Session Topics

Planning a conference or meeting? Tap into the SHAZAM Speakers Bureau to put payments industry expertise squarely in front of your audience. Our speakers highlight the latest trends in technology, simplify the complexities of the regulatory environment, and offer ideas and tools to maximize your institution’s potential.

We bring value to your event by leaving your audience with information they can put to immediate use. From tips on fraud to navigating the media, our speakers put useful, timely information in their hands.
 

•  Payments

  Cryptocurrency
  With all time high interest in a digital assets and talk of central bank digital currencies, this session puts them in context and provides a framework for further study. We review cryptocurrencies as a class of digital asset and contrast them with likely attributes of a central bank digital currency. We explore decentralized finance, and how participating with it may help community banks attract and retain clients.

  Fast forward: Leading your bank to a profitable future in payments
  Change in the Payments Industry continues at a breakneck pace. New technology, outside disrupters and even a “Faster” set of payment rails are forcing banks to find their own unique way forward. Now, a ruling from Federal Reserve is expanding competition in the payments space. This session will look at some of the latest debates in the payments industry, changes to payments technology and how all of it can impact your bottom line. We’ll explain how the choices you’re making will impact how much you earn on each transaction, plus how the Fed’s latest clarification on the Durbin Amendment will impact security and profitability.

  Five questions to evaluate your payment program
  Based on information from the Average Debit Card Interchange Fee by Payment Card Network, the annual survey conducted by the Federal Reserve, it may be time to review and evaluate your card payment program. The payments landscape is changing. Segmenting payments into signature and PIN buckets is, frankly, outdated. Understanding the difference between fixed rates and percentages helps determine how routing matters. These factors all add up to a program that can provide greater interchange for your institution. It’s time to shift your thinking and realize better results.

  Our love/hate relationship with third party payment apps
  Consumers love them, and there’s a good chance you’ve used one yourself. But in your role as the card issuer, the unauthorized claims related to them are a source of frustration that was intensified by the 2020 spike in volume. Join me to analyze recent P2P payments volume and fraud rates, plus the interchange revenue they generated. We’ll also dig into the unauthorized claims volume and cover best practices for error resolution and staying compliant with Reg E.

  Payments 101
  The payments landscape continues to evolve, yet the basic understanding of how payments work is often overlooked. You shouldn’t be paying for your debit card program — it should be paying you. To take advantage of non-interest income financial institutions must evaluate their payments program to receive the best interchange income. Learning how merchants influence interchange rates, opportunities and challenges presented by new technology, and the importance of gross and net interchange are just the first steps in developing your best payments program.

  Standards in payments
  Payments technology is evolving quickly, but who’s owns the technology and controls the way you pay? How is that changing the competitive landscape of payments in the United States? The rise of proprietary technology in payments is steering the marketplace, discouraging competition and quashing innovation. What needs to change to ensure competition and innovation flourish as technology evolves? The answer: Standards in payments.

  The future of banking
  The rate of change in banking technology, heightened consumer expectations and disruptive new players in the banking industry make “the future” harder to predict and plan for. What if you had a framework to evaluate and strategically plan for change? In this session we’ll look at some of the latest innovations and biggest disruptive forces for financial institutions. We’ll help put those tools and the challenges that come with them in context for you. It’s time to start asking the right questions so you can draw your own map to the future of banking!

  Value of a second network
  Since the implementation of Regulation II — sometimes known as the Durbin Amendment — in 2012, the value of the second network is important to community financial institutions. Why? For three reasons: 1) Levels the playing field, 2) Drives the use of standards for mobility, security and interoperability, and 3) Requires partners and vendors to allow you to do business with who you want. Find out how to evaluate a second network and why this decision is critical to your institution’s payment program.

  What do you mean faster? How Faster Payments will impact your strategy
  Faster payments. What does it mean? There’s much discussion and news about building a faster payments system, but how will it work for your institution? Gain greater understanding of the current payments landscape and the challenges and opportunities that exist for stakeholders. We’ll look at the practical application of faster payments in lives of our consumers and address the technologies needed and risks to consider as we race toward the future of faster payments.

