Turn good managers into leaderswho hold the standard.
Your best banker became a manager. Nobody installed how to lead when the pressure arrives. Guide Yourself™ does, and Guide Certification builds leaders who develop other leaders.
The leadership risk that doesn't show up in the board packet.
Your best banker became the branch manager. Nobody installed how to lead when the pressure arrives.
- Two or three people make every critical decision.When one of them leaves, so does the bank's ability to execute.
- People issues escalate into business risk.Problems that should be handled in the branch end up in the CEO's office.
- New managers lead former peers without a playbook.They either avoid the hard conversation or overcorrect into driving.
- The bench behind your key leaders is thin.Succession becomes a hope instead of a plan.
Installed, not taught.
Every offer runs the same four steps. That's why the behavior is still there in 90 days.
- Learn the behavior.One specific behavior, practiced on situations from your own bank.
- Commit in writing.Each person writes what they'll do, where and with whom.
- Apply it at work.Real customers, real team members, real pressure.
- Inspect it weekly.A short weekly check (MMI) makes sure it held. What slipped gets a recovery plan.
Built on Guide, Don't Drive™What changes, at every level.
For CEOs and executive teams
- Stronger bench strength and succession readiness
- Less dependence on a few key leaders for critical decisions
- Fewer people issues escalating into business risk
For senior and mid-level leaders
- Confidence to influence up, down and across the bank
- Practical tools to hold standards without conflict or drama
- The ability to guide teams through pressure and change
For emerging leaders
- A clear leadership identity and practical confidence
- Better thinking, better decisions, stronger presence
- Credibility earned through real application, not titles
The investment.
Compare it with the cost of one failed leader, one regretted promotion or one stalled successor.
Guide Yourself
6 three-hour sessions over about five months. Each leader learns to govern their own behavior under pressure: define winning, lock the standard, hold it, name the drift and reset what they tolerate.
30-day satisfaction guarantee.
Talk with Steve about Guide YourselfGuide Certification
12 sessions over about ten months: Guide Yourself plus Guide the Leader™. Leaders learn to install the standard across their own teams. Graduates are Certified Guides.
See Guide CertificationOpen seats or a private cohort for your bank, including your executive team. 8:30 to 11:30 AM in Livonia, Lansing or virtual.
The curriculum, session by session.
Guide Yourself stabilizes the individual leader: six 3-hour sessions over about 5 months.
Guide Yourself
Guide Yourself stabilizes the individual leader.
- 01Why Leaders Step InMap the default that activates under pressure
- 02Define WinningClarify outcomes so teams self-correct
- 03Lock the StandardSet non-negotiable behavioral baselines
- 04Hold Under PressureRefuse to let convenience erode the standard
- 05Name the DriftRecognize when standards are quietly eroding
- 06Reset ToleranceClose the gap between what's said and what's enforced
Sessions 7 to 12, Guide the Leader™, are part of Guide Certification.
The Community Bank Leader Standard™
Community banks do not struggle because they lack good people. They struggle because leadership behavior is inconsistent across branches and departments. CBI installs a defined leader standard that governs how every people leader operates. When leaders run a consistent behavioral cadence, the entire team follows.
Performance discipline
- Set clear expectations tied to bank scoreboards
- Review metrics weekly
- Address underperformance early
- Document consistently
- Create recovery plans when drift occurs
- Hold standards under pressure
Drives execution consistency, stronger efficiency ratios, and predictable performance.
Experience leadership
- Conduct structured 1:1 meetings
- Coach instead of avoid
- Deliver direct and respectful feedback
- Recognize improvement
- Model composure under stress
- Eliminate favoritism
Strengthens employee experience through leadership reliability. Reduces turnover and deepens the succession bench.
Sales & growth discipline
- Set referral and cross-sell expectations
- Review pipeline weekly
- Coach consultative conversations
- Track production behaviors
- Tie activity to deposit and loan goals
Send them to Guide Yourself. Get leaders who actually lead.
Leaders who stop escalating to HR
Guide Yourself installs decision ownership. Your leaders learn to hold conversations, coach under pressure, and stop sending problems back to you.
A shared leader standard across the bank
No more 'every branch does it differently.' One behavioral operating system. One set of leadership disciplines. Consistency your CEO can see.
Training that actually changes behavior
Not awareness. Not inspiration. Installation. Each session installs a specific discipline that leaders apply under real conditions between sessions.
Proof that the investment is working
Behavioral change is visible. Leaders who complete Guide Yourself stop rescuing, start coaching, and hold standards. You can point to what changed and when.
Executive-level credibility for your department
When your CEO asks 'What are we doing about leadership?' you have a structured behavioral operating system, not a list of workshops.
The HR timeline after Guide Yourself
By Week 4
Fewer Escalations
Leaders start holding conversations they used to send to HR. The rescue pattern is interrupted. You see fewer 'Can HR handle this?' requests.
By Week 8
Consistent Standards
Performance conversations happen at the leader level. Standards stop bending. The gap between your best and worst leaders starts closing.
By Week 12
Visible Behavioral Change
Leaders are coaching, holding standards, and owning decisions. Your CEO notices. Turnover conversations shift from blame to accountability. HR has proof the investment worked.
Common questions.
What does it cost, and is there a group rate?
Guide Yourself is $6,500 per seat for 6 sessions, with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. Group rates are available for 3+ leaders from your bank. Corporate invoice available. Contact us to structure team enrollment.
Is there a prerequisite?
No. Guide Yourself is the starting point. It installs the identity and behavioral discipline that Guide the Leader builds on in Guide Certification.
How is it structured?
Six 3-hour sessions over about 5 months. Every session runs one loop: learn the behavior, commit in writing, apply it at work, inspect it weekly (MMI). Sessions 7 to 12 are part of Guide Certification.
How is this different from other leadership programs we've run?
Most programs create awareness. Guide Yourself installs disciplines that govern how your leaders behave under real pressure. The accountability structure between sessions makes sure it holds.
What happens after the 6 sessions?
Your leaders have behavioral governance installed at the leader level. To build leaders who develop other leaders, continue to Guide Certification. For a bank-wide deployment, see the Full Enterprise Installation. Contact [email protected] to discuss.
Is this specific to community banking?
Every example, case study, and application exercise is built for community bank leadership. Not adapted from corporate content, built from the ground up for branches, commercial teams, operations, and C-suite.
Leaders who create clarity under pressure, build trust quickly and develop other leaders instead of dependence.
Without it, succession stays a hope instead of a plan.