Hey everyone, it’s Matt Slonaker here, who’s spent decades navigating the highs and lows of financial services, sales leadership, and revenue growth. Looking back at my blog posts over the last 12 months, I’ve poured out a ton of insights drawn from my experiences at places like Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase, and beyond—plus a dash of personal stories and forward-thinking visions. We’ve covered everything from AI revolutions to sales team turnarounds, always with an eye on driving real, transformative results in banking, fintech, lending, and more. Here are the top 20 points of view and key trends that bubbled up as the core themes. These aren’t just theories; they’re battle-tested ideas to help you crush it in this fast-moving world.

1. Agentic AI as the Game-Changer in Banking and Fintech: I’m all in on agentic AI reshaping decision-making, automating processes, and boosting predictive power—avoiding those top eight mistakes in digital lending is key to unlocking its full potential.
2. Breaking Sales Silos for Unified Revenue Growth: Too many teams are stuck in chaos from disconnected ops; my POV is that smashing those silos through aligned marketing and sales builds trust, accelerates deals, and drives customer lifetime value.
3. Revenue Mastery Through Strategic Playbooks: From my books like The AI Ledger and The Keys to Mastery, I emphasize fictional narratives like Marcus Hale’s journey to distill lessons on turning pipelines into gold and mastering B2B revenue in volatile markets.
4. Digital Transformation Pitfalls in Mortgage and Consumer Lending: The industry’s racing toward AI and tech, but I highlight common errors—like ignoring data silos or underinvesting in validation—that hold back progress; focus on predictive analytics for sustainable wins.
5. CRO Strategies Winning in 2025: As a fractional CRO, I’ve shared how modern leaders must evolve beyond traditional tactics, harnessing buyer change blueprints and whitespace analysis to slash cycles and boost velocity.
6. Pipeline Optimization and Value Creation: Endless reviews waste time; my take is to shift to action-oriented sessions that target revenue, margins, and long-term value, drawing from real crises like the 2007-09 mortgage meltdown.
7. Gen AI for Operational Excellence in Financial Services: COOs and execs need partners like unBPO to supercharge ops with generative AI, transforming credit models, risk management, and customer interactions for faster, smarter outcomes.
8. Motivating Sales Teams in High-Pressure Environments: From subtle rules of success to simple appreciation tactics, I stress reducing turnover by fostering belief, breaking loneliness, and pushing through grind—it’s on you to keep the fire lit.
9. Mid-Year Strategic Reviews for Banking Excellence: Hitting the mirror at midpoint to assess trends like household debt spikes and market indices; my vision is driving excellence through hard looks at what’s working and what needs disruption.
10. Idea Validation and Breaking the Status Quo: In BK&FS, test ideas rigorously before wasting time—my 17 ways list and POV push for innovation over complacency to fuel sustainable growth and avoid stagnation.
11. Customer Experience Erosion from Tech Overload: Tech enhances CX when done right, but it’s destroying it when siloed; I advocate unifying efforts to rebuild trust and predictive personalization in lending and servicing.
12. BPO Trends and Subservicer Value in Mortgage Management: With insights from reports like Everest Group, I see BPO evolving to unBPO models for strategic portfolio handling, especially in volatile debt landscapes.
13. Go-to-Market Leadership as Revenue Catalysts: The modern GTM exec is a transformer, not just a strategist—my traits for top sellers and game-changing lessons aim at dominating through data-backed edges.
14. Household Debt and Credit Trends Decoded: Q2 2025 data shows rising pressures; my actionable insights for servicing leaders focus on best practices to navigate mobility crises and financial hardships, especially for vets.
15. Transforming B2B Pipeline Reviews into Drivers: From time-wasters to revenue engines in BFSI, I share how to refocus on forward momentum, avoiding vague recaps for tangible deal acceleration.
16. Personal Perseverance and Pushing Through Loneliness: Not all posts are business—I’ve opened up on feeling alone in high-stakes fields and how to work through it, tying back to resilient leadership in growth journeys.
17. Mortgage Market Navigation in 2025: With Optimal Blue indices and headlines, I break down landscapes for execs, stressing subservicers and AI to tackle challenges like rates, M&A, and property preservation risks.
18. Sales Success Principles That Endure: My 14 subtle rules and buyer-lens shifts emphasize outside-in thinking, reducing rep turnover, and when to hire talent—essential for startups and established players alike.
19. CEO Perspectives on Global Challenges: Drawing from PwC surveys and Dimon’s letters, I distill how leaders balance regulatory hurdles, tech shifts, and client needs for adaptive strategies in 2025.
20. The Agentic Revolution Reshaping Work and Software: My vision for AI agents in startups and fintech isn’t hype—it’s about unleashing mastery in revenue ops, from automation mazes to ethical implementations for lasting impact.

There you have it, folks—the heartbeat of what I’ve been hammering on. If these resonate, dive into the full posts or hit me up; let’s chat about how to apply them to your world. Onward to more growth!

Matt