The future of banking is here, and a bank futurist keynote speaker is someone who analyzes trends and innovations to forecast and anticipate how the financial industry will evolve and transform in the coming years and decades.
Types of responsibilities and focus areas that your average practicing and consulting bank futurist might take on would be:
- Forecasting how emerging technologies like cryptocurrency, blockchain, AI and open banking APIs will impact business and operating models.
- Envisioning new banking products, services and capabilities that will emerge to meet changing consumer and business demands.
- Advising financial institutions as a bank futurist keynote speaker on strategic investments, partnerships, and development efforts to remain competitive.
- Anticipating the regulatory changes and social dynamics that will shape the industry.
- Conducting research and thought leadership on the future of payments, lending, wealth management and other core banking functions.
- Engaging with fintech startup ecosystems to identify disruptive innovations from a bank futurist keynote speaker’s standpoint early on.
- Visualizing how shifts like aging populations, climate change and changing values will influence financial services.
- Developing frameworks to assess risks and opportunities arising from different possible scenarios.
- Proposing organizational transformations as a bank futurist keynote speaker that are required to adapt to coming trends like virtual banking.
- Educating and exciting stakeholders about the future directions of banking.
Granted, given the highly private nature of many of pros’ assignments, it’s not always clear what a bank futurist’s role entails – or what types of technology trends and new innovations have captured top practitioners’ imagination when it comes to the world of finance and financial services firms. As a typical rule of thumb though, you might keep in mind that the role generally combines research, strategy, creativity and visionary thinking to help banks understand and prepare for change ahead. Top experts provoke fresh thinking and dialogue on opportunities beyond typical planning horizons – making them a favorite pick as presenters with conference and convention planners the entire world over.