2025 Mass Bankers Connect Conference : Massachusetts Bankers Association

Dates

Thursday, November 20, 2025

Time

9:00 AM - 3:30 PM EST

Location

2025 Mass Bankers Connect Conference Event Image

Program Overview

Mass Bankers presents the Fall 2025 Connect Conference. This full-day conference combines four of our annual conferences into a single mega conference that includes professional development, networking, and vendor expo opportunities.

Connect with peers and associates from across banking roles and hear from leaders and innovators in the community banking industry. Featuring four tracks addressing HR, Marketing, Retail Banking, Security/Loss Prevention topics, you can customize your day and attend sessions that match your career focus.

Date & Time

November 20, 2025

8:30AM Registration | 9:00AM Conference Start | 3:30PM Conference Concludes

Fall 2025 Session Information

The Connect Conference features four professional development tracks. See the agenda for session descriptions.

HR Track Topics: Lessons from Oversights of Compensation Arrangements from Luse Gorman | Leading Through Change from Wipfli | Future Ready from AchieveMentor LLC

Marketing Track Topics: Marketing the Marketing: How to Get Noticed, Heard, and Taken Seriously from WSI | Adapting with Confidence: Marketing Strategies for Times of Transition from FMS | Marketing Menor Roundtable

Retail Banking Topics: Intelligent Routing via Payment Hubs: Revolutionizing Payment Processing from NEACH | Driving Deposit Growth: Strategies to Acquire, Engage, and Retain from CSI |

Security Track Topics: Physical Security Trends and Innovation from American Alarm | Law Enforcement Partnerships & Information Sharing from Shazam | Crisis Response Planning & Emergency Drills from Blue-U Defense

Who Should Attend?

Banking professionals in Human Resources, Marketing, Retail Banking and Operations, and Security and Loss Prevention; Mass Bankers Innovation Liaisons and as well as Emerging Leaders in the Massachusetts banking industry who are looking to stay ahead of industry trends and expand their professional network.

Questions? Check out our FAQs or contact registrations@massbankers.org

Registration Fees

Coffee Break Sponsorship

Early Standard Late

$1500.00

Continental Breakfast Sponsorship

Early Standard Late

$2000.00

Member Registration

Early Standard Late

$385.00

Mobile App Sponsorship

Early Standard Late

$2500.00

Nonmember Registration

Early Standard Late

$770.00

Tote Bag Sponsorship

Early Standard Late

$1500.00

Vendor Table Registration

Early Standard Late

$995.00

WIFI Sponsorship

Early Standard Late

$1500.00

Agenda


	Mobile App Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Continental Breakfast Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Coffee Break Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Lanyard Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Lunch Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Vendor Table Registration Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Vendor Table Registration Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	Tote Bag Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
	WIFI Sponsorship Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
7:45 am
	Registration Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
8:30 am
	Welcome & Opening Remarks Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
8:35 am
	The AI-Driven Bank: Strategic Relevance in a Time of Rapid Change Sold Out! 0 Slots Left Eric Cook, CEO, WSI A high-impact, thought-provoking session that connects AI, innovation, and mindset to the future of community banking. We’ll explore how marketers, HR teams, retail staff, and execs alike can all play a role in leading transformation, even in small teams with limited resources.
9:35 am
	Coffee Break \| Networking with Exhibitors Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
10:15 am
	Breakout Sessions Sold Out! 0 Slots Left Tracks HR: Lessons from Oversights of Compensation Arrangements, Tom Hutton & Brendan Saxon, Luse Gorman Marketing: Marketing the Marketing: How to Get Noticed, Heard, and Taken Seriously, Eric Cook, WSI Retail Banking: Intelligent Routing via Payment Hubs: Revolutionizing Payment Processing, Sean Carter, NEACH Security: Physical Security Trends and Innovation, American Alarm
11:15 am
	Breakout Sessions Sold Out! 0 Slots Left Tracks HR: Leading Through Change, Steve Hopkins, Wipfli Marketing: Adapting with Confidence: Marketing Strategies for Times of Transition, Amber Farley, FMS Retail Banking: Driving Deposit Growth: Strategies to Acquire, Engage, and Retain, Charles Baker, CSI Security: Law Enforcement Partnerships & Information Sharing, Shazam
12:15 pm
	Lunch \| Networking with Exhibitors Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
1:15 pm
	General Session Sold Out! 0 Slots Left
2:30 pm
	Breakout Sessions Sold Out! 0 Slots Left Tracks HR: Future Ready”, Cheryl Haynes, AchieveMentor LLC Marketing: Marketing Mentor Roundtable Retail Banking: TBD Security: Crisis Response Planning & Emergency Drills, Joseph Hileman and Terry Choate, Blue-U Defense
3:30 pm
	Closing Comments & Raffle Sold Out! 0 Slots Left

