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Extraco Consulting can help your community #bank or #creditunion with untold resources. Lindsay Green discusses their approach on Jack Rants with Modern Bankers on Wednesday, April 16 at Noon ET. We bat around all things retail banking from AI, to the branches and even SWARM, Extraco's unique take on great customer experiences. My friends at RelPro, Inc. and Vertical IQ sponsor the show every week. Here's the link to join: https://lnkd.in/gkWRQyzq

On May 8 I have the amazing privilege of presenting at the 2025 NEFMA Spring Conference. It gets better. On the 9th I join the audience to hear Meridith Elliott Powell, CSP, CPAE speak. Meridith will be discussing one of her bestselling books, "Thrive, Strategies To Turn Uncertainty To Competitive Advantage." I think it's her best work and today on Book It Thursday, I review this must read for these challenging and confusing times. If you are up in the Northeast, a community bank CMO and want to learn from Amber Farley, Joe Sullivan Kristin Sundin Brandt 🕊️ ♥️ 🚲 and other best of the best in Portland, Maine, don't miss this NEFMA Conference.

❓What's the Future of AI at your bank? ❓How likely is it that you will adopt this technology in the future? ❓What have you done to get the process started? If you are like lots of organizations you won't be surprised at the answers to questions one and two. You may be shocked at the answer to number three. Geoff Woods knows the score and in his new book The AI-Driven Leader, Harnessing AI to Make Faster, Smarter Decisions, your get the answers and so much more. This is a must read for CEOs, senior executives and other leaders who want to set the pace with AI. It's book it Thursday (but it's such an important book, I"m sharing it on a Monday) and don't wait to get your copy of this amazing look at what it takes to lead the AI effort at your organization. I'm curious where your bank or company is in its AI Journey.

There's an amazing new book hitting the virtual and physical stores on May 13. Mark your calendar and go get it. Better yet, pre-order it now. It's a personal and cultural life changer. The author is Zach Mercurio, Ph.D. and the book is The Power of Mattering: How Leaders Can Create a Culture of Significance. Zach is my guest on Jack Rants with Modern Bankers on April 9 at Noon ET. We discuss the book and what it means to matter today. Here's a short clip dealing with the important topic of working from home. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gk6pXihu I appreciate that RelPro, Inc. and Vertical IQ trust me enough to sponsor these weekly journeys with bankers, consultants and bestselling authors like Zach who bring such knowledge and insight to the table.

Hey SM&H friends: Internationally renowned author, speaker and leadership expert Simon Sinek penned his bestseller, “Start with Why” in 2009. He suggests that leaders who focus on their core purpose (Why) rather than just their products (What) inspire greater loyalty and success. Senator Lloyd Bentsen might say “Jack you’re no Simon Sinek,” (for those too young to remember, it’s a reference to 1988 vice presidential debate with Dan Quayle) and he’s certainly correct. I borrow from Mr. Sinek today on Modern Banker Monday to talk about your “Content Why.” Studies suggest that about 2% of LinkedIn members (20 million) upload posts. That’s a big number and if you are Simon Sinek, Bill Gates, Brené Brown or Arianna Huffington you have thousands of followers and corresponding eyeballs on your content. Related to eyeballs, gone are the days when your posts get many thousands of views. Sure, it can happen occasionally and WHY do you care? Vanity measures such as views and likes became the holy grail of LinkedIn. That's over. I am sadly seeing more and more product push on LinkedIn. If that’s your WHY, go for it, but you become a commodity and people quickly see zero value in what you have to say. Here are some folks that to me exemplify their WHY of LinkedIn – to educate, to provide value, to share ideas, to make the reader think: Richard van der Blom – I learn something new about hidden LinkedIn gems from every post Chris Nichols – banking’s Babe Ruth – practical content every week (I love the action items) Allison Netzer – her thoughts on marketing are way ahead of their time Charles H. Green – want to build more trust, Charlie is your guy Joanne Black – nobody better to help you build a dynamic referral network Kevin D. Turner – got questions on changes to the platform, Kevin is the answer man 🤘Eric Cook, MBA – keeps me current on new tech tools and Mondays with Eric…priceless Dave Kurlan – his rants, backed by data, sharpen my weekly sales saw David Brock – thoughtful and practical posts on leadership JP Nicols – every post makes me think about how to make banking better Martha Bartlett Piland, CFMP – branding made easy Meridith Elliott Powell, CSP, CPAE Elliott Powell – helps me thrive in good times, tough times, all the time William J. Fink, MBA, CPA, CGMA – his thoughts on middle market banking provide amazing thought nuggets Mark Hunter - prospecting ideas with trust at the core Your posts? Are they about you, the bank, your solutions or do they help build your credibility as an influencer in your local market? Do they make people think and do they inspire one person to do something in their business that helps the company grow? Is it always about making more money and generating more leads or making a difference? Indeed, I’m no Simon Sinek or John C. Maxwell but I do know that when you find your WHY of posting you’ll find your way into the hearts and minds of many.

