Companies Are Saving Millions of Dollars Per Year with LED Lighting Retrofits

Companies as varied as Ernst & Young, Marriott Hotels and the owner of the Empire State Building are saving millions of dollars by installing energy efficient LED lighting. The reason- LED lighting lasts for years and reduces lighting energy costs by up to 50%. The payback is relatively quick, often less than two years.One hurdle is the upfront cost of replacing your current outdated lighting with the more energy efficient LED Linear replacement lamps.

RedBird LED Inc., an Atlanta, GA. firm that specializes in the design, manufacturing and distribution of high quality energy efficient LED linear lighting products for industrial and commercial applications, has addressed this problem by introducing new LED lighting products that qualify for energy efficient rebates from selected Utility Companies. These Utility Companies are members of the DesignLights Consortium. The DLC recently certified the second RedBird LED Cardinal™ LED Linear Retrofit product.  In May, RedBird LED received certification by the DLC for their 22 watt LED Linear Replacement Lamp at both 4100K and 5000K CCTs.  The RedBird LED 18 watt Cardinal™ LED Linear Replacement lamp  has now also been certified by DLC as a Qualified Product.

 Culminating several years of development and testing, the Cardinal™ LED Linear Replacement Lamp has become both the first, second, and still the only LED tube light in the world to receive DLC Certification.
By establishing the Cardinal LED tube light's position on the Qualified Product List of the DLC, RedBird LED has ensured that these products will be eligible for all rebate programs currently in place among the DLC's membership and will facilitate rapid approval by other rebate sources as well.

Lighting Retrofits Can Reduce Lighting Costs by 55% or More

The 18 watt linear replacement lamp is the most popular model used for one to one fluorescent lighting retrofits of standard 32 watt T8 or 40 watt T12 fluorescent lamps. When retrofitting with a Cardinal LED tube the user will expect to save as much as 55% on their energy consumption when compared to a standard 40 watt T12 model or 40% on a 32 watt T8. With this level of savings and the rebates available, the customer can see paybacks as low as 9 months in many states.  

JonathanEppstein, President of RedBird LED commented, “While we were ecstatic to have been the first, and only LED Linear Replacement Lamp to have qualified for DLC Certification with our 22 watt product in May, the DLC Certification for our 18 watt lamp is an even more exciting event. We expect the DLC Certification of the 18 watt Cardinal Lamp to dramatically increase the adoption and deployment of this breakthrough product.  Having both our 22 and 18 watt LED tubes on the DLC Qualified Product List solidifies our position as the market leader in this sector of the LED lighting industry.”

Contact: info@redbirdled.com  678-RED-BIRD (678-733-2473).

CFO Zone Reports Cash Flow Top CFO Concern

as repoted on www.cfozone.com

It's all about the cash flow.

The biggest concern among chief financial officers these days is cash flow. Not the economy, not jobs, not health care, not the elections.According to a survey conducted by TD Bank, 69 percent of CFOs and other corporate finance managers at mid-sized businesses say they are most worried about the intense challenge of managing cash flow.The survey of 100 CFOs, controllers, treasurers and other financial executives also found that proper capital allocation and cash flow management will also be next year's top financial management priorities for 41 percent of respondents.

When it comes to cash flow, the survey respondents said the most significant risks over the next year will be an increase in non-performing accounts receivables (21 percent) and reduced sales (19 percent). Only 5 percent of respondents cite the economy as the biggest threat.While CFOs are worried about cash flow, they are not planning to take drastic action. Just seven percent of the finance executives say they plan to cut expenses in 2011.

In fact, 39 percent expect their capital investments to increase next year. Of that group, 21 percent expect an increase of 10 percent or more.One-third anticipates that capital investments will hold steady. Of course, this means roughly 28 percent are planning to cut capital investments.And the most common use for this money figures to be for new technology. This is followed by improvements to existing facilities, workforce hiring and development and office equipment.

CFO Best Practice Sponsor: Cambridge Consulting Group was formed more than 10 years ago to help large organizations reduce their  costs by eliminating their leasing obligations for excess commercial real estate space. Founded by Dave Worrell, a former Corporate/Facility Director, Cambridge Consulting Group offers companies a better option than subleasing office space they no longer need or use. Using a newer financial strategy- Negotiated Lease Buyouts, Cambridge Consulting has saved Fortune 500 companies millions of dollars in commercial lease obligations. For more information please visit their website- www.ccgiweb.com   or call David Worrell at 888.472.5656

What are the most likely constraints on capital investments? The finance pros most often cited cash flow (46 percent), followed by unsure levels of funding from clients and government (18 percent), as well as the political climate, including government regulations and policies (13 percent).

