Bio:

Samantha Paxson is a growth and business transformation strategist and woman executive in Fintech.  She builds the intersection of technology, operational design, experience and brand architecture to rapidly scale growth by centering on the human experience.

Making organizations “human first” a digital world scales revenue, retention, uncovers, then operationalizes new market segments and strategies to grow…all while retaining teams.

She is the only executive promoted into C-Suite and one of two women on the executive team. Paxson has helped expand the organization from $136M on a path to nearly $1B, by developing evolutionary strategies to transform a 40-year-old organization to a truly platform-based ecosystem leading experience transformation and growth.  In doing so she greatly improved the culture improving employee NPS scores by 504%, raised the client net promoter score by 84%, moved renewal rate from 67% to 95% and more than doubled annual contract revenue – all in three years.

As a passionate “intrapreneur”, she leads organizations in transformational times including:

• Serving on the boards of two tech companies, a $1B FI and a non-profit
• Is the founder of Co-op THINK: an innovation content platform propelling mission-driven financial services
• Contributor to Forbes – her writing has been shared by Simon Sinek
• Prolific speaker delivering insights on human-based leadership, digital transformation, modern strategy, payments and the power of experience design.

She has interviewed Seth Godin, Hubert Joly and has hosted large-stage events alongside Jean Chatsky and has spoken at Silicon Beach, EY FinTech, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Week, Digital Transformation Week, Filene: BigBrightMinds, Reach: CA/NV League.

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Topics:

Keeping it Human! Tech, Trust& AI – Impact on CU Member Centric Mission

This keynote explores the critical inflection point facing credit unions as digital banks and fintechs capture increasing market share, particularly among younger generations, with Gen Z neobank adoption reaching 61% in 2025 while credit union membership growth has fallen to a 10-year low. The session challenges credit unions to move beyond rate-focused value propositions, revealing that the key to member engagement lies in finding the sweet spot between competitive rates and high convenience—neither feature alone is sufficient in today’s competitive landscape. Presenter Samantha Paxson outlines a transformation framework that shifts from vertical product silos to horizontal member journey alignment, integrating spending, borrowing, saving, and investing into a cohesive Personal Financial Operating System (PFOS). The presentation demonstrates
how community financial institutions can potentially double their market share by leveraging technology and data to deliver curated, personalized solutions while maintaining their competitive advantage in trust and human connection.

Key Takeaways:

• Find the Sweet Spot Between Rates and Convenience
• Digital Competitors Are Redefining Banking Expectations
• Close the Strategy-Execution Gap
• Trust + Technology = Competitive Advantage
• Growth Requires Transformation, Not Incremental Change:

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Human Up!  How Consumer-Centricity Drives Digital Transformation

Key Takeaways: The importance of human-centric digital strategy

• The consumer is at the center of transformation and growth for business, it’s our capacity to understand them and take collective action that will set the pace.
• How to manage organizational digital transformation keeping the consumer experience at the center of the process.
• The role of technology in the process – making sure a complete ecosystem emerges to make seamless, secure and convenient all digital services.
• The role of values in the process – working as partners within the organization and with outside stakeholders; communicating openly and honestly; demonstrating excellence; and commitment to change agency.

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Human-Based Leadership in the Digital Age

Key Takeaways: Key leadership qualities and approaches to modern leadership in the digital age

• Connecting Human and Digital requires transformative leadership. It means that qualities once perceived as detrimental to leadership are now indispensable.
• These qualities include being a nurturing, good coach; communicating and listening well, and having empathy and being supportive of colleagues.
• In short, it’s time to “Human Up”!

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Algorithmic Strategy: Traditional Operating Models vs. Fintech and BigTech

Key Takeaways: How to design your business to grow while competing with the worlds largest and fastest and most admired companies

• Know your consumer like never before – leverage the power of data
• Be their choice for every moment – embed yourself into daily habits and their lifestyle, rather than just their life stage
• Embrace the power of connection – how to become a platform ecosystem, rather than just a retail provider of products and services
• In essence, design your company around your consumer