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Services & Specialties

Cynthia primarily serves in a governance role on both corporate and philanthropic Boards, where she historically has served as a member and/or Chair of the Audit, Compensation and/or Strategy Committees. 

 

Cynthia also offers consulting services, through her regulatory compliant company, Zircon, with engagements typically lasting from six months to two years, in the following capacities:

1 M&A EXECUTION

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Specializing in large financial services and fintech transactions with regulatory and compliance overlays. Deep expertise in banking, investment management, broker-dealer, and insurance transactions. Services include Due Diligence reviews, comprehensive cost analysis, carve-out executions, and TSA negotiations and pricing.

2 INTERIM C-SUITE LEADERSHIP

 

Proven track record as COO/CAO/CTO to fill temporary functional gaps. Collaborate with existing management teams for strategy, execution, successor recruiting and transition assistance.

3 EXPERT WITNESS

 

Cynthia has been deposed several times by defendants and cross-examined by plaintiffs within the financial services industry. Examples of topics on which she has testified include securities settlement infrastructure, derivative collateralization, electronic and physical document retention, and market data procurement. She has also written expert reports on these topics, and has consulted for attorneys as they contemplate their strategies for settlement and/or trial. 

4 VENDOR AND STAFF-COST 
            OPTIMIZATION

 

Cynthia typically reduces run-rate costs by 10-15% within 12-18 months by negotiating and reorganizing vendor services, supplemented by reductions in staff and contractors. The exercise can be done in conjunction with M&A activity or as a stand-alone cost reduction exercise. Cynthia is not 'sleight of hand', but rather leans on her deep knowledge of vendor pricing models and optimal financial services organization design. Cynthia is able to both do the work as well as teach the knowledge base of approach and techniques to the remaining leadership within the target companies.

5 OUTSOURCING AND OFFSHORING

 

Expertise includes Americas, Europe, Asia globally located firms, with captive or non-captive offshore/onshore support models located in India, Philippines and/or Mexico. Covering technology administration, development, business processing and call centers.

6 INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT
            OPERATIONS OPTIMIZATION

 

Deep expertise in operational processes such as investment accounting, claims processing, transfer agency, regulatory reporting, and the accompanying technology and market data requirements. Track record streamlining processes, lowering errors, and reducing costs to achieve scale.

7 ERP (ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING)
           IMPLEMENTATION

 

Proven expertise optimizing shared services across HR and Finance, including general ledger, procure-to-pay platforms, human resources platforms, employee health and welfare benefits, and corporate insurance.

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Transaction Timeline

Phase 1: Pre-Deal Due Diligence

Mission: To enable effective and accurate modeling of deal opportunities

Expertise for cost estimates:

  • TSA services and costing

  • One-time costs to merge, separate, migrate, streamline and optimize

  • Run-rate costs post-closing, and post streamline and optimize phase

Phase 4: Post-Legal Day 1 | Carve-Outs, Mergers and Whole Entity Acquisitions

Mission: To quickly streamline and optimize the company, by way of technology, service and vendor consolidation, outsourcing, hoteling, and shared-service functional centralization

  • Provide leadership, expertise and/or support for internal management around cost take-outs. For all initiatives, provide budgets showing current and target run-rates, and one-time investment costs.
     

  • Plan, Lead or Support Technology Efficiencies 

    • Cloud migration away from on-premises data centers

    • Multiple data center consolidations

    • Telephone and call-center systems

    • Vendor costs – networks, database licenses, sales systems, market data

    • Investment accounting systems consolidations

    • Cyber security defense infrastructure

    • Communication surveillance
       

  • Lead non-technology consolidations

    • Third-party contract negotiations, terminations of redundant costs

    • Human resource systems, legal & compliance, corporate insurance, employee benefits, procurement, general ledger, accounts payable, T&E, facilities and location strategy, internal/external conferences
       

  • Support for budgeting and cost-benefit analysis throughout the streamlining program.

Phase 3: Carve-Outs | Post-Legal Day 1 – Through TSA Exit

Mission: To timely, accurately, and cost-effectively exit the TSA, negotiating any escalated issues with the seller and/or vendors, while complying with any regulatory constraints

  • Provide leadership, expertise and/or support for internal or external consultants with TSA Exit planning and program management.
     

  • Third-party vendor procurement services, including RFPs, contract negotiations, vendor onboarding, vendor risk management processes, etc. 
     

  • Support for budgeting and cost-benefit analysis throughout the project.
     

  • Support for post-Day 1 business activities and projects enabling scalability as needed, such as outsourcing technology and operations and/or migration to a cloud strategy for certain infrastructural aspects. 
     

  • Documentation of inter-company services for transfer pricing agreements within the NewCo subsidiaries.
     

  • Transition services related to the vendor contract repository for management purposes of the head of vendor sourcing and risk management.
     

  • Production of analysis, metrics, and documentation as directed in forms such as excel, word, power point, etc.
     

  • Transition any remaining post-TSA work and deliverables identified by Customer to internal and/or external resources.
     

  • Some transformation during the lift and shift, depending upon the cost/benefit and aversion to risk of a TSA extension.

Phase 2: Carve-Outs | Stand-Up Services Between Signing and Close

Mission: To timely, accurately and cost-effectively stand up the NewCo, while negotiating and facilitating a favorable TSA for the Buyer, and complying with any regulatory constraints

  • Leadership or support of 3rd party consultants through stand-up and carve-out workstreams such as Brand Conversion, Technology, Operations, Human Resources, Corporate Insurance, Finance, Enterprise Risk, Legal, Facilities, and Compliance. Program management and/or workstream management.
     

  • Third-party vendor procurement services, including RFPs, contract negotiations, vendor onboarding, vendor risk management processes, etc. 
     

  • TSA specification and negotiation services, TSA costing, TSA high-level exit planning, as well as support for post-Day 1 TSA services, such as exit, separation and migration services. 
     

  • Services include program governance, project metrics to monitor progress and risks, assistance with vendor selection, conversion planning, contract inventory tracking, financial monitoring for vendors, resourcing and organizational design, etc., as directed.
     

  • Regulatory Efficacy – ensure compliance systems such as communication surveillance, personal trading monitoring, regulatory exams, information security training, regulatory reporting systems are deployed, supported and active by Legal Day 1.
     

  • Optimization of one-time costs and post Legal Day 1 run-time costs through vendor selection, cloud-first strategies, etc.
     

  • Transition any remaining post-sale-date work and deliverables identified by Customer to internal and/or external resources.
     

  • Budgeting – monitor and/or support NewCo CFO to ensure one-time costs are efficiently utilized, and to prepare 3-year Run Rate budgets, inclusive of any projected TSA costs. Include current and projected staff and non-staff vendor costs.

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