Otherwise, CFOs seem to share the kinds of sentiments most people seem to hold these days. For example, 78 percent acknowledge the economic recovery could take up to two years to materialize while nearly half believe the surest signs of a lasting upturn will be falling unemployment rates, sustained growth in their own organization's sales and an influx of new customers buying their products and services.

Other financial challenges include interest rate volatility, a key concern among more than half of the respondents (55 percent), followed by adequate access to credit for 52 percent.

http://www.cfozone.com/index.php/Newsflash/CFOs-Cash-flow-is-top-concern.html

Companies Should Avoid Subleasing Office Space

THE TRUTH ABOUT SUBLEASING

Subleasing is not the Solution for Surplus Office Space

WHY IS SUBLEASING THE ONLY RECOGNIZED OPTION FOR
MITIGATING THE LOSS OF SURPLUS OFFICE SPACE?

Up until the savings and loan scandal of the eighties, real estate developers enjoyed some latitude with lenders as to the value and potential pro-forma of their office projects. Since that time regulations on lending practices have forced developer/landlords to a much tighter qualification process. Before, developer/landlords had more latitude in deciding the best alternatives for empty space, the lenders leaving much to the discretion of the landlords.

Today, lenders almost exclusively base the quality of their loans on the “income approach” to valuation. Therefore, to lose a percentage of a loan’s income can, and will de-value the loan forcing the lender to require additional equity in the project – or justify the loss to their stockholders. 

Since then, landlords have required tenants who no longer need or are using space in their buildings to “sublease” the space themselves. This gives the landlord the luxury of maintaining the income and guarantees from the tenant, even if they find a subtenant. It also creates a tremendous loss for the tenant needing to sublease the space.

If your company has surplus space and time remaining on the lease, what are you to do? If you call your landlord you are likely to receive the answer – “Sublease it”. They will probably offer their own brokers services which will seem reasonable. But the landlord’s broker works for your landlord. The landlord will see to it that any potential tenants are shown their own empty space before yours.

Once You Begin The Sublease Odyssey – Keep This in Mind:

1. A Surplus Lease Is Not A Real Estate Issue – It's A Cash-Flow Issue. 


Finding a subtenant is not the issue at hand. Timing and speed of execution are the true issues. Every month the space sits vacant costs your company thousands in lost after-tax income. The goal should be to find the fastest and least expensive method of mitigating this loss. Subleasing is neither.

2. A Sublease Is Perceived By The Market As A "Fire Sale"

According to the Business Post, “Most commercial real estate brokers will advise a potential tenant wanting to sublease their space that their space will trade in the 50 cents on the dollar range.” (Business Post, Subleasing Can Be Painful, February 2005). After leasehold improvement allowances, broker commissions, and numerous other costs – some known and some hidden, a sublease will rarely return more than 37 cents on the dollar – and that’s a best case scenario.

3. Subleasing Attracts Bottom Feeding Tenants

High credit companies do not seek sublease space. Subleases attract cash and credit poor tenants who usually are unable to qualify for a new lease. Also, once their sublease ends – the new tenant is subject to a new rental rate which the landlord controls. But more importantly, what happens when your new subtenant can't pay the rent?

4. Financial Regulations Specifically Target Sublease Accounting

According to GAAP financial rules (FASB 13 – Interpretation 27), surplus space must be written off at the time you intend to vacate the space. If you sublease the space and the subtenant defaults, you may be required to immediately write off the entire remaining lease balance including all anticipated costs including the furniture, fixtures and equipment you may have installed. Furthermore, if you are trying to sublease and your reported sublease income expectations are below your expectations, you may be required to immediately write off that additional loss.

5. A Sublease Requires You To Put Up "AT RISK" Capital

A sublease typically requires an up front cash investment for leasehold improvements as well as your broker’s commission. These standard out-of-the-gate expenses are needed to attract what often ends up being a poor credit subtenant who is at great risk of default, essentially making it more of a gamble than an investment.

