by Sean Galli | Sep 21, 2026 | Leadership, Training
The quality of your leadership depends less on what you say and more on the quality of the credit union leadership questions you ask. The questions you ask can create blame or curiosity, either pushing people away or developing them further. Don’t you hate being in a...
by Sean Galli | Sep 16, 2026 | Training
The silent killer of small business service is that consumers don’t complain directly…they just leave. And they tell everyone they know about why. According to research from Lonely Entrepreneur, 96% of unhappy consumers who leave don’t complain to the...
by Sean Galli | Sep 2, 2026 | Training
Your member stands in line at the teller window for a great credit union service experience. They check their watch. Thirty seconds have passed. It feels like two minutes. Meanwhile, your member is on their phone, scrolling through their credit union’s mobile...
by Sean Galli | Aug 26, 2026 | Leadership, Training
Financial services leadership isn’t always a line item on the budget. But it should be. When budgeting season arrives, you line-item technology upgrades, facility maintenance, marketing spend and compliance costs. But leadership development? That gets lumped...
by Sean Galli | Aug 10, 2026 | Marketing, Training
There are plenty of financial services marketing tools out there. Email marketing tools. Social media schedulers. AI integrations meant to power marketing messages. And then there’s the one you might not often think about: your people. Your best marketing tools are...
by Sean Galli | Aug 5, 2026 | Leadership, Training
When budgets tighten, credit union leadership training is often the first thing to cut. It seems reasonable. Training feels fluffy…nice to have but not essential. You already have managers. You already have people in leadership positions. Do you really need to train...
by Sean Galli | Jul 27, 2026 | Leadership, Training
People are like cars. Every person has blind spots, and those blind spots cause problems if not properly monitored. Plus, those blind spots don’t magically vanish when you become a leader. There’s no mythical switch flipped when you get a promotion. Your blind spots...
by Sean Galli | Jul 7, 2026 | Strategy, Training
July 4, 2026 marked 250 years since the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence and its founding principles. And 250 years is a long time…quite the legacy! But no legacy comes easy. No legacy is built for free. The American legacy emerges from 250...
by Sean Galli | Jun 29, 2026 | Leadership, Strategy, Training
17.6 years is a long time. Nearly two decades. Almost the full length of time it takes for a person to go from baby to legal adult. Now, what does it have to do with financial services leadership training? Well, it’s also the average length of time Americans spend...
by Sean Galli | Jun 22, 2026 | Training
A few years ago, an On The Mark Strategies team member went to the movies at a theater he visited all the time. But after this trip, he wound up with terrible food poisoning. Do you think he returned to that theater? Obviously not. Like the movie theater, you can...
by Sean Galli | Jun 15, 2026 | Leadership, Training
The fish rots from the head down. You’ve probably heard the expression before. It’s pretty common. And it’s also biologically inaccurate. Fish actually rot from the gut first…not the head. So, where did the proverb originate? There are a few possibilities: Turkey,...
by Sean Galli | Jun 1, 2026 | Training
Trust is a major competitive differentiator. When rates constantly change, when prices constantly change, the trust you built with someone (or the trust you didn’t build with them) impacts your relationship with a consumer. That makes understanding trust a necessary...
by Sean Galli | May 27, 2026 | Training
There’s a classic sales test that’s been used for years: “Can you sell this pencil?” It’s a deceptively simple question that reveals a lot about how people approach persuasion. (And some approach it very poorly if this video is any...
by Sean Galli | May 26, 2026 | Leadership, Training
There’s one question you need to ask during your credit union leadership training: “Shall we play a game?” That’s the question the supercomputer asks Matthew Broderick’s character in the 1980s film classic, “War Games.” The resulting...
by Sean Galli | May 20, 2026 | Leadership, Training
Relevancy isn’t an accident. The best leaders are using financial services leadership training to master proactive habits and look ahead. They act bravely and decisively to not only survive…but thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape. Jill Castilla, CEO...
by Sean Galli | May 11, 2026 | Branding, Training
Your mom (or the mother figure in your life) is impossible to judge with something as cold sounding as “return on investment.” How could you place a number on Mom? It’s similar to trying to place a number on small business branding. With your mom, you could...
by Sean Galli | May 4, 2026 | Leadership, Training
Star Wars has more than laser weapons, lightsaber fights or Jedi mind tricks. It also has plenty of credit union leadership training lessons you can use in your own position. Here are three great leadership lessons from Star Wars (and one not-so-great one). #1:...
by Sean Galli | Apr 22, 2026 | Training
According to the American Bankers Association, 55% of consumers now use mobile as their primary way to bank. Another 22% prefer a desktop or laptop. Do the math and you’re looking at more than three out of four members who interact with your credit union member...
by Sean Galli | Apr 8, 2026 | Training
Most credit union employees hate cross-selling. It feels sleazy. Pushy. Like you’re that person at the mall kiosk trying to sell hand lotion to everyone who walks by. So, staff avoid it, members don’t get the products they need and your credit union misses...