Speakers

Name	Organization	Speaking At
Amber Farley <p>Amber is a dynamo—the digital marketing and social guru behind our banks' brand personalities and an industry-recognized expert. As EVP of Brand Development, she strategizes ways to help our clients be purpose-driven, inspirational and more relevant to today’s customer—including both internal and external customers. When we develop a brand for our banks, Amber helps identify the digital strategies, technology and touch-points to communicate that brand efficiently and effectively. So it’s Amber’s job to stay on top of the latest trends affecting user behavior and best practices for communicating online. She also spearheads the agency's own business development, partnerships and marketing programs. Amber is a sought-out speaker and teacher, leading frequent conference keynotes and webinars and serving in many leadership capacities across the industry.</p>	Financial Marketing Solutions	-
Brendan Saxon	Luse Gorman, PC	-
Charles Baker <p>Charles brings with him over 26 years of executive level sales, client services and operations experience in the banking, technology, and consulting services industries. As the Director of Client Service for CSI’s Velocity team, he oversees a team of client service managers in delivering and optimizing Velocity solutions. He works closely with not only his team and the clients, but all Velocity product owners and steering committees. Since Charles’ responsibilities touch on all aspects of CSI’s Velocity products and their deliveries, he works closely with the sales team as a subject matter expert and builds the financial performance models utilized in the sales process to set expectations with the prospective client. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Texas State University and lives in Austin, TX with his wife and two daughters.</p>	Computer Services, Inc. (CSI)	-
Cheryl Haynes <p>Cheryl Haynes is an ICF Certified Executive Coach, Speaker, Facilitator, and Organizational Effectiveness Consultant. As the founder and principal consultant of Achieve Mentor LLC, she brings over 25 years of corporate HR leadership experience, having worked with notable companies such as State Street Bank, MetLife, CVS, and Citizens Bank. Cheryl was the SVP HR Director for Blue Hills Bank until its acquisition by Independent Bancorp in 2019.</p><p>Her practice specializes in executive coaching, small group coaching, and CEO Peer Advisor moderating, with a focus on team effectiveness, inclusive leadership, emotional intelligence, and decision-making. She also has experience designing and facilitating workshops for emerging, evolving, and C-Suite level leadership teams. </p><p>Cheryl holds an SPHR certification from HRCI and a Certification in Strategic Foresight from the EDHEC Business School. She earned her BS in Business Administration from Bryant University, and an MS in Human Resources Counseling from Northeastern University. She earned her executive coaching certification from The Center for Executive Coaching in 2019 and has coached leaders across various sectors, including Financial Services, Health Insurance, Government, Consumer Goods, and Nonprofit.</p><p> </p>	AchieveMentor LLC	-
Eric Cook	WSI	-
Sean Carter <p>President & CEO</p>	New England ACH Association (NEACH)	-
Shelley Regin	Country Bank for Savings	-
Steve Hopkins <p>Steve Hopkins leads the leadership consulting team, as part of Wipfli’s Organizational Performance group, focused on helping clients develop their people, their culture and, ultimately, their organizations. For the past decade, Steve has led and championed leadership development and executive coaching programs through his consulting work, building on a career as a leader of people. Previous to that, Steve ran an international sales team for a manufacturing company that took him around the world; he served as the business unit manager for ACS (now Xerox); and he taught English and comp at the University of Kentucky. He is nothing if not eclectic. Steve believes passionately in providing organizations with the framework, training and tools to enable their leaders to grow and develop effectively. Focused on providing clients with thoughtful—and thought-provoking—consultation, his greatest satisfaction comes from fostering employee performance, team integration and organizational development.</p>	WIPFLI	-
Tom Hutton <p>Tom Hutton is a partner of the Washington, DC-based law firm, Luse Gorman, PC, and has represented community banks for over 25 years. Mr. Hutton provides strategic advice and counsel to public, private and mutual banks in the areas of compensation and benefits, as well as general corporate law matters. Mr. Hutton’s experience includes tax-qualified retirement plans, non-qualified retirement plans, split-dollar life insurance arrangements, equity-compensation arrangements, employment and change in control agreements and director compensation arrangements, as well as corporate governance matters. He has also been involved with numerous capital raises, holding company formations and mergers and business combinations. Mr. Hutton is a frequent speaker at various conferences sponsored by continuing education and financial institution trade groups. Mr. Hutton received his B.S. from Auburn University, his J.D. from the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University and his LL.M in taxation from the University of Florida.</p>	Luse Gorman, PC	-