2026 OBL Main Event OBL

2026 OBL Main Event

The OBL announces the return of THE MAIN EVENT, the Ohio Banking Industry’s Premier Professional Development and Networking Event - to be held Monday, October 26 - Wednesday, October 28, 2026.

Join us as the Ohio Bankers League continues to celebrate the industry at the 2026 OBL Main Event!

The Main Event combines the annual business meeting and BankServices Expo with education for eight job functions throughout the bank, including learning tracks for: Compliance & Risk Management; Executive; Finance; HR/Employee Development; Legal; Lending; Marketing; and Operations & Retail.

The program, held at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, will provide a second-to-none experience as OBL Industry Awards will also be presented.

REGISTRATION
$695 - Full Event per Member*
*Includes all scheduled programming, receptions and events October 26 - 28.

Special Banker Offer Only! $495 - Learning Track Day ONLY (Tuesday, October 27)**
**Includes the Learning Track day, breakfast and awards lunch on October 27.

Online registration closes Friday, October 16. New or updated registrations after October 16 will not be included in the Registration Booklet provided at the event.

Location Greater Columbus Convention Center

Registration Fees

Price Description	Amount
OBL Bank Member - FULL EVENT	$695.00
OBL Affiliate Members and Business Partners	$695.00
Non Member Bank Institutions	$1,390.00
Regulators	$695.00
BANKERS ONLY - Oct 27 - Learning Track Day	$495.00

