White Clay Expands Profitability-Based Incentives to Community Financial Institutions

New tool helps community banks and credit unions move beyond volume-based incentives to reward profitable growth

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--White Clay, a leading provider of relationship profitability and analytics software for banks and credit unions, today announced the expansion of its incentive management capabilities to community financial institutions, bringing profitability-based incentives to the community banking space for the first time.

Community financial institutions traditionally incentivize bankers based on production, such as the volume or value of loans originated. These metrics can be simple to calculate, but they do not necessarily lead to improved profitability. White Clay now enables community institutions to automate performance incentives based on an institution’s unique profitability metrics, including relationship profitability, net interest income, deposit growth, fee income, and customer retention.

“It’s a broken system to reward bankers for driving metrics that don’t improve profitability,” said Scott Earwood, Chief Revenue Officer at White Clay. “Regional banks have cracked this code and proven the value of aligning incentives with profitability, and we at White Clay have been powering this approach for decades. Now, AI allows us to automate these decisions at scale and bring the same capabilities to community financial institutions. Our work with institutions like Financial Plus Credit Union (FPCU) has shown that community institutions can make the shift to smarter, profitability-based incentives with ease. It’s a game-changer for the industry.”

White Clay consults with each institution to customize an incentive plan around their strategy and goals, incorporating the right profitability-based metrics or a hybrid approach, with the flexibility to evolve as the institution grows. Goals are then established down to the individual level, giving bankers visibility into their progress, and management insights for coaching and reviews. The automated process also significantly reduces manual data entry.

Since implementing White Clay’s tool, FPCU has cut incentive management from 80 hours a week to less than five. Through July, its retail business reported loan growth of 111%, member growth of 102% and deposit growth of 100%, while its Net Promoter Score (NPS) increased more than three points in the last four months.

“White Clay has transformed how we manage incentives, making the process more efficient, accurate and transparent,” said Ryan Carley, Senior Vice President of Retail Delivery at FPCU. “The tool is tailored to our credit union’s specific needs, and everyone from individual bankers to branch, district and overall retail leadership can see how they perform against their goals, weekly. It’s become the glue between our sales process and incentive plan, helping us drive the right banker behaviors. There’s no other product like it on the market.”

The tool is available through an interactive dashboard alongside White Clay’s relationship profitability, pricing and analytics capabilities, creating one seamless environment with consistent data. The launch comes as financial institutions begin setting budgets and evaluating incentive plans for 2027.

About White Clay

White Clay is a fintech that guides banks and credit unions to enhance customer relationships and profitability. For 20 years, its software has offered financial institutions a comprehensive view of customer interactions and insights to boost daily business decisions. By aligning goals with shareholder value, White Clay improves banker performance and pricing strategies. Trusted by leading financial institutions, the company’s innovative approach continues to transform relationship and profitability optimization. For more information, visit www.whiteclay.com or follow us on LinkedIn.