6. A Sublease Puts You In The Real Estate Management Business

Subleasing means you are now a landlord since the sublease is between your company and your new subtenant – not the landlord. Therefore any of your subtenant’s office building requests and requirements must be handled by you first, not the landlord. All requests for repairs and maintenance, collecting rent, parking lot accident liability, etc. are your responsibility. When the toilet backs up the subtenant must call you, not the original landlord – who is no longer directly liable for such repairs. This takes a lot more time and money than most expect and is a “dirty little secret” of subleasing. 

7. The Value Of Your Sublease Decreases With Every Day

Every month that your space sits vacant it becomes less attractive to prospects. Subtenants know that shorter term subleases mean they will soon face large rent increases once the sublease terminates. History shows that opportunities to sublease fall dramatically when the lease term remaining drop below 36 months. 

Alternatives to Subleasing:
 
20 years ago, Cambridge Real Estate Consulting pioneered a “new science” – A Professionally Negotiated Lease Buy-out. This “science” is based on the ability of the negotiator to “un-lock” the value of the vacant space – and then show it to the landlord.

Lease buy-out negotiation is a specialized exercise that requires a unique and expert knowledge of real estate leases; finance and investor expectations. But most importantly, it requires years of experience in this type of negotiation. 

Surplus space can have great value to the landlord, which is often overlooked – even by the landlord. The landlord can earn far more for your space than you can under a sublease. They have the ability and expertise to more profitably market the property. 

The challenge is to convince the landlord that it is in their interest to take back your space with a small cushion of cash now rather than leave the space vacant or have a less than desirable subtenant there. 

A SUCCESSFULLY NEGOTIATED LEASE BUY-OUT:

•  COSTS FAR LESS THAN A SUBLEASE
•  CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED IN 60 TO 90 DAYS
•  ELIMINATES ALL RISK AND FUTURE LIABILITIES
•  REQUIRES NO “AT-RISK” CAPITAL 

A TYPICAL NEGOTIATED LEASE BUY-OUT PROCESS:

1.  A SITUATION ANALYSIS    
We dissect your lease; all additional bills and correspondence to determine the exact future obligation and any anticipated or written changes. We then develop a presentation outlining our findings.

2.  PRE–PROCESS PLANNING 
The most important and time consuming part of the buy-out process is pre-process planning. The reason for this planning is to gain knowledge of the landlord’s unique financial and market position. Once given the “go ahead”, we meet with the landlord to explain the situation and determine their financial and investor issues.

3.  STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT
Once understanding your lease and business situation; meeting with the landlord and determining market conditions – we work directly with you to develop a strategy that fits your budget and timing.

4.  TACTICAL NEGOTIATIONS
A negotiated buy-out is not just a simple meeting to convince the landlord to let you out of a large financial obligation. It requires several tactical negotiations to find the “buttons” that will help the landlord recognize the potential gain – or at least no potential loss.

5.  EXECUTE THE BUY-OUT
This is the most critical and delicate part of the process. More buy-outs are lost during the final legal negotiations and documentation than any other part of the process. We actively participate in this process through execution.
 
Although considered the “tried and true” method for dealing with surplus space – subleasing is also the most futile in mitigating the loss from surplus space. There are alternatives which can more quickly and less expensively END the liability.

To learn more about Cambridge’s services, call 888.472-5656. Or visit our web site www.ccgiweb.com.  We will happy to give you a free consultation on your situation and give you options that save money now.

Cash Is King

With Treasuries at all-time lows and bank lending still declining, companies are reorganizing their treasury operations in record numbers as they strive to increase efficiency, reduce costs and make best use of their internal cash. According to a recent survey by JP Morgan Treasury Services, 61 percent of companies polled had either just completed a treasury restructuring, were in the process of restructuring, or were building the business case for a restructuring.

The poll of 182 treasury executives—primarily from large corporations--found that 35 percent were implementing systems that would allow the company to get a global cash balance, 25 percent were reorganizing their bank account structures to reduce their number of banking partners, and 19 percent were restructuring their cash concentration programs to make use of extra cash for self-funding or debt repayment.

