What Is Happening to Tech Projects in Smaller Banks?

What is happening to tech projects in smaller banks? To find out, let’s turn to our Snapshot of Tech Projects & Their Teams (Summer 2025)

1. Moderate Confidence & Ambition

• Tech projects show mid-level confidence and ambition (average across 16 projects).
• CEOs are perceived as more optimistic (13%) than their tech leaders—possibly due to limited awareness of complexity.

2. Signs of Business-as-Usual Thinking

• There are concerns about a lack of innovation and the persistence of status quo approaches.
• Competing priorities and limited resources may be constraining ambition.

3. Underused Team Potential

• Teams rate themselves around 67–70% in areas like performance, collaboration, and well-being.
• High pressure (76%) suggests performance is coming at a cost.

4. Productivity Barriers

• Several key enablers are rated poorly:
  • Rewards (49%)
  • Resources (55%)
  • Hybrid/remote work setup (59%)
  • Focus on results (60%)

5. Under-leveraged Recognition

• Acknowledging progress—a known productivity booster—scores just 60%.
• Seen as an underused lever for motivation and results.

---

Questions Raised for Leaders

• Are we being too cautious or playing it safe with our tech projects?
• Do our confidence and ambition levels reflect strategic intent—or operational constraints?
• Is our CEO-level ambition grounded in an accurate understanding of project complexity?
• Are we doing enough innovation, or are we stuck in business-as-usual?
• Are we prioritizing the right mix of transformation vs maintenance projects?
• Do we recognize and celebrate progress often enough?
• Are we cultivating the right culture of collaboration and performance?
• Do we have the right people, in the right roles, doing the right work—and is that alignment sustained?

Are we enabling teams to deliver the right results, not just outputs?