Jack E. Hopkins: Setting our priorities for 2026

There’s something about the new year that brings with it a clean slate and a fresh start. As we kick off 2026, we have the opportunity to shape where we want to go. 

For my community bank this year, the strategic focus is on efficiency. 

Making the leap

It’s one thing to set the objective, and another to implement it. So, we’re evaluating and investing in solutions that start with the back office. For us, it’s a purposeful decision so that we can update our technology before we revamp it for customers. 

We’ve established a team to assess departmental operations at the bank and determine where we can streamline them. Within that team, we’ve recruited some younger, more digitally native bankers from middle management who are technology savvy and will be the staff who have to navigate these solutions into the future. 

We’re also diving into areas where there’s higher turnover. Those numbers tell a story that the jobs aren’t as satisfying as they could be. So, we are using this opportunity to identify how we can make them more interesting and support greater retention in the process. 

As we move into implementation, we are looking to identify solutions that are specifically geared toward community bank challenges. We’re focusing our search on ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator alumni, Preferred Service Providers and Corporate Members. We plan to do a deeper dive at ICBA LIVE and leverage the past showcases in which we’ve participated and previous LIVEs we’ve attended to help narrow our shortlist of potential partners. 

Additional priorities

In addition to efficiencies, we are prioritizing digital assets and stablecoin knowledge-gathering this year. With the way the landscape is heading, we need to keep up to date on policy discussions to make sure we’re not behind the eight ball. 

We are also taking advantage of ICBA Education to learn what these developments mean for the future and how these technologies might apply to our banks. 

With these strategic priorities in mind—which I bet are on many of your lists as well—I encourage you to come to ICBA LIVE, taking place March 6 to 9 in San Diego, to attend the sessions and identify possible partners. Also, join us in D.C. for the ICBA Capital Summit, May 4 to 7, to ensure your voice is heard on these and other percolating issues.

Although we have a blank canvas to shape the year ahead, we are in a time where what you do now will affect your community bank for years to come. Thankfully, we have ICBA as a resource to help us navigate what’s next.