Our consulting assignments have assisted clients ranging from some of the largest financial institutions in the nation to small community banks, as well as a wide variety of mortgage lenders, real estate developers and providers of diverse financial services. Key consulting areas include:
Our Consulting Approach. The full
capacity of our consulting is devoted to the banking, financial services and
real estate industries. Because we are specialists, our technical expertise is
backed by a deep and full understanding of our clients' business and operating
environment.
We Deliver Specifically What Our Clients Need. The MCS Associates
consulting approach is tailored to the special requirements of each client's
situation. We work closely with our clients to determine the most appropriate
ways to assist them in achieving their particular objectives. We are not
neutralists who provide alternatives without answers. We are active advocates
of the solutions we believe will work.
Excellence from Experience. To maintain
our standards of excellence, we retain top caliber people from a variety of
professional and business disciplines and through strategic affiliations with
experienced bankers, economists, real estate analysts, lenders, appraisers and
former regulators. Our consultants and experts include leaders in their field
who are quoted frequently in national and trade media and are regular speakers
and published authors on industry issues. This combination offers clients a
powerful blend of specialization, high level consulting skills and practical
expertise and resources in financial services, banking and real estate.
Strategic planning is the on-going process which defines an organization's competitive game plan. MCS Associates brings the experience, objectivity and talent required for effective business and strategic planning. We also bring important insights and creative answers to some of the complex questions in financial services for the new millennium.
We help our clients build an effective planning and analytical process, and act to facilitate planning efforts by management and the board. But we also provide analysis, evaluations, ideas and substantive contributions in planning that ranges from the development of short-term tactical business plans, to the formulation of comprehensive long term strategies.
We work closely with our clients to determine their vision for their organizations, the long range goals and objectives ….and the strategies leading to their achievement. Our consultants help interpret the problems and assess a company's strengths and weaknesses, competition and market position. Our aim is to evaluate all key alternatives in order to identify the best opportunities and the sustainable competitive advantages that can lead to our client's success.
A company's compensation system can be one of the most influential sources of motivation and enthusiasm among the management team and their support staff. It is also a highly visible and vital factor in retaining the best people and attracting new expertise.
MCS Associates has experience in all aspects of corporate compensation, and has been a pioneer in compensation planning in the financial services business. Because we are financial institution specialists, we have a unique understanding of specific job functions in the business and how they contribute to a company's success.
Our experience
ranges from the development and implementation of sophisticated, company-wide
compensation systems, to consulting on specific compensation issues or problems
isolated to a single department. We have performed compensation related
services for both small and large companies as well as both simple and complex
organizations.
Among the
many areas of compensation expertise offered by MCS Associates are:
To obtain and provide current national, regional and local competitive market data, MCS Associates has devised and conducted numerous surveys in the financial services industries over the past 30 years, covering executive and employee compensation, and directors remuneration.
These surveys range from the industry-wide MCS Annual National Compensation Survey of Home Equity Lenders (which we have conducted since 1991 with the participation of the leading sub-prime and home equity lenders in the nation), to special individualized surveys conducted on behalf of individual financial institution clients to obtain market compensation data for specific positions, geographic areas, and/or pay practices.
A source of expert consulting in mortgage banking for many years, MCS Associates consultants have extensive experience in most aspects of mortgage banking and real estate lending. We can provide expertise in each phase of lending, from loan production, through secondary marketing and warehousing, to loan servicing and administration.
The scope of our work ranges from specific operational engagements with established mortgage banks and real estate lenders, to the planning and start-up of new mortgage banking companies. We have helped our clients acquire mortgage banks and servicing portfolios, diversify their mortgage banking activities and expand into new geographic market areas. We can also assist in building loan production and improving origination, controls and efficiency. And, we are retained by lending organizations and regulators to evaluate and improve the personnel, policies, procedures, systems and administration of loan origination, underwriting, closing and servicing.
For financial institutions, mortgage banking and related companies, MCS Associates services in this area include:
In today's rapidly evolving and competitive markets, strategic positioning through mergers, purchase and sale of distribution outlets, and the acquisition or divestiture of related businesses and asset portfolios is a continuing important avenue.. But pursuing options in this area requires a specialized kind of expertise which is usually not found in-house. MCS Associates provides assistance in all phases of the merger/sale process, including:
With broad knowledge across a range of financial institution transactions, MCS Associates is also experienced and able to assist in a variety of valuation issues for financial institutions and financial service companies. These include:
Often companies operate inefficiently because their business has outgrown their organization. New businesses and new strategies often call for new and reorganized expertise.
MCS Associates' organization analysis and design considers both the present needs and future plans of the business. The organization design defines the authorities, responsibilities, channels of communication, and working relationships that will enable people to function most efficiently. A good organization plan will clarify job functions, reduce unclear reporting relationships and minimize overlapping duties.
MCS can execute an organization analysis specific to certain functional areas of our client's business, or if appropriate, for the entire company. Results are presented in a logical and complete format supported by organization charts, staffing recommendations, position descriptions and detailed implementation plans.