Community Bank Value™ Playbook
Community Bank Value™ Playbook is a strategic series for community bank CEOs responsible for the future direction of their institution—focused on value drivers, timing, leverage, and optionality, so you can lead critical conversations with clarity long before anyone asks the question out loud.
Community Bank Value™ Playbook
Would You Know What to Say?
If your board asked tomorrow, “Should we be thinking about our strategic options?” — would you know how to answer?
Most community bank CEOs can run the bank.
Very few feel prepared for the strategic conversation that matters most — the one nobody talks about openly.
In this trailer, Kurt Knutson introduces Community Bank Value™ Playbook and explains who the show is for, what it is — and just as importantly, what it isn’t.
This series isn’t about selling your bank.
It’s about understanding your strategic position so you can lead with clarity, protect what matters, and make decisions from strength instead of urgency.
What You’ll Learn in This Series
- How strategic buyers actually evaluate banks
- Why timing shapes leverage more than price
- How value is created — and lost — long before a transaction
- How to navigate conversations CEOs are expected to answer, but rarely prepared for
Start Here
To help you get oriented, I’ve created a New Listener Resource Guide that walks through:
- The first fifteen foundational episodes
- The tools and frameworks referenced throughout the series
- How to get the most value from the Playbook
You’ll find it linked in the show notes.
If you’re ready to lead with clarity — whether you remain independent or explore opportunities someday — subscribe and join me every Tuesday.
And remember:
The best decisions come from knowing all your options.
If your board asked tomorrow, “Should we be thinking about our strategic options?”
Could you answer with confidence?
Most community bank CEOs can run the bank.
Very few feel prepared for the strategic conversation that matters most — the one nobody talks about openly.
I’m Kurt Knutson.
I spent forty years in community banking — founding, leading, and eventually selling my bank to one of eleven qualified buyers.
Everything I teach here comes from sitting in the same chair you’re sitting in now.
This show isn’t about selling your bank.
It’s about understanding your strategic position — so you can lead with clarity, protect what matters, and make decisions from strength instead of urgency.
You’ll learn the eight value drivers buyers actually care about.
How timing shapes leverage.
How to build advisor relationships long before you need them.
And how to navigate the conversations CEOs are expected to answer — but are rarely prepared for.
If you want to build a bank with real optionality — whether you stay independent or explore opportunities someday — subscribe and join me every Tuesday.
I’ve also put together a New Listener Resource Guide that walks you through the foundational episodes and the tools I reference throughout the series.
And you’ll find a brief Strategic Readiness Score — a discreet, high-level way to assess how positioned your bank is today.
Both are linked in the show notes.
And remember —
The best decisions come from knowing all your options.