7 habits for Highly Effective Loan Committees

By Ancin Cooley and Regan Camp

Some books tell timeless stories. While many involve children’s stories with moral life messages, some enduring books can be found on business shelves. One such classic is Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Among its pages, readers can find a plethora of useful advice for one’s business and personal life, with one major point of advice being the effectiveness of applying all of the book’s habits altogether.

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"Raising" a Strong Credit Culture

Creating an effective credit culture within your financial institution is a lot like raising a child, says Ancin Cooley, Principal of Synergy Bank Consulting. In this guest column, Cooley discusses four integral components that can transform your credit risk culture.

Read more: "Raising" a Strong Credit Culture

What is your ALLL I'Q'

Ancin Cooley

ALLL Methodology: How to Justify and Document Your Qualitative Factors 


By: Ancin Cooley

Did you know that the most common exam issues related to Qualitative Factors are inadequate portfolio segmentation (i.e. geographic area), lack of directional consistency, and poor documentation? This post will test your knowledge (and sense of humor) of these key areas and will reinforce key points from our recent webinar, ALLL Methodology: How to Justify and Document Your Qualitative Factors.

Read more: What is your ALLL I'Q'

CPA firms: What are your competitors focusing on?

Scenario:  You are an accountant with management responsibility in a small to medium size firm.  You understand the idiosyncrasies related to your practice and the surrounding locale, but when it comes to longer term management strategies it often feels like you are Santiago, Hemingway’s protagonist in The Old Man and the Sea, who stood alone against the hostile forces that surrounded him.

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Businesses reducing credit risk in tough economic times

Recent challenges in the U.S. have bolstered the need for examining credit risk. The financial and operational risks to business owners are evident in several statistics.

Business bankruptcies peaked at nearly 61,000 in 2009, and they have declined to around 47,000 in 2011. However, the 44,435 business bankruptcies that have been filed in the 12 months ended June 30 remain more than 28 percent higher than the annual average between 2000 and 2006. As recently as the first quarter of 2011, business failures outnumbered business startups, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These statistics indicate the economy is not back to where it was before the recession, so credit risk remains a concern. Subsequently, these financial institutions make the loan analysis process more stringent and comprehensive in order to decrease their exposure.

Read more: Businesses reducing credit risk in tough economic times

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