•  Technology

  Building bridges with artificial intelligence
  This session explores how artificial intelligence provides opportunities for community institutions and financial technology service providers to partner. We’ll show you how those partnerships can help your institution use the rich data and enhanced computing power of AI in pursuit of a leading-edge consumer experience.

•  Fraud

  Elevating your fraud prevention strategies
  What are the latest schemes, trends and tricks fraudsters are using to get your customer information? With ever-evolving tactics, it can be difficult to stay abreast of current trends. Learn the many ways criminals are gathering card information and what can be done to prevent fraud and card losses. Fraud detection systems, blocking transactions, transaction alerts and other important tools will be discussed. From chip cards to the increase in skimming attacks, we’ll discuss ways to keep fighting back.

  Fraudsters toolbox: Targeting the elderly
  The elderly are a top target for scam artists and financial crimes against this population are becoming more rampant in the age of social media. Find out the different ways fraudsters target these vulnerable citizens using spam and tech support scams, law enforcement and IRS scams, grandparent and romance scams, in addition to phone call scams. Learn how to recognize unusual account activity and use the provided tools to educate your elder cardholders. Select three topics to highlight in your program: Romance scam, law enforcement/IRS scam, Social Security scam, text spam scam, tech support scam, grandparent scam, secret shopper scam and Craigslist scam.

•  Security

  Robbery: Prepare, respond, recover
  Nothing is more important than the safety of your employees and customers. By identifying procedures, response tactics and the recovery process, you can be better prepared should a situation arise. Learn about deterrence trends, surveillance best practices and law enforcement partnerships that help shape a robbery program at your institution.

  Skimming, scammers and security
  Across the country, skimmers and the cloned cards they produce are costing banks millions of dollars in fraudulent transactions, re-issued cards and damaged reputations. Understand how skimming happens and what to do when it does occur. We’ll share real world examples and short videos to demonstrate how skimmers work, how data is collected and how easy it is to clone a card from the collected data. Once a card is compromised, learn how to mitigate the risk and ways to fight back.

•  Compliance

  Debit card error resolution: what does Reg E say, or not say, about investigations?
  Regulation E is a straightforward concept, yet the language can be complicated. And applying the regulation to each situation is often not a black-or-white matter — many scenarios fall in a gray area. Add to that the fact that much of the language was written decades ago. Only your organization can make the final call on whether an error occurred. Join me to compare investigative techniques, learn from each other’s experience, and craft some best practices you can put into practice immediately.

  Decoding Reg E and debit card disputes
  Regulation E is a straightforward concept, yet the language can be complicated. Applying the regulation to each situation many times falls in a gray area. We’ll cut to the chase and discuss best practices for resolving errors and simplify the ways to determine liability. This session will cover actions you might take to investigate, why “unauthorized” is more complicated than you think, managing claims outside of the reg’s stated timeframe and when it’s okay to contradict the consumer’s claim.

  Our love/hate relationship with third party payment apps
  Consumers love them, and there’s a good chance you’ve used one yourself. But in your role as the card issuer, the unauthorized claims related to them are a source of frustration that was intensified by the 2020 spike in volume. Join me to analyze recent P2P payments volume and fraud rates, plus the interchange revenue they generated. We’ll also dig into the unauthorized claims volume and cover best practices for error resolution and staying compliant with Reg E.

  So much Reg E, so little time
  Regulation E spells out a consumer’s rights and liabilities along with the responsibilities of financial institutions, yet the language can be complicated. We cut to the chase and outline best practices for resolving errors and simplify the ways to determine the consumer’s liability. Learn your responsibilities and how to protect your consumers without suffering needless losses from debit card transactions.

  The changing landscape of debit card fraud and error claim compliance
  Debit cards are a staple payment method – their convenience and ease of use make them an attractive option despite an ever-changing payments environment. But, like all payment methods, there are risk and fraud elements to understand. This session covers processes for handling errors, including unauthorized claims, while ensuring compliance with Regulation E and the card networks. We’ll examine requirements for processing cardholder claims, following the global networks’ chargeback rules, and managing the time frames for merchants and card issuers.