by Sean Galli | Apr 6, 2026 | Branding, Strategy, Training
The writer Ann Handley recently published an article about the virtues of slowing down. That’s right. Not moving faster. Not chasing progress. Slowing down. Considering your decisions because those decisions have a lot of weight (especially if you’re a smaller...
by Sean Galli | Mar 23, 2026 | Branding, Training
Several years ago, the Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) loyalty and rewards programs merged. The new program was called Marriott Bonvoy. Sound confusing? It certainly was at the time. I’m a loyal Marriott customer and didn’t understand the change or...
by Sean Galli | Mar 11, 2026 | Leadership, Training
You’ve probably heard about the K-shaped economy. Some sectors soar while others sink, creating a visual split that looks like the letter “K.” The wealthy get wealthier. The struggling fall further behind. The middle disappears. But there’s...
by Sean Galli | Feb 18, 2026 | Branding, Training
Ask any executive to name their best employee, and you get an answer fast. It’s the loan officer who closes the most deals. The teller with perfect transaction accuracy. The wealth advisor who manages the largest portfolios. A lot of productivity...
by Sean Galli | Feb 16, 2026 | Training
Cupid is known for setting up relationships. He engineers love with his magic bow and arrows, pairing up two people struggling to make a relationship work. And sometimes, it feels like your credit union member experience standards just aren’t clicking with your...
by Sean Galli | Jan 20, 2026 | Leadership, Training
Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most important figures of the twentieth century, and the impacts of his civil rights work are still felt today. He lived solid leadership principles that attracted masses of people to follow him and fight for his vision. Your...
by Sean Galli | Jan 7, 2026 | Leadership, Training
Remember the early 2000s? Times Square on New Year’s Eve meant thousands of eyes glued to that glittering ball as it descended. People huddled together, counting down in unison, living fully in the moment. Fast forward to today. The ball still drops, but now the...
by Sean Galli | Dec 17, 2025 | Case Study, Strategy, Training
“Anyone who’s looking to take their member experience, journey mapping or strategic planning to the next level should go with On The Mark Strategies. We see the results, and we’ve been very pleased.” – Brandon Oliver, VP of Branch Operations, SAFE FCU Many of...
by Sean Galli | Dec 15, 2025 | Leadership, Training
“Miracle on 34th Street” is a charming holiday movie centered on themes of hope and belief. The movie follows Kris Kringle, who becomes the Santa at a large department store before eventually claiming he’s the real Santa Claus. This assertion leads to questions about...
by Sean Galli | Nov 19, 2025 | Case Study, Leadership, Training
On The Mark Strategies conducts leadership training for varied organizations on a monthly basis, helping them develop their rising stars and build their bench for an uncertain future. Of course, there are plenty of leadership trainers out there. Here’s what makes us...
by Sean Galli | Nov 10, 2025 | Leadership, Training
America’s service members are masters of leadership. They’ve led people in the toughest situations imaginable, forging strong ideas about guiding others and executing strategy in the fires of conflict. But these lessons aren’t only relevant on the battlefield. Their...
by Sean Galli | Nov 3, 2025 | Branding, Training
What makes a house approachable? Potential visitors to your house don’t always want to reach the front door if things look sketchy. They need a sign first. At night, your porchlight is that sign. And your organization must turn on its proverbial porchlight. You...
by Sean Galli | Oct 29, 2025 | Case Study, Training
“On The Mark Strategies helps us understand there are different ways – better ways – for credit unions our size to manage and direct our attention. They challenge us in a positive self-reflective way.” -Patty Revis, SPHR, Chief Human Resources Officer, Unity One...
by Sean Galli | Oct 14, 2025 | Leadership, Training
In horror movies, there’s always an oblivious character in danger from the film’s antagonist. The camera creeps ever closer to the character’s back, music building and you internally scream, “Look behind you!” or “Take the exit!” But they never do, do they? No…they...
by Sean Galli | Oct 8, 2025 | Training
When it comes to credit union or bank sales and service training, teaching isn’t enough. You need to foster ownership. Interact with any organization and you’ll see the difference immediately. Some staff members go through the motions, delivering...
by Sean Galli | Oct 6, 2025 | Marketing, Strategy, Training
Zombies. Vampires. Ghouls. Budgets. All are terrifying to think about…and budgets might just be the scariest monster of all. When discussing his upcoming budget process, one credit union CEO said he was already resorting to prayer to defeat the beast. Yikes! Luckily,...
by Sean Galli | Sep 29, 2025 | Branding, Marketing, Strategy, Training
No organization is a one-trick pony. Sure, everyone has their specialties. But the best organizations still do all core functions competently or even exceptionally. What are those core functions? There are four vital disciplines, or Success Markers, you need to create...
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