The need to make more efficient use of existing cash balances has been a growing theme throughout the crisis and continues to be a big driver of corporate treasury reorganization, as we discussed last week.  Swiss logistics company Panalpina, for example, recently went through a restructuring and treasury refocusing to reduce group-wide operating costs and better manage FX and interest rate exposures in the current market. The firm underwent a full review of its foreign exchange management and investment policies in order to more efficiently manage counterparties and instrument tenors, and better hedge FX exposures. The next step, according to the company, is to move to a single global treasury management system that is integrated with its ERP.

http://www.cfozone.com/index.php?option=com_myblog&show=Companies-restructure-treasury-to-reduce-costs.html&Itemid=713&newsletter=06092010_cfo

Blog Sponsor

Sponsor:Cambridge Consulting Group was formed more than 10 years ago to help large organizations reduce their  costs by eliminating their leasing obligations for excess commercial real estate space. Founded by Dave Worrell, a former Corporate/Facility Director, Cambridge Consulting Group offers companies a better option than subleasing office space they no longer need or use. Using a newer financial strategy- Negotiated Lease Buyouts, Cambridge Consulting has saved Fortune 500 companies millions of dollars in commercial lease obligations. For more information please visit their website- www.ccgiweb.com

200 Wachovia Branches in Atlanta Will Convert to Wells Fargo in October

As reported in Atlanta Business Chronicle

As the leaves change colors this fall, Wachovia’s familiar blue and green logos will change into Wells Fargo’s red and yellow in Atlanta.

San Francisco-based Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) said Wednesday Wachovia signs and systems will convert to Wells Fargo in late October at almost 200 bank branches in Atlanta and nearly 280 locations across Georgia.

After the conversion, Wells Fargo will be the second-largest bank in metro Atlanta with $21.6 billion in deposits and a 19 percent market share. Wells Fargo also noted it has hired more than 200 tellers and bankers across Atlanta and more than 300 across Georgia in a shift to the Wells Fargo model.

Sponsor:Cambridge Consulting Group was formed more than 10 years ago to help large organizations reduce their  costs by eliminating their leasing obligations for excess commercial real estate space. Founded by Dave Worrell, a former Corporate/Facility Director, Cambridge Consulting Group offers companies a better option than subleasing office space they no longer need or use. Using a newer financial strategy- Negotiated Lease Buyouts, Cambridge Consulting has saved Fortune 500 companies millions of dollars in commercial lease obligations. For more information please visit their website- www.ccgiweb.com

Atlanta will remain headquarters for the company’s Southeast region, which includes Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi. The three neighboring states to Georgia will change to Wells Fargo in late September. Other states in the East will follow.

Wachovia merged with Wells Fargo on Dec. 31, 2008. Wachovia Securities has already become Wells Fargo Advisors and Wachovia Mortgage is now Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.

Wells Fargo’s first-quarter profit dropped 16 percent to $2.55 billion. The company has $1.2 trillion in assets and provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 10,000 stores and 12,000 ATMs.

Bank of West Hires New CFO

Bank of the West announced today that Duke Dayal has joined the bank as Chief Financial Officer. Dayal has more than 20 years of experience in international finance and was most recently a Managing Director of Brysam Global Partners, a New York-based private equity firm focused on investing in financial services. “Bank of the West’s history of sound financial management and its strong reputation in the market for outstanding service position it well to capitalize on growth opportunities,” Dayal said.

“Duke Dayal joins our team with a an impressive record of leadership in growing organizations, which, together with his strong finance and strategic skills, makes him a great addition to our executive management team,” Bank of the West Chairman and CEO Michael Shepherd said.
Prior to Brysam, Dayal was an executive with Citigroup serving in finance roles in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Among those roles was CFO of Citibank West, where he led the integration of Golden State Bancorp. Dayal also held senior finance roles in North America, Europe and Africa at Diageo, a leading consumer products company.


Dayal received a degree in Accounting and Finance from Nottingham Trent University, England and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants in England.

Sponsor: Cambridge Consulting Group specializes in providing cost containment strategies to Financial Institutions. They have specific expertise in tax, finance and commercial real estate issues. For more information please visit their website- www.commercialleaseterminations.com

Level One Bank Names New CFO

Level One Bank said it has named David C. Walker as EVP and CFO of the company. In his new position, Walker will be responsible for all treasury, accounting, finance, investments, asset/liability management, information technology, real estate, and bank security matters. Level One Bank is a locally-owned, full-service commercial bank with assets in excess of $170 million at 2009 year-end.The bank provides commercial banking services including lines of credit, term loans, commercial mortgages, SBA loans, and a full suite of Treasury management services.

“We are extremely pleased to have a person of David’s caliber become a part of our organization,” said Patrick Fehring, president and CEO of the bank. “David’s experience and expertise will be invaluable as we look forward to continuing the Bank’s growth trends into 2010 and beyond.”

