels valued and included in your organization. Whether you're a leader, team member, or advocate for inclusion, this session will provide you with the tools and insights needed to build a truly inclusive environment.

Emotionally-Intelligent Leadership
Anne Schutt, Midwestern Securities

Employees seek empathetic, compassionate leaders who excel in communication and coaching. We'll explore generational differences from Baby Boomers to Gen Z, focusing on work culture expectations. Learn how to achieve success in a less managed, more effectively led environment. Discover how this leadership approach can improve outcomes with current team members and attract new talent. This session aims to help you create a culture that resonates across generations and enhances organizational performance.

Becoming a Great Boss
Rick Van Der Myden, EOS

The number one problem all businesses face has to do with people. How to hire, manage and get the right people on the bus. This workshop will provide way in which bosses can become better communicators and give them tools to help them communicate, give clear expectations and how to deal with people issues that may be happening within their team.

Striking the Balance - Digital Transformation for Banks
Mike Bush, ASCENSUS

This session explores key findings on digital transformation in financial services, highlighting challenges and opportunities for banks, credit unions, and trust companies. Participants will learn personalization techniques to create tailored digital banking experiences, strategies to deepen customer engagement with digital platforms, and methods to increase usage and retention rates. The presentation will also cover how to identify opportunities for suggesting relevant products and services aligned with customers' goals, driving additional revenue. Gain practical insights to enhance your digital offerings and improve customer satisfaction in the evolving financial landscape.

The Magic of Multisensory Technology
Tim Wheeler, NewGround

While it’s easy for businesses to consider the visual look of their brands and spaces, the market is changing and evolving to include all senses, not just sight. To make a lasting impression on your visitors and clientele, businesses must think critically about how to engage all senses within their space, including sight, sound, touch, and scent. Interactive kiosks, curated scents, acoustical engineering, and digitally optimized displays can all work in harmony to create unified environments. All aspects of consumer engagement must be considered when designing and strategizing a space. Neglecting to implement or optimize even one of these factors can result in a space that feels unfinished, improperly branded, or worse, confusing. However, spaces crafted correctly can create memorable experiences consumers are likely to return to.

Become a Banking Rockstar - Turn Your Customers into Raving Fans
Joe Micallef, Grow UP Sales

Explore strategies to build deeper, broader relationships with bank customers, fostering loyalty and generating referrals. Learn to identify four key elements of superior customer relationships and discover techniques to strengthen these connections. The presentation will cover methods to enhance customer loyalty, encouraging clients to use the bank for all their financial needs. Gain insights into effective referral strategies, both giving and receiving, to expand your customer base and improve overall customer satisfaction.

Achieving Growth by Doing Good
Jim Perry, Market Insights, Inc.

The high cost of living is a big concern here in the U.S. and around the world. A lot of people still don’t have access to basic financial services, whether that’s because of where they live, how mobile they are, or their financial situation. The session will look closely at the needs and aspirations of people earning low and moderate incomes. We’ll be thinking critically about how the financial sector can identify new target groups within this population and come up with innovative ways to address both their immediate needs and long-term goals, especially for those who are often overlooked or underserved.

Square is Coming for your Depositors!
Nellie Schlachter, Evolv

Square poses to community banks as a licensed, chartered bank aggressively pursuing merchants for online checking accounts and business loans. Participants will learn why merchants choose Square, understand the pros and cons of working with the fintech giant, and discover strategies to compete effectively. Brequipped to safeguard their deposits and loans and develop tactics to retain small business customers in the face of Square's expanding financial services.

How to Apply Typology and Trend Analysis to Transaction Monitoring Software
Cody Bruce, CLA

Effective internal validation is crucial for financial institutions' model risk management in BSA/AML compliance. This presentation explores strategies to stay current with evolving money laundering trends and incorporate them into monitoring software. Attendees will gain insights into key regulatory guidance, including the Supervisory Guidance on Model Risk Management (MRMG) and the Interagency Statement on Model Risk Management for BSA/AML systems. Learn how to apply these principles to strengthen your institution's model risk management and validation practices, enhancing overall compliance efforts.

