Conferences & Education

The 2005 WIB Annual Conference for Bank Presidents, Senior Officers & Directors was a terrific success. Whether you attended and missed a handout, or if you were unable to join us in Hawaii, you can view and print any of the following session handouts that were provided to WIB electronically (just click on the session title). For a complete list of all sessions presented at the conference, click here.

These are presented in Adobe Acrobat format, so you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to view them.

If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, follow the link below for a free copy:

Concurrent Sessions            Directors Sessions
Hot Forum Sessions          Pre-Conference Workshop

GENERAL SESSIONS

“Ten Things Banks Must Do Better if They Want to Control Their Own Destinies”
Cass Bettinger, Bettinger & Associates

In this session Cass will discuss major changes in the financial services industry and ten specific things that banks must do significantly better in order to control their own destinies. Just to whet your appetite, a few of the specific items addressed will be:

• Identifying, protecting and enhancing the value and loyalty of the most profitable customer relationships

• Creating, communicating and reinforcing value-adding differentiators with the right target markets

• Managing technology "strategically", i.e., as a source of meaningful competitive advantage

• Getting the right people on the bus - and in the right seats

• Leadership development and accountability

"The Economy, The Banking Sector, and Issues on the Supervisory Radar Screen:  A View from the 12th Federal Reserve District"
Dr. Janet Yellen, San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank

Dr. Yellen, newly appointed President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and former member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, will give her views on current conditions in the economy as well as on conditions in the banking industry, along with some perspectives on supervision and regulatory issues.

“Back to the Future: Banking’s Past, Present and Future”
S. Scott MacDonald, SW Graduate School of Banking

For 50 years the traditional banking model has been successful.  Although some have questioned the viability of community banks, the data clearly shows that - compared to their greatest adversaries - they are in a highly competitive position. But how do we leverage past successes and ensure community banks will play a significant role in the financial future of our customers? Customers have transferred their expectations from other industries to banking: from 24/7 service to one-stop shopping. The traditional banking model may not be broken but the rules have changed. Will our dazzling past blind us from seeing the needs and desires of customers of the future? Do we truly understand our present and future customers (the “under-35” crowd)? The successful bank of the future will maximize the potential of the traditional banking model, meet new customer demands, and leverage cost efficiencies afforded by new technology.  

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

“A Leader’s Role in Developing Sales Growth”
John Callos, IdeaBridge

John will speak very directly and candidly about a leader’s role in supporting a sales culture and what it really means. He’ll talk to the leadership at the top with respect to supporting and nurturing an environment conducive to sales. He’ll emphasize that sales and credit can peacefully and profitably co-exist!

“Differentiating Yourself in Today’s Crowded Bank Marketplace”
Ray Adler, Bank Training International

With more than 9,000 banks in existence in this country today, banking has become a commodity industry, a fact confirmed when you visit the homepage of most bank websites. They all sound alike. The very phrases designed to differentiate them from the competition; “we provide personalized customer service” and, “we offer competitive rates” unfortunately create the perception that there is no differentiation between “Bank A” and “Bank B.” This presentation looks at how differentiation is achieved at two important levels within your bank: the board and senior management level, as well as the in-the-trenches level with your lenders and branch managers. If standing out from the competition is a priority issue for your bank, don’t miss this very important presentation!

“Connecting the Dots between CRE and Capital”
Barnet Reitner, Reitner & Stuart, and John Kandaris, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

Commercial real estate lending has become a major line of business for many banks in the Western United States, which has led to significant loan concentrations at many banks.  Given these record high levels, coupled with the historical volatility of real estate markets, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco initiated a comprehensive review to determine how community banks in the 12^th District evaluated, monitored, and managed their exposure to CRE concentrations.  John will discuss the key findings from the review as well as the key points behind the Federal Reserve’s supervisory strategy and regulatory expectations going forward.

The problem is that commercial real estate lending is a vital part of the banking business of WIB’s members.  If the Federal Reserve and the other bank regulators have increased concerns with the increased CRE concentrations, what can banks do to anticipate and successfully address these concerns?  Why isn’t the current weighting system of the risk-based capital rules enough?  Barney will discuss some strategies for dealing with this area, including enhanced risk management and underwriting efforts, as well as the need for more specific solutions within strategic and capital planning.

“Fraud-Net: Closing The Gap on the Bad Guys”
Thomas Kerr, Florida Bankers Association

Thom has spoken across the country about the importance of information sharing between financial institutions and law enforcement relative to fraud and identity theft. He is a firm believer that the financial services industry must work in cooperation with each other and closer together with law enforcement to win the battle against the fastest growing crime in the country. Thom is also the creator of Fraud-Net, which was created recognizing the need for financial institutions and law enforcement to work closely together to reduce the impact that fraud has on financial institutions across the county. Thom will share with you some exciting trends being deployed across the country to combat crime. Only working together will we begin to close the gap on the bad guys.