  Where payments go, fraud will follow
  Does fighting debit card fraud feel like a game of Whac-A-Mole®? Engaging in fraudulent activity is a job for the bad guys; our job is to thwart their efforts. The evolution of fraud schemes is fascinating and clearly follows the trends in debit card payments. In this session we’ll use data from the recent Federal Reserve Payments Study to better understand the changing landscape of debit card fraud. Additionally, what predictions can we make based on that data? Come prepared to share your opinions and join me in the discussion.

•  HR and Professional Development

  Developing a talent pipeline
  Financial institutions across the country are struggling to recruit and retain talent. Are you looking for an established pipeline of entry-level candidates? What if we told you about a great way to find future employees and grow your own talent? It’s a recruiting tool that allows you to test-drive the talent your organization needs, effectively manage your workflow, and help grow your business to accomplish future objectives. In this session participants will learn how to develop talent partnerships and create a program that mutually benefits their company and community.

  Grooming your next set of leaders
  Investing in your future leaders is critically important to the success of your organization. Companies that focus on leadership development are well-positioned to attract and retain top talent. Having leaders who are willing and able to foster a positive culture will provide a positive impact for your financial institution — increasing agility and adaptability. Gain insights for developing a program at your institution, building leadership depth and resulting in a higher performing organization.

  How “smart” are your emotions?
  How often have you been told to check your emotions at the door? There’s a growing field of research on the value and importance of emotional intelligence — an individual’s ability to use information to guide thinking and behavior to adapt to different environments or achieve one’s goals. Understanding and using emotions correctly can make you a better communicator and, ultimately, more effective in your job. Learn strategies to increase your emotional intelligence and use that knowledge for better decision-making. With a greater understanding of your emotions, you’ll experience positive impacts in both your professional and personal life.

  Innovation unraveled
  The history of human innovation lives on in fairy tales. Centuries of lightbulb moments and lucky breaks have shaped the way we think about progress. By wrapping our greatest innovations in fables, we’ve lost sight of the specific, consistent conditions that led to these moments. In this session, you’ll learn about what innovation is, how it happens, and how you can turn yourself, your team and your organization into an environment that fosters it.

  Rapid retention
  There is no shortage of research exploring the most common factors that drive employees away from organizations. This action-oriented session synthesizes that research, and pairs each of the ten most common reasons employees are leaving with impactful recommendations to ensure your bank is attracting and retaining top talent.

  Tough conversations in the workplace
  Conflict is inevitable — in work and in life. Managers must address performance issues, and colleagues with competing priorities must figure out how to work together. These situations call for having tough conversations. Hear how to conduct tough conversations, build communication skills and enhance relationships — leading to better business performance. Identify underlying differences in work styles, goals and power dynamics to change the way you view conflict. As a bonus, receive practical tools to help you prepare for your next difficult conversation and make sure you choose words that won’t alienate the other person.

•  Marketing and Communications

  Communicating during a crisis
  You’ve just had a critical incident at your business. Reporters are waiting outside with cameras. Are you ready? There’s a way to make sure you won’t be searching for answers when you find yourself in this position. The 24-hour news cycle means local news organizations are hungrier than ever for fresh content and credible experts. This session will make the case that developing relationships with local media and saying “yes” when they call for your help will pay off for your reputation, your business and your bottom line.

  Stop selling and start connecting
  It’s not enough to be your community’s “hometown bank.” It’s more than telling a potential customer it’s “your people” who make the difference. They really don’t care how many years you’ve been in business. It’s time to focus on your story. Explore the ways digital media is changing the way we market to consumers, new ways customers are digesting information, and how you can differentiate your message by connecting with customers through storytelling instead of trying to sell to them.

  Social media: Paid, owned, earned
  Social media is increasingly being used for developing connections and advocacy efforts. Utilizing a mix of owned, earned and paid social media increases engagement, raises awareness of your brand, and ultimately improves your bottom line. It’s a balance of what you are saying, what others are saying about you, and what paid messages are placed. This session will provide insights for establishing a social media plan incorporating owned, earned and paid media.