Evolution: Liquidity, Regulation, and Strategy
Ryan Smith, PSC

Join Ryan Smith of the Piper Sandler Financial Strategies team for a discussion of current themes in the financial industry. Financial Institutions are under the microscope in this environment and integrating new options into a strategic plan is essential. Themes will include rethinking liquidity and funding to ensure a modernized view on sources and measures. This will also cover the impact that trends and regulation may have on your institution’s strategy. The discussion will include relevant market updates to contextualize the ideas and help management teams find more value in 2025 and beyond.

Foundations of a Solid Risk Program
David Paxton, Bankers' Bank

The time to start building a risk program at your financial institution is right now. External market forces, changing rate environments, regulatory changes and scrutiny for unforced errors in the press are all good reasons to expect that risk management is here to stay. But you don't want to begin working on one after an event has happened. You'll want to see it coming long before.

Leveraging Data and AI: A Proactive Approach to Compliance
Leah Hamilton and Supreet Singh, Finlytica Corporation and Sentry Advisors

Examiners and auditors use institutional and public data to identify risks and consumer harm. As a risk and compliance professional, proactively leverage these resources and AI to uncover key risks and trends within your institution. This allows for active risk management to acceptable levels. Your institution's data tells a story; it's your responsibility to understand this narrative by continuously monitoring risks, trends, and key indicators. Regularly report these findings to senior management and the Board to ensure informed decision-making and effective risk management.

Regulatory Examinations - Observations from the Field
Jeffery Schmid, Wisconsin Bankers Association – FIPCO

This presentation addresses the hot regulatory issues impacting community banks resulting in Level 1 and Level 2 violations. Our team of professionals are in the trenches with community bankers and helping them navigate through the exam process.

Banking on Innovation: A Roadmap to Digital Payments Innovation and Risk Management
Brandon M. Quiterio, Wolf & Company, P.C.

The future of payments in community banking is defined by rapid digital transformation, the rise of real-time payment systems, and increasing collaboration with fintech’s. As these trends reshape the industry, banking employees must align their roles with new technologies, security protocols, and evolving customer expectations. This presentation will explore how these changes impact day-to-day operations, with a focus on practical strategies for staying competitive, compliant, and customer centric. Through a deep dive into specific considerations—such as cybersecurity, regulatory compliance, and enhancing the user experience—employees will gain actionable insights to navigate the evolving payment landscape.

Sunset for the Cybersecurity Assessment Tool; What's Next?
Scott Stevens, Integrity Technology Solutions

The FFIEC's Cybersecurity Assessment Tool (CAT), long used for measuring risk in financial institutions, will be retired in 2025. This session explores the implications for community banks and provides guidance on future compliance with cybersecurity requirements. Scott Stevens, Integrity's CISO, will discuss risk management strategies and available resources for maintaining cybersecurity best practices. Attendees will learn about new frameworks, such as NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 and CISA's Cybersecurity Performance Goals, to ensure continued compliance and successful audits. This non-technical presentation is suitable for executives, compliance officers, and IT leaders.

Is Your Bank Prepared For a Breach?
Todd Burns, Wolf & Company, P.C.

A breach is an executive’s worst nightmare, but should the worst come to pass, it’s not the end of the world. In fact, it’s time to respond. While your cybersecurity team is working to patch things up, executives need to stay informed. As a board member or a c-level individual, what do you need to pay attention to during this time? What can you do to help prepare before a breach, and what can you do to help during or after one? Wolf & Company’s experts explain what executives need to know about breaches, and how they can best be of service during or following an incident.

Everyday AI for Bankers
Ben Udell, Marquis

Generative AI tools, like ChatGPT, are transforming how we work, enabling faster decision-making and enhanced creativity. This session dives into the evolving regulatory landscape surrounding AI and offers practical insights to responsibly integrate generative AI into your bank. You’ll see demonstrations of everyday use cases, providing you insights and valuable skills that you can implement immediately when you return to your bank. This session is a great jumping off point to kickstart AI usage, or learn new insights, while you embrace the future, today.

Risks and Benefits of Always-Listening Devices and Facial Recognition Software
Nick Podhradsky, SBS Cybersecurity

Always-listening devices and facial recognition software are increasingly prevalent in our connected world, offering both benefits and risks. These technologies provide enhanced convenience, security, and efficiency but raise significant privacy concerns. Key issues include data collection practices, accidental activations, potential surveillance, and accuracy challenges. Gain insights into the sociotechnical factors influencing these technologies' impacts and strategies for balancing innovation with privacy protection.