Cost Control, Not Cost Cutting

Sure, things are tougher on mid-tier banks these days. But they don’t have to make it harder on themselves through practices and spending that don’t contribute to the key mission: serving the customer. When you take the right attitude, you may even find that there’s still some "low-hanging fruit" to pluck, in terms of cost control.

Proudfoot Consulting, an international advisory firm that has counted some of the country’s largest banks among its clients, believes becoming increasingly "customer centric" will help mid-tier banks better focus in the rough period they are now going through. In this way, these banks can control their expenses through cost-control, rather than cost cutting. The difference is the difference between a scalpel and a hatchet.

ABA Banking Journal recently spoke with Proudfoot’s Hugo Melgarejo, president of Proudfoot North America. He brings experience consulting with financial services companies, mining companies, manufacturers, and oil and gas companies to the discussion.