The Founder, Chairman, and CEO of FedEx Corp, Fred Smith, recently announced that he is planning to step down from the CEO role. We believe the way he chose to do so and some of his comments have bearing on some of the similar succession issues many of our clients face.

If bond investors (you) were running low on things to worry about for the rest of the year, I’ve got some terrific news: The $9 trillion portfolio owned by our central bank will begin to shrink. Soon. And at a feverish pace, I might add.

We have the privilege of assisting community bankers with training, coaching, and leadership development. As we work through the various stages of our training and educational workshops, the energy in the room frequently shifts when the discussion migrates from customer service to sales.

When it comes to community bankers’ technology to-do lists, 35% view investing in digitalization as their top business opportunity. We’ve clearly arrived at a tipping point where community bankers are not just talking about the digital experience, they are incorporating it into actionable plans.

Summer unofficially kicks off next week! During this time of year, we tend to see a lull in training for a couple of reasons. Keep reading to find out what those are and we're overcoming that lull.

To support community banker meetings with policymakers on top industry issues, ICBA released new polling data affirming the industry’s strong public favorability at the state and national levels.

Community Bankers Association of Illinois (CBAI) is no stranger to fintech collaborations, but the idea of helping shape fintech offerings tailored to community banks was too intriguing an idea to pass up.

According to the Federal Reserve, nine in 10 businesses (or 29.25 million) expect to be able to send and receive instant payments by 2023. Fortunately, in many cases, community-based financial institutions have begun the process to meet these needs.

“Today, in literal terms, everybody has to operate as that state-of-the-art bank,” says Kevin Piette, chief operating officer and chief information officer for State Bank of Cross Plains, in the newest episode of ICBA’s Communities of Innovation podcast.

Meet Lori Braegelmann, Online Training Specialist with ICBA’s Community Banker University! Lori will be taking over for Cathy Von Wahlde, who retires on May 2.