Highlights you won’t want to miss from Alkami Co:lab’s Professional Development sessions

Check out the key highlights below to see what we covered at this year’s event!

Women in Banking

At Alkami Co:lab 2023, we held our first Women in Banking session. The response was overwhelmingly positive from our attendees and we knew we needed to bring it back this year with a fresh spin. To celebrate this, we held our second annual Women in Banking event to encourage all attendees to engage, network, and grow. 

The breakout session featured discussions on three topics:

• Trends shaping the financial services industry presented by Alkami’s CMO, Allison Cerra

• Professional development and mentorship with a client panel led by Anna Davis from Alkami and featuring Desiree Wolfe from Hudson Valley Credit Union and Char Sears from Unitus Community Credit Union
• The balancing act many of us juggle on a daily basis presented by Molly Irelan from Alkami. This segment sets the stage for a networking event, celebrating both commonalities and differences among participants and encouraging attendees to get to know one another beyond job titles.

Following the breakout session, our Happy Hour event connected attendees with one another and highlighted the unique interests and passions of our colleagues. Attendees continued to engage in topics from the session, shared their stories, and celebrated women in the banking industry with a photo booth, speciality pink drinks, and of course, fun merchandise. 

Becoming a Leader at Your FI

Continuing the theme of Women in Banking, Julie Hoagland, Alkami’s chief human resources officer (CHRO) shared her enthusiasm for professional development with two accomplished panelists, Amy Krasikov from Raiz Federal Credit Union and Jessica Ebeling from Gate City Bank. From their compelling conversation about their career journey, it was evident that this subject was close to the heart of each speaker. 

Julie introduced a three-step model designed to guide individuals in their career growth. 

• Assess and Explore – reflect on career ambitions, passions, and seek feedback through tools like Clifton StrengthsFinder, the Enneagram Test, DiSC Assessment, and Myers-Briggs to identify strengths, areas for growth, and blind spots. 
• Plan – create a detailed action plan with goals and milestones, and share this plan with a mentor or partner to commit to it.
• Perform and Deliver – execute the plan despite potential distractions from current roles or personal life. 

Throughout the conversation, the panelists emphasized persistence in professional development, acknowledging that career paths can be unpredictable, but honoring the journey and exploring new opportunities can help individuals find success and growth.

Hands-On: Maximizing Reports in Alkami Admin

The Alkami University training team took the breakout stage for the first time to lead a hands-on learning session with our client attendees. During their session, they taught attendees how to maximize the use of four basic reports within the digital banking platform’s admin console. This includes solving common use cases using only basic reports, including retail banking and commercial banking, creating audiences for a marketing campaign, and user audit scenarios—using only basic reports. 

How to Mitigate Risk in Partnerships

When selecting a new technology partner, financial institutions are inundated with due diligence efforts to ensure they’ve identified a strategic partner who can help them navigate the evolving regulatory environment. This session, led by Dennis Irwin, Alkami’s vice president, chief compliance officer and Chris Monti, senior negotiator at Maple Street now Cornerstone Advisors, covered the best practices financial institutions can follow to mitigate third-party risk and fourth-party risk when evaluating and introducing innovative new solutions.

How to Use AI and RPA to Drive Your Commercial Relationships

This session, eligible for Certified Treasury Professional (CTP) and Certified Corporate Financial Planning and Analysis Professional (FPAC) recertification credits from the Association for Financial Professionals, focused on using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to strengthen commercial relationships. Our speakers, Peter Andon and Jerry Adona, both senior solution consultants at Alkami, and Jessica Pinkston, senior director at Cornerstone Advisors, explored the impact of AI and RPA. They highlighted how these technologies are key to optimizing back-office functions, elevating customer experiences, and refining decision-making processes.

The session covered various applications of AI and RPA, such as: 

• Machine learning for efficient loan processing
• Chatbots for customer service
• Data analysis for risk management

Moreover, they highlighted the importance of understanding the risks associated with AI implementation, emphasizing the need for precise model design, awareness of human biases, and control over data usage. Attendees were encouraged to identify their institutions’ operational pain points and explore AI and RPA solutions to address these challenges effectively.

Want to be a part of the co:laboration? Save the date for Alkami Co:lab 2025. We’re headed to Nashville, y’all! 

Continue exploring all things Alkami Co:lab 2024! Read more.