Sponsor- Bank CFOs have saved the institution millions of dollars by renegotiating or terminating real estate leases. An expert in this area is Cambridge Consulting Group. They have worked with Bank Of America, Key Bank and Ford Motor Credit. For more information on how you can save on your branch banking costs visit their website-www.commercialleaseterminations.com.

Parking Garage Lighting a Source of Energy Savings

Redbird LED, an Atlanta based designer, manufacturer and distributor of LED Tubes launched a website for parking garage owners and managers, www.parkinggarageleds.com. The website provides information on the many benefits of LED Tube lights in a parking garage application. LED Tube lights last much longer than conventional lighting- between 5 and ten years. This dramatically reduces maintenance costs because the lights do not have to be changed as frequently.

Parking garage owners can achieve even bigger savings from the reduced energy costs from operating LED Tube lights versus conventional lighting. Many retailers, hotels, universities and corporations are saving between 30 and 60 % on their energy bills with the conversion to LED Tube lights.

For more detailed information please visit www.parkinggarageleds.com

Aetna Announces Layoffs and Real Estate Reductions

Aetna today announced that it expects to incur a fourth-quarter 2009 charge of approximately $60 million to $65 million, after tax.¹ This charge is due to the previously announced and completed reduction of approximately 625 positions and real estate consolidation that together are expected to result in a charge of approximately $40 million, after tax, and a similarly sized workforce reduction to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2010 that is expected to result in a charge of approximately $20 million to $25 million, after tax.

These actions relate to Aetna’s previously announced plan to reduce its workforce based upon the company’s membership outlook for 2010 and in preparation for the impact that health care reform and regulatory changes may have on Aetna’s business. Once the company completes the additional job reductions in the first quarter of 2010, Aetna will have approximately 34,300 employees. Employees affected by the first quarter 2010 job reductions will be notified at a future date to be determined. Eligible employees will receive severance benefits based on length of service as well as outplacement and other support programs. The company is not exiting any markets as a result of this announcement.

1 As Aetna believes this charge neither relates to the ordinary course of its business nor reflects underlying business performance, the company will reflect the charge as an “other item” and exclude it from 2009 operating earnings

Companies can save millions of dollars by managing their commercial real estate leases. Subleasing unused space is not the best solution and does not create a more positive cash position. Cambridge Consulting Group is an advocate for CFOs looking for creative real estate, financial, legal and tax advice. To learn how they are helping Fortune 500 companies please visit their website www.ccgiweb.com

Georgia Tech Study Shows Industry Sectors With Improving Cash Flow

Free cash margin, a measure of cash-flow performance, improved for 11 of 20 industry sectors during the 12 months ended in September, according to a new report from the Georgia Tech Financial Analysis Lab. The authors of the report, which was released last week, say the improvement reflects an upward trend that began in the first 3 months of the year.

Collectively, free cash margin for the 20 industries reached 5.36% for the period. That is the highest level recorded by Georgia Tech researchers since they began tracking the metric in March 2000 (see chart at the end of this article). The previous high was 5.14%, reached during June 2004.

But the improvement stemmed primarily from reductions in capital spending, says the report. Indeed, measured as a percentage of revenue, capital spending for the latest reporting period was lower than it had been for any other period since March 2000 (see chart at the end of this article). Capital spending at nonfinancial companies dropped to 3.02% for the 12 months ended in September. By comparison, the metric never dipped below 4.68% during the 2001 recession.

Ultimately, when capital spending does rise again, free cash margin could fall unless other factors compensate, such as reductions in taxes paid, better inventory turns, and more efficient collection of receivables.

Free cash margin is a cash-flow profit margin, derived by dividing free cash flow by revenue. In practical terms, the metric measures what percentage of revenue is left for shareholders in the form of free and discretionary cash flow. The Georgia Tech lab monitors the free cash margin (and its drivers, such as inventory, taxes, operating profit, and cash flow) for 3,704 nonfinancial companies with market caps greater than $50 million.

"What is especially remarkable about the improvement in free cash margin is that it is coming despite a continuing weakness in revenues," says Georgia Tech accounting professor Charles Mulford, director of the lab and co-author of the report. Normally, profit margins, including free cash margins, should decline along with revenue. Mulford says median revenue for the sample companies peaked at $751.1 million for the 12-month period ended in September 2008 and have been declining ever since. Median revenue for the 12 months ended in September 2009 was $528.4 million, a 29.7% decline from a year ago.

