If you ask bankers in the C suite about their New Year resolutions, you won’t find many who fail to mention time.

Branch closures are never easy work, but U.

For retail banks, an effective loan origination and servicing operation is a key contributor to long-term profitability.

There are sound reasons why midsized and large banks want to stake a claim to the wealth management business.

Lack of timely information about changes in deposit rates can saddle a bank with a relatively higher cost of funds.

It is accepted wisdom throughout the industry that small businesses represent banks’ best opportunity for higher spreads, improved fee income and superior relationship profitability.

For many banks, improper scheduling on the teller line is one of the biggest silent profit killers in their retail branch network.

U.

The numbers can seem daunting.

As the banking industry continues its recovery, everything points to an increase in merger & acquisition (M&A) activity.

Facing rapidly declining transaction volumes at branches, banks are increasingly tapping technology to eliminate manual processes and save money.

Facing shareholder pressure to improve profitability, major banks must look beyond layoffs for new ways to reduce operating expenses and boost productivity.

The state of small business banking at most banks, that is, their ability and willingness to serve the needs of small companies, is at its nadir.

A quick review of those industry newsletters filling e-mail in-boxes every day finds literally dozens of articles on mobile banking.

“Bank at Work,” or workplace banking, is not a new concept but it’s one that may deserve a second look from growth-starved bankers since best-in-practice banks have embraced this strategy to drive as much as between 40% and 60% of all new consumer accounts.

Analysis of the temporary unlimited deposit insurance coverage for noninterest-bearing transaction accounts (NIBTAs) shows that this program had a greater psychological than practical impact on deposit customers.

Product bundling is a successful and profitable concept in some industries, such as cable television.

“Without a growth strategy, you are dead in the water,” said Chuck Sulerzyski, CEO of Marietta, Ohio-based Peoples Bank.

Ninety days – that’s the window of opportunity to cross-sell, upsell and optimize the lifetime value of a new retail banking customer, while their interest is at a peak.

Increasingly, banks seeking to optimize branch staffing are using qualified part-time tellers to supplement full-time staff during peak volume periods.