"The Evolution of Operational Risk Management"
Steve Salvador, Metavante Corporation

As industry risks proliferate and regulatory pressure increases, operational risk management has become a prerequisite for strong performance. Furthermore, as banks deal with FDICIA, Sarbanes-Oxley 404, FFIEC IT risk guidelines, and internal and external risk assessments across departments, the need to organize and report risk data more efficiently becomes imperative. The ultimate goal is to have a unified view of risks and controls across all business units and processes, a common assessment and measurement system, and governance for the risk management program.  Ultimately, a coordinated operational risk management program with robust analytics will lead to more efficient use of capital and personnel.

DIRECTORS SESSIONS

"The Board's Role in Leadership Development and Accountability"
Cass Bettinger, Bettinger & Associates

Boards must be extremely conscious of those manageable factors that have the most profound impact on performance. Ultimately, the single most powerful factor in the success of any business is the quality of leadership at all levels of the organization. This session will focus on the best practices of high-performance companies in holding leaders accountable not only for performance - but for their leadership effectiveness and continuous leadership development as well.  

“Reputational Risk: “When Things go Wrong!”
Charles Thayer, Chartwell Capital Limited,

Your board has addressed all the new board governance requirements - you have the right committees, “best practice” charters, an updated strategic plan etc. Just when you thought everything was under control - you get the call, “We have a problem.”

It’s not a perfect world - problems happen! This session will address a variety of ‘real life’ situations:

• An embarrassing embezzlement is discovered.

• An elected official defaults on a large loan.

• Your CEO will miss his budget - again!

• A senior officer is having an affair with a staff member.

• You receive an unsolicited acquisition proposal.

Participants may submit [confidentially] additional discussion topics.

Bad publicity is certain to result - both your personal reputation and the reputation of the bank are at risk. Litigation may be on the horizon?  As a director - what’s your role? What do you do?  

HOT FORUM SESSIONS

“Look to WIB for a Better Way of Developing Commercial Lenders”
Nancy Sheppard, WIB and Rex Beach, Shockproof! Training

After more than a year of research and development, WIB has launched our Commercial Lenders Institute. A comprehensive curriculum, an experienced faculty, plus a bank mentor are part of our online, Webinar and classroom delivery format. The result? Talented staff become complete, professional commercial lenders who hit the ground running and develop business consistent with your bank’s market strategies and credit culture. The credit curriculum has been designed for WIB by an experienced financial services instructional company - Shockproof! Training. Come to this session to learn more about how this new program will help your bank develop tomorrow’s commercial lenders! 

“Twelfth Annual Survey of Community Bank Executives”
James Pulsipher, Grant Thornton LLP

The Annual Survey of Community Bank Executives is the oldest continuous independent study of its kind in the banking industry. By providing a close-up look at the industry trends and established benchmarks, it has become a strategic planning resource for community bank executives and their boards. To gather information for this year's survey, Grant Thornton mailed questionnaires to a national sample of more than 5,000 chief executives of community banks and savings institutions. The discussion will focus on the portions of the survey which cover the currently "hot topics." The Survey generally is released just prior to the Annual Conference, so the information is very timely.

“How to Recruit, Retain & Reward Staff”
Rebecca H. Pomering, Moss Adams & Associates Financial Institutions Group

How to hire and pay staff is emerging as one of the biggest management challenges facing independent banks. This presentation will identify the key considerations in recruiting, retaining and rewarding people, including: How do you define your staffing needs? How do you improve recruiting and staff selection? How do you link compensation philosophy to your business strategy? How do you institutionalize the staffing and compensation process? How do you create effective teams? How do you align staff and corporate goals? What causes turnover and how do you minimize it in your business? Ultimately this session will define how to maximize your return on the biggest asset in your business.

“What is Online Success?”
Christine Petersen, Certegy E-Banking Services 

Measuring success and profitability in the online world is sometimes difficult, but not impossible. Learn how to get down to the basics and get a grasp on the profit potential of your online services offering. What does the bank gain from offering online services? What type of customers bank online? What does their total banking relationship look like?

PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP

“Community Bank Compensation”  
Chuck Bacchi, Western Sierra Bancorp, Moderator
Kenneth F. Derks, Clark Consulting
Stephen A. Enna, John Parry & Alexander
Tim Ranzetta, Equilar, Inc.  

Derks Presentation | Enna Presentation | Ranzetta Presentation

A panel of community bank compensation experts will discuss trends in executive and directors compensation. FASB will be releasing a new standard accounting for equity-based compensation that will require companies to expense the value of the stock options they grant. Sarbanes Oxley legislation and the increased burden placed on public company boards are requiring community banks to re-evaluate board compensation. These and other issues, including deferred compensation, will be discussed at this interactive workshop.