Strategic Plan Design Workshop

This workshop guides banking executives through a comprehensive strategic planning process. From external environmental scan to internal assessment to strategic choice formulation to disciplined execution. Participants leave with frameworks they can immediately apply to refresh their institution’s strategic plan and the governance mechanisms to keep strategy alive throughout the year.

9:30 AM – 10:00 AM
Breakfast & Registration

10:00 AM – 10:15 AM
Welcome & Introductions

10:15 AM – 11:15 AM
Peer Collaboration Session 1: Foundations & External Environment Analysis
This session grounds participants in the external realities shaping community banking strategy today. Participants examine the current regulatory landscape and its implications for strategic flexibility, use SWOT analysis tailored specifically to regional banking with emphasis on local economic drivers and deposit competition and map their true competitive landscape – recognizing that competitors now extend beyond traditional bank peers to large banks, credit unions and fintechs. The session concludes with customer segment analysis, helping leaders understand their positioning across retail, SMB, commercial and wealth management.

11:15 AM – 12:15 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 2: Internal Assessment & Strategic Positioning
This session helps banking leaders take a clear-eyed, data-driven look at their institution’s current capabilities and vulnerabilities. Participants analyze core deposit stability, cost structure and concentration risks – examining the funding foundation that underpins all strategic options. The session covers loan portfolio diagnostics including CRE concentration, industry diversification, and credit quality trends, alongside technology maturity assessment spanning core systems, digital channels, and data analytics. Leaders also evaluate human capital readiness including succession depth, digital skills gaps and culture alignment with strategic aspirations.

12:15 PM – 1:15 PM
Lunch

1:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 3: Strategy Formulation & Strategic Choices
This session moves assessment into action, helping leaders weigh the strategic pathways available to their institution. Participants engage with the critical grow-versus-sell decision framework, asking whether independence remains sustainable and valuable in a consolidating industry. The session explores strategic options including organic growth through market share capture and new product development, partnership models leveraging fintech relationships and consolidation plays through regional mergers or mutual conversions. Participants also examine digital strategy choices and scenario planning for rate, recession and regulatory risks.

2:15 PM – 2:30 PM
Refreshment Break

2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 4: Implementation, Governance & Execution
This session transforms strategic choices into actionable execution frameworks. Participants learn to prioritize strategic initiatives against capacity and capital constraints, establish capital allocation frameworks balancing growth investments with dividend sustainability and sequence technology investments along the journey from core systems to digital banking to data and AI capabilities. The session introduces a Balanced Scorecard tailored for regional banks, covering financial metrics, customer measures, process efficiency and organizational learning – and establishes governance cadences including quarterly business reviews and annual strategic refreshes.

3:30 PM – 3:45 PM
Wrap Up and Q&A

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Welcoming Peer & Guest Reception
To kick off the Summit, we invite all participants – and their guests – to join us for refreshments and light hors d’oeuvres.