Gritty Insights

Where bank, credit union and fintech leaders turn for unbiased, data-driven analyses, and perspectives.

Featured Insights

Whitepaper - Negotiating from a Position of Strength - Cover Image

Negotiating from a Position of Strength: 5 Essential Tactics for Contract Negotiation Success

Download this comprehensive guide on how to perform efficient, effective and cost-saving negotiations so you can reinvest in what matters most to your
bank or credit union.

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Cornerstone Advisors Events - AI Webinar 2025 - 2.0

From Hype to Impact: Untangling AI’s Role in the Smarter Bank

Join Cornerstone’s Tony DeSanctis and a panel of experts for a look at how AI is really transforming banking—from customer experience and automation to risk, lending, and payments.

Watch the Webinar

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Neo Bank News, Noise and Nonsense

Ron Shevlin and Stacy Bryant break down the latest moves from Revolut, Chime, and Nubank in What’s Going On in Banking. From subway signups to music influencers and instant payments, they explore what’s hype, what’s real, and where neobanks are headed.

Listen to the Podcast

Cornerstone Advisors - Vendor Management Whitepaper 2024 - Cover Image 1.1

Vendor Management: How Banks and Credit Unions Can Gain a Competitive Edge

In this whitepaper, learn how effective vendor management can transform your organization by helping you reduce expenses, control risk, increase agility and boost efficiency.

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Brace Yourselves for the Shenanigans in Banking

Al Dominick and Steve Williams sit down with Busey Bank CEO Mike Maddox to talk scale, succession, and the $20B bank’s big merger with CrossFirst. From stablecoins to a $14B wealth platform, he shares why regional banks need to think like professional services firms.

Listen to the Podcast

Cornerstone Advisors GonzoBanker - As Robots Disrupt Tech-01

As Robots Disrupt Tech, Banks Need More Human Gearheads 

How fast things change! Only five years ago, a mantra, issued and abused throughout the media, encouraged workers to “learn to code.” As the mobile/social revolution took root and tech exploded after the COVID crisis, young professionals saw big tech firms with huge signing bonuses and multi-six-figure salaries.

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Research Reports

Financial service industry leaders use Cornerstone’s authoritative research to stay current on market developments. Discover what we offer.

Cornerstone Advisors Gritty Insights - All Research 2025

Research Reports & Guides

Where bank, credit union and fintech leaders turn for unbiased, data-driven analyses, insights and perspectives.

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Cornerstone Advisors Gritty Insights - WGOIB 2025 Report

What's Going On In Banking 2025

The economy is fragile, the interest rate environment isn’t stable, and regulations and compliance remain a burden. But optimism among bankers is as high as it’s been in a decade, and this year’s report sails on calmer seas to explore ways financial institutions and their technology providers can plan for the changes and challenges ahead.

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Executive Education & Roundtables

Level up on the dynamic financial services industry from our pros. Our curriculum includes interactive lectures, case studies, group discussions
and hands-on projects that simulate real-world scenarios.

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GonzoBanker Newsletter & Articles

Cornerstone Advisors’ “alter ego,” GonzoBanker is our blog dispatched along with a good helping of irreverence to more than 10,000 readers around the world. Get a dose of our opinionated take on the technologies, vendors, strategies and anything else we run across in the trenches of the banking industry, delivered to your inbox several times a month.

GonzoBanker

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3 min read

How AI is Upping the Ante in Vendor Management

Terence Roche

“Every now and again, it’s actually nice to get a student essay that is so confused and rambling there is no chance they used AI.” –Corina Roche-Baron, my College English Teacher Daughter

3 min read

Fifth Third’s $11 Billion Question: Build or Buy?

Al Dominick

At some point in their career, every banker wrestles with the same question: Do we build it, or do we buy it?

Colorful hosts Al Dominick, Steve Williams, Ron Shevlin, Sam Kilmer and Mary Wisniewski take you inside the minds of banking and fintech leaders for the latest in finance and financial technology.

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Webinars

Cornerstone webinars explore the latest industry trends, regulations and technologies and deliver expert guidance to help financial institutions make smart competitive decisions.

Cornerstone Advisors and Frich - Z Hits Different - Website Background

Z Hits Different: How to Better Acquire and Engage a New Generation

Join Cornerstone Editor-at-Large Mary Wisniewski and Frich Co-Founder and CEO Katrin Kaurov in a lively conversation about how Gen Z is thinking about money and what it means for finserv marketers.