Introduction

For most brokerage houses and investment banks, corporate and institutional clients represent the large proportion of the firm’s highest-volume and most profitable business. While the individual broker is the mainstay of nearly any firm, these firms’ most substantial profits come from managing the huge liquidity and transaction needs of the worlds largest mutual, pension, and hedge funds, insurance companies, and other banks.

Few brokerages in the world are large and sophisticated enough to meet the needs of this client population, and as a result, a small number of brokerages—all of which have similar financial capabilities and products—are constantly jockeying for the same business with enormous stakes. In this arena the business most often goes to the firm with the most trusting relationships, and the ability to foster and manage relationships is everything.

The Merrill Lynch Corporate and Institutional Client Group (CICG) approached CRA and asked that we help develop a process by which they could better manage and develop their most important institutional and corporate relationships. The design would serve as the centerpiece of an effort to redefine how CICG manages their largest clients, and would define the processes and roles of CICG Relationship Managers.

The CRA solution

To address this challenge, CRA created a design process with multiple approaches. Central to the effort was a two-phase exploration of CICG’s current state.

First, the design team conducted a full evaluation of the processes and infrastructure Relationship Managers were using to evaluate and manage client relationships.

Second, the team conducted a comprehensive “best practices” evaluation, interviewing at length the most successful and respected Relationship Managers and compiling their approaches and philosophies.

Combined with an evaluation of the client population and client needs, the design ultimately produced a comprehensive approach to relationship management, including training for Relationship Managers based on best practices, a needs-based stratification of client groups, a set of three primary client management approaches, and new processes for managing client contact and tracking relationship development.

For more information on CRA’s approach to relationship management design, please contact Alan L. Nelson at 610-644-5597, extension 316.