Agenda

Monday, October 26 - Monday, October 26
2:30 pm - 4:30 pm
	*Executive Roundtables (Bankers Only)** Join in peer conversations with executives from like-sized institutions. Topics based on banker feedback and led by OBL executives. Asset $0 to $250M : Knox Asset $250M to $500M: Champaign Asset $500M to $1B: Marion Asset $1B + : Morrow
	Lessons in Leadership Hear from Keather Snyder and Jamie Morlock from The Omnia Group on how to use behavioral insight to hire, coach, and maximize productivity.
5:00 pm - 6:30 pm
	Welcome Reception Join us! The time is now to kick things off with a Welcome Reception at the 2026 OBL Main Event.
Tuesday, October 27 - Tuesday, October 27
8:00 am - 9:00 am
	OBL BankServices Expo & Hot Breakfast Buffet
9:00 am - 10:15 am
	Welcome & Opening General Session Supersonic Success with Jack Becker, Highly Decorated US Navy Fighter Pilot Thank you to Keynote Sponsors Banc Consulting Partners, PRI, Inc., and PWCampbell
10:30 am - 11:30 am
	Mission 1: Legal Track Managing Unfair Competition and Protecting Confidential Information with Andrew Klaben-Finegold, Attorney, Littler Mendelson, P.C.
11:00 am - 11:45 am
	Mission 1: Compliance & Risk Track Risk Assessment: How do we focus on specific risk when it exists in everything that we do? with Mark Burnside, Director, Forvis Mazars Compliance Track Sponsored by EasyIT
	Mission 1: Executive Track What Does it Take to Thrive with Brian Leibfried, Partner & Managing Director, Client Insights, Performance Trust Capital Partners, LLC Executive Track Sponsored by HUB International
	Mission 1: Finance Track Session on Digital Assets and Stablecoins with Geron Morgan, Partner, Forvis Mazars
	Mission 1: Human Resources Track AI Developments in the Workplace with Nelson Cary, Partner, Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLC
	Mission 1: Lending Track Innovation Drought, Risk Flood: The Hidden Cost to Credit Quality with Kent Kirby, Director, Abrigo
	Mission 1: Marketing Track Why Your Bank? Defining Differentiation in a Commoditized Market with Amber Farley, ECP, Brand Development, FMS
	Mission 1: Retail & Operations Track Collaborate, Delegate & Engage: Modern Tools for Today’s Workforce with Paul Elder, Compliance Officer CISM, Community Banc Consulting of Ohio
11:45 am - 1:30 pm
	Lunch & OBL Industry Awards Celebrate 2026 as we present OBL Industry Awards! Thank You Lunch Sponsor: infotex, Inc.
1:45 pm - 2:45 pm
	Mission 2: Legal Track The Real Value of Cyber Resilience and Recovery with Herb Stapleton, Partner, Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
	Mission 2: Compliance & Risk Track Vendor Management: Are You “Really” Managing Your Vendors or Are You Just "Checking a Box"? with Colin Taggart, Partner, Plante Moran Compliance Track Sponsored by EasyIT
	Mission 2: Executive Track Hidden in Plain Sight: How Banking Leaders Unlock the Talent they Already Have with Keather Snyder, President & COO, The Omnia Group Executive Track Sponsored by HUB International
	Mission 2: Finance Track Rates Will Surprise You, Your Balance Sheet Shouldn’t with Scott Hildenbrand, Head of Depository Markets and Strategy, Piper Sandler
	Mission 2: Human Resources Track Recruiting & Retaining Gen Z and Millennials: What the Data Tells Us with Charlie Tudor, Managing Director, Financial Services, Angott Search Group
	Mission 2: Lending Track Economic View from the Farmgate with Bruce Clevenger, Associate Professor and Field Specialist, Farm Management and Leader & Barry Ward, Production Business Management & Director, Income Tax Schools, The Ohio State University
	Mission 2: Marketing Track Banking on Autopilot with Dave DeFazio, Chief Strategy Officer, StrategyCorps
	Mission 2: Retail & Operations Track Rethinking Retirement: The Future of Saving with Brian Giles, Director, Business Development, Ascensus
2:55 pm - 3:55 pm
	Mission 3: Legal Track Money Moves – How Blockchain Will Change Banking with David Mack, Attorney at Law, Schumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP
3:00 pm - 3:45 pm
	Mission 3: Compliance & Risk Track How AI Is Changing Cybersecurity for Banks, Businesses, and Bad Actors with Tim Dively, National Digital Industry Leader - Financial Services, CliftonLarsonAllen, LLC Compliance Track Sponsored by EasyIT
	Mission 3: Executive Track AI - Hype, Hope or Help? with Will Mayfield, SVP, Client Engagement, Aunalytics Executive Track Sponsored by HUB International
	Mission 3: Finance Track Secrets of Highly Successful ALCOs with Joe Kennerson, Managing Director, Darling Consulting Group
	Mission 3: Human Resources Track Strategic Burnout: The HR Leader’s Own Oxygen Mask with Tami Chapek, CEO & Founder/Executive Leadership Coach, WeInspireWe LLC
	Mission 3: Lending Track Utilizing Technology and Embracing AI in Credit Decisioning with Kathleen Connellan, SVP, Institutional Relationships, BHG Financial
	Mission 3: Marketing Track Your Actionable Roadmap to Practical AI Value with Pat Lapomarda, Director, Data Science, Arkatechture
	Mission 3: Retail & Operations Track Beyond the Teller Line: Designing the Next-Gen Banking Experience with Glenn Grau, Chief Business Officer, PWCampbell
4:00 pm - 4:45 pm
	Mission 4: Compliance & Risk Track Regulatory Recap & Outlook: What You Need to Know Now with Robert Brosh, Director, Regulatory Intelligence, Ncontracts Compliance Track Sponsored by EasyIT
	Mission 4: Executive Track Macroeconomic Outlook with Craig Dismuke, Chief Market Strategist, Stifel Executive Track Sponsored by HUB International
	Mission 4: Finance Track From Cost Center to Growth Engine: A Modern Payments Strategy for Community Banks with Caitlyn Mullins-Smith, Vice President & Director, NEACH Payments Group
	Mission 4: Human Resources Track The HR Advantage: How HR Leaders Build the Skills AI Can't Replace with Jim Perry, Senior Strategist, Market Insights, Inc.
	Mission 4: Lending Track SBA as a Strategy: Capital Efficiency, Risk Reduction, Profit & Growth with Dean Allen, EVP, Chief Lending Officer & Joe Leonardi, SVP, Head of Credit, RiverHills Bank
	Mission 4: Marketing Track Looking Into Banking’s Future: AI, Digital Banking and the Instant Gratification Consumer with Paul Elder, Compliance Officer CISM, Community Banc Consulting of Ohio
	Mission 4: Retail & Operations Track If Amazon Can Warn Me, Why Can't My Bank? Protecting Teens and Families from Unwanted Transactions in Real Time with Kai Stinchcombe, CEO & Co-Founder, True Linkl
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
	Mission 4: Legal Track Website Tracking Litigation: Managing Demand Letters, Class Action Risk, and Practical Response Strategies with Kristin Bryan, Partner, Squire Patton Boggs
7:30 pm - 10:00 pm
	The Afterburner! Cornhole, OBL BankPac Silent Auction & Desserts Reception Join us for this casual gathering at this late-night event, featuring cornhole, networking and the OBL BankPac Silent Auction. Cornhole participants must arrive by 7:45 p.m. for an 8 p.m. tournament start. Cornhole Sponsored by Community Banc Consulting
Wednesday, October 28 - Wednesday, October 28
8:00 am - 9:00 am
	OBL BankServices Expo, Hot Breakfast & Prize Announcements LAST CHANCE to visit with OBL service providers, play an Expo game and win valuable prizes! Take your Mission Tickets from each exhibitor to the hangar in the back corner of the Expo. PLUS! Check the Prize Board in the Expo to find out what you may have won from participating exhibitors.
9:00 am - 9:30 am
	Rapid Fire Presentations Thank you for making time to hear demos from our valued Business Partners. OBL Business Partners appreciate your time and interest.
9:30 am - 10:15 am
	OBL Annual Business Meeting Join us for the Annual OBL Business Meeting. Hear from current OBL Chair, Tony Davis, and OBL President & CEO, Mike Adelman. The election of the 2027 officers and new Board Members will take place during this session.
10:15 am - 11:15 am
	Closing General Session Building Moments That Matter: From Good to Unforgettable with Nolan Nichols, Keynote Speaker & Leadership Strategist Thank you to Keynote Sponsors Banc Consulting Partners, PRI, Inc., and PWCampbell

Speakers

Name	Speaking At

Exhibitors

Location Information

Greater Columbus Convention Center
400 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43215

Get directions

Hotel Information

An OBL room block is available at the Hyatt Regency Columbus. Reservations can be made online using this link!

The OBL Main Event will conclude by 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 28. Check-out is at Noon. If interested in requesting late check-out, please do so upon making the reservation or when you arrive at the hotel. Any comp late check-outs up to 1:00 p.m. will be based on availability and provided on a case-by-case basis.