2026 Compensation & Talent Survey: Seeking AI Expertise

Banks have been putting artificial intelligence tools into place, as evidenced by recent earnings calls. “We see AI as an increasingly important enabler of expense efficiency and operating leverage over time,” Huntington Bancshares CFO Zach Wasserman said on the $285 billion company’s first quarter earnings call. Wasserman outlined several areas where Huntington is using AI, including in employee training and productivity.

Bank Director’s 2026 Compensation & Talent Survey, sponsored by Chartwell Partners, finds that executives and board members see a need for more leadership to take advantage of these new technologies. Sixty-nine percent of CEOs, chairs and independent directors say that their C-suite most needs AI expertise, followed by M&A integration (36%) and digital transformation (33%) skills. Further, survey respondents expect AI to impact staffing across the organization, in areas including technology and IT (37%), cybersecurity (35%) and Bank Secrecy Act/anti-money laundering compliance (27%).

The survey, which examines yearly trends in director and CEO compensation, also looks at how boards are thinking about succession in the C-suite. Respondents name the CEO (31%), chief financial officer (31%) and chief credit officer (29%) as the C-suite roles most at risk of an expected retirement. Forty-two percent say their board has identified one or more CEO succession candidates but have not nailed down a timeline or plan of action, while 31% have an idea of their timeline but no succession candidates. Just 9% have identified a CEO successor, as well as a timeline and plan of action, down from 17% a year earlier.

Among those who have identified at least one CEO succession candidate, 57% believe that person would be ready to step into the role immediately should the CEO depart unexpectedly.

In thinking about succession, the board should consider the bank’s future growth trajectory and whether its preferred candidate could successfully lead the organization. “People often project their succession candidate into the current CEO’s role,” says J. Scott Petty, managing partner at Chartwell. The board needs to consider the kind of CEO the bank will need five years from now, not just what it needs today. “Would that [candidate] be able to double the bank and be capable of running it at that scale?”

Succession Planning Responsibility
Most respondents say either the full board (45%) or a board committee such as compensation or governance (31%) owns the CEO succession planning process, but 20% delegate that duty to the outgoing CEO.

Developing the Next CEO
Survey respondents cite M&A experience (45%), strategic acumen (41%), ability to lead people (31%) and credibility with regulators (31%) among the top development gaps for their top CEO succession candidate.

Increased Costs, Headcount
Eighty-seven percent say compensation expenses increased in 2025 compared with the prior year, and respondents report a median increase of 8%. More than half of respondents increased overall employee headcount at least somewhat.

Talent Opportunities From M&A
Among respondents who saw consolidation via M&A in their markets last year, 60% were able to pick up commercial banking talent and half picked up retail banking talent.

Rising CEO Bonuses
Ninety-one percent of respondents report paying a bonus to their CEO in fiscal year 2025, up from 78% the prior year. The median CEO bonus increased 34% to $168,000.

DEI Value
Fifty-seven percent say their bank lacks a formal diversity, equity and inclusion program, the same as last year. Among those who do have some type of DEI program in place, 74% say the program provides value to the institution and its employees.

To view the high-level findings, click here.

Bank Services members can click below to access the complete results, broken out by asset category and other relevant attributes. To find out how your bank can gain access to this exclusive report, contact [email protected].