Plansmith Blog

After 40 years in this industry, I’ve seen the same pattern in too many boardrooms: planning treated as a static "check-the-box" exercise. In today’s volatile market, that is a liability.

Having worked with thousands of financial institutions, I’ve seen the full spectrum of planning processes. My own journey — from running our support department for years to serving as a hands-on budget and ALM model operator for our clients — has given me a front-row seat to the challenges you face. I’ve helped institutions prepare for everything from intense regulatory exams to high-stakes board presentations. Needless to say, I have seen exactly what works and what doesn't when it comes to effective planning.

There’s one topic I hear consistently come up in discussions amongst financial institution leaders: succession planning. Or, as I call it, The Succession Elephant – the awkward, looming, unsolved topic occupying space in boardrooms across the country. Leaders know turnover is happening. They know it’s an aggressive risk. Yet they often don’t know where to start tackling it.

This very topic was a core focus of my breakout session at the FMS Forum in New Orleans this past June. Because it's so critical – yet rarely nipped in the bud – I wanted to share a strategic framework for solving 'the succession elephant' before facing unexpected vacancies and their broader implications without a safety net in place.

If we’re being honest, the annual planning season is rarely met with a standing ovation. For many financial institution leaders, it feels like a chore – a box to check for the regulators or a heavy document destined to collect dust on a shelf.

The problem is that many management teams are still operating under the old rules of planning. These misconceptions keep brilliant leaders buried in "spreadsheet land," where they spend their time managing data instead of managing the organization.

If you want to move from a static plan to a dynamic strategy, it is time to debunk these five common myths.

For many bank leaders, "peer analysis" has long been treated as just another checkbox – useful for satisfying board expectations or preparing for exams, but rarely central to true strategic planning. That mindset, however, is rapidly shifting, and for good reason.

When approached strategically, peer data becomes a potent force. It can uncover hidden inefficiencies, highlight competitive strengths, and drive sharper, more confident decisions. This isn't about comparing for comparison's sake; it's about understanding your bank's performance in its true context and leveraging that clarity to lead more effectively.

At Plansmith, we're helping institutions transform this process. With the BankersGPS Peer Module, we turn raw peer data into powerful decision-making support, empowering leadership teams to elevate both performance and accountability.

In today's banking world, things are always changing, and uncertainty can feel constant. With competitive pressures rising, regulations evolving, and margins tightening, you shouldn't have to carry the burden of ambiguity. Bank leaders require more than intuition; they demand precise, actionable clarity to navigate effectively.

One of the most potent sources of that clarity lies within peer performance data – when approached with a strategic mindset.

The banking industry is complex, and it’s only getting more intricate. For successful organizations, budgeting and forecasting are the foundation of strategic financial planning. They guide decisions, manage risk, and ultimately steer the organization towards its goals. However, striking the right balance in the level of detail included in these crucial processes, namely budgeting and forecasting, is a delicate art. Go too granular, and you risk getting lost in the weeds, obscuring the bigger picture. Provide too little, and you lack the actionable insights needed for effective management. Finding that "just right" Goldilocks zone is paramount.

For almost 50 years, Plansmith has helped financial institutions become better organizations through improved planning. In that time, we've heard a lot of industry chatter - much of it a load of, dare we say, bologna.

Our budgeting process gives us an idea of where we think we are headed in the next year. Many times, what we think will happen, is not what happens in reality. After all, if we all had a crystal ball at our disposal, you would not be reading this blog right now (I know I would not be writing it!).

A: Its failures.

True or False

A budget is a once a year process for an institution.

True: A budget is a process typically done once a year to establish targets/goals of measure to be used as guidelines throughout the year.