Partnering to Strengthen Customer Connections Leveraging Data Fluency and AI Solutions

Background

As data and artificial intelligence (AI) become integral to financial services, Bangor Savings Bank recognized the importance of equipping its workforce with the skills needed to adapt and innovate. To support this vision, the bank partnered with Northeastern University’s Roux Institute to launch Maine’s first in-house educational framework focused on data fluency and responsible AI adoption.

The Challenge: Meeting the AI Moment

Staying competitive in the evolving financial industry required more than just adopting new technology—it meant strengthening the bank’s data fluency and expanding its use of AI-driven tools within its existing IT infrastructure. Bangor Savings Bank recognized that true AI integration demanded a thoughtful approach, aligning workforce development with digital innovation to maximize impact.

The Solution: An Integrated Data & AI Transformation Program

To achieve this, Bangor Savings Bank launched Accelerating Insights, a two-year initiative in partnership with Northeastern University experts. This collaboration focused on workforce assessment and development while also building a data opportunity roadmap to identify high-impact AI projects that enhance customer experiences, internal efficiencies, or business outcomes.

As part of this effort, the Northeastern team deployed LEAP, its framework for assessing an organization’s AI readiness across four key dimensions:

• Learning culture: Evaluating existing development programs and knowledge-sharing practices
• Ecosystem: Assessing the broader technological and operational environment
• Analytical architecture: Reviewing data infrastructure and AI implementation capabilities
• People: Identifying current digital skill sets and essential new competencies for business advancement and individual career growth opportunities

This assessment set the direction for Bangor Savings Bank’s learning and education objectives, leading to the development of a robust AI and data literacy program, custom AI solutions, and a talent development pipeline strategy across its workforce.

Results: AI Adoption and Efficiency

The impact of this program has been substantial:

• 96% of program participants now use generative AI in their daily work—up from 56% before training
• 93% reported an increased interest in further AI and analytics learning
• 8 co-op students have been deployed across the bank, addressing key technical needs, projects, and expanding the talent pipeline
• Increased customer engagement and systems and platform utility

AI Solutions Spotlight

A key innovation from the collaboration is a custom recommendation engine developed in partnership with Northeastern University’s Institute for Experiential AI. Integrated into the bank’s systems in a safe and secure environment, this tool provides personalized product and service recommendations based on customer engagement and relationship data to support customer conversations and marketing communications. Key benefits include increased customer engagement, empowered bank employees with the right skills to serve customers, and enhanced strategic use of systems to streamline business practices through data-driven insights.