(Love your comments about how your organization is keeping score). I enjoy watching PGA pros show off their talents. They keep their own score, there are standard bearers who carry a sign with each pairing to let the fans know the group’s numbers relative to par. Everywhere on the course there are scoreboards stack ranking the field. Viewers see where the golfer stands in the tournament and in the Fed Ex Cup standings. It changes instantly on every hole. We’ve come a long way in keeping score in golf. Unfortunately, we haven’t made much progress with metrics that matter in commercial banking. So many bankers still view the number of calls made as a key measure of success. Some have taken this to the next level by breaking up the number of calls on clients, prospects, COIs and even tracking networking events attended. Why do we spend five seconds on this? Our industry also tracks sales made. Fair enough. Hold your hands 18 inches apart, palms up. The left hand is the number of calls made, and the right is sales results. Both of those numbers are lag measures – they are history, and they won’t change. In between those hands is where tracking means something. Like: ·     Number of prospects bankers are working ·     Ratio of prospects to phone conversations ·     Ratio of phone conversations to appointments ·     Percentage of second appointments earned ·     Presentations made ·     Average loan or deposit size ·     Win rates ·     Time – from the time you get the docs to underwriting to closing Lead metrics like this create coaching moments. Your banker not working enough prospects? Coach there. Win rates to low? Coach there. This approach helps customize your coaching. It moves the needle and serves to improve targeted skills and behaviors of commercial bankers. Give this data to your training professional and they can develop workshops to improve specific skill deficits. This all seems quite logical. Why don’t we do it? In talking with one community bank recently who is upgrading their relationship with their core provider. I learned the system could, in fact, measure the above data but the bank chose to leave that module off. When I asked why, the senior executive suggested that it would cost more, and he wasn’t sure if this scoring method would be used. Sadly, it’s a mantra I hear from banks of all sizes and shapes. It’s a penny-wise, pound-foolish approach in a culture where accountability is non existent. In conferences, Podcasts and articles, experts pontificate about providing bankers and sales leaders the tools for success. The audience shakes its head and returns to the office where nothing changes. When all is said and done, more is said than done. Golfers know the score and they know how they earned it. All of this is available to our industry too. The question is when will banking finally take a swing at it.

Outstanding post by Jodie Cook - someone to follow. Her content is outstanding. Here are five ways to increase your followers on LinkedIn. https://lnkd.in/gt6tUhgt

10 popular use cases, a diagnostic checklist and much more. It's all here in this outstanding post about Gen AI community bank strategies by Chris Nichols. Lots of practical ideas here https://lnkd.in/g2X4dyj4

February is Innovation Month on Jack Rants with Modern Bankers. My first guest this month is Brad Elliott, Chairman and CEO of Equity Bank. In this clip from the program Brad talks about bank consolidation in 2025 and how Equity Bank has learned a unique approach to finding more than 20 acquisition partners since its founding. Here's the link to join us for this wide ranging conversation: https://lnkd.in/grQmBfdX

How can you get at buyer intent in 2025? Try AI. Check out this amazing article by Chris Nichols. https://lnkd.in/dDt4MbQq