"Firms have been quite adept at wringing as much cash flow from operations as possible," says the report. The 11 industry sectors that improved their free cash margins included materials, capital goods, automobiles and components, consumer durables and apparel, retailing, household and personal products, and food, beverage, and tobacco. Eight industries, including energy, transportation, software and services, and utilities, had stable free cash margins, while one industry — pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and life sciences — had a declining free cash margin.

The report makes special note of several "standout" sectors and companies regarding changes to their free cash margins. For instance, the automobiles and components industry sector improved its free cash margin to 2.94% for the 12-month period ended in September 2009, up 2.17% from a year ago. In particular, Ford Motor Co.'s free cash margin improved significantly, jumping to 5.61% from 0.27% in September 2008, even though its capital spending rose from 4.17% to 4.61% during the same period.

Contributing to Ford's improved free cash margin was a reduction in the company's cash cycle, in which the automaker dropped its inventory days to 21.19 in the third quarter, compared with 27.44 a year earlier. (Inventory days are the average number of days goods remain in inventory before being sold.) Rest of Article at CFO.com

Small Banks May Have A Tough Year in 2010

The New Year is shaping up to be a rough one for community lenders.

By Colin Barr
Senior Editor
Fortune Magazine

Dozens if not hundreds of small banks figure to disappear in 2010, as a weak economy and regulatory pressure lead to more failures and mergers.

President Obama met Tuesday with eight community bank executives, including the chiefs of German American Bancorp (GABC) and Monadnock Bancorp. Obama hailed the bankers as playing a "vital function," and cited "enormous opportunities" for economic growth if they keep lending.

The community bankers surely made for a more receptive audience than the big-bank CEOs Obama addressed last week. Small-business lending, after all, is what smaller banks do best. The Independent Community Bankers of America trade group notes that community banks account for almost a third of small business loans under $1 million.

But the smallest banks have been dropping like flies for years, as they labor to master expensive new technologies and regulatory changes -- at a time when giant banks spawned in a rash of megamergers are expanding their reach.

The consolidation trend should only strengthen in the coming year. Dozens of banks will fail as their customers retrench in a weak economy. Meanwhile, regulators will keep pressuring bankers to lend cautiously -- prompting weaker banks to merge into stronger ones as growth remains elusive.

"A lot of the regional and community banks are going to struggle to remain independent," said Terry Moore, a managing director at Accenture. "We're going to see those numbers shrinking."

They have shrunk a lot already. The number of commercial banks with assets of $50 million or less has dropped by more than 3,600 since 1994, to 1,198, according to recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data.

At the same time, the deposits held by the biggest banks have soared, following years of megamergers punctuated by last year's bailouts. The five biggest banks -- Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500), JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500), Citi and PNC (PNC, Fortune 500) -- held 37% of all deposits at June 30. That's triple the top five's share 15 years ago, according to the FDIC.

Questions about concentration at the top of the industry have been intensified by a steady drumbeat of small bank failures. This year has brought 140 bank failures, and nearly four times as many institutions are now classified by regulators as troubled -- meaning failures in 2010 are likely to reach into triple digits again.

Given those daunting numbers, the FDIC appears to be focusing on closing weak banks rather than luring in new capital from the likes of private equity investors.

Yet at the same time, even troubled megabanks such as Citi have been able to raise staggering sums in the marketplace, in part because it has become clear the government won't let them fail. This apparent disconnect chafes some observers who say private investors could be helping to rebuild small banks.

"What Citi tells you is there are enormous pools of capital willing to take risk, given the right circumstances," said Hal Reichwald, a lawyer at Manatt Phelps & Phillips in Los Angeles who represents investors.

With tens of billions of dollars of souring construction and commercial real estate loans on their books, regional and community banks could use some of that capital. But the weak economy and the wave of bank failures have made it hard for smaller banks to raise new funds.

Of course, economic stress spells opportunity for stronger community banks. Ted Peters, CEO of Bryn Mawr Bank Corp. (BMTC) in suburban Philadelphia, said he sees the wide-open merger landscape in financial services as "a once-in-a-career opportunity" for him and his $1.2 billion firm.

Bryn Mawr agreed last month to acquire First Keystone Financial, a Media, Pa., savings bank, and Peters said he's considering possible tie-ups with investment firