ST. LOUIS - Jordan, Lawrence & Associates is trying to change the
Banks generally box up the reams of records generated by day-to-day
"Banks save everything," said Brad Jordan.
"Ten copies of everything," corrected his partner, Alice Lawrence.
The two own Jordan, Lawrence, the nation's only consulting firm
Records compliance sounds like a cinch, but Jordan, Lawrence is proving
"Our clients, on average, throw away 55% of their records on the first
Jordan, Lawrence has dumped documents for the best of them: Banc One
"Most records don't have anything longer than a three- to five-year
Customers credit Jordan, Lawrence with delivering quick results that can
Wachovia's banks in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia pitched
In fact, Jordan, Lawrence guarantees it will reduce record volume, which
"Records that are available are subpoenable, even if you didn't have to
Banc One has hired Jordan, Lawrence to purge paper at all of its 65
Craig Tews, manager of warehouse operations at Bank One, Milwaukee, said
"I was able to open up my warehouse for the next four or five years,"
Once hired, Jordan, Lawrence inventories a bank's records, sorting them
"Our software sweeps through the inventory base and calculates all the
The software also generates periodic reports noting which records are
Projects range from 90 days to six months. The fee, which is fixed
"These are pretty good payback projects," Mr. Jordan said, estimating
While Jordan, Lawrence has focused on records compliance since its
First, Jordan, Lawrence plans to help banks save money by eliminating
A bank that hired the company for records compliance also asked Jordan,
The consultants found that many bankers wrongly assumed printouts must
"People are demanding it on paper because they think they have a
Regulators, he said, want to see original documents.
"That's where the fraud is; that's where the errors in regulatory
Following Jordan, Lawrence's recommendations, the bank is trimming
"The savings are just huge; it surprised us all," Mr. Jordan said. "The
The second product focuses on reducing the number of bank documents that
"Banks film way too much," Mr. Jordan said. "They always justify filming
But filming can be 100 times as expensive as storing a document for five
The first bank to undergo Jordan, Lawrence's micrographics analysis is
"We couldn't find anything important enough to keep filming," Mr. Jordan
The decision to quit filming will save significant labor costs.
"They have whole departments for this. Four or five people who have been
Jordan, Lawrence is hoping to cross-sell its services and is betting the
"A big part of our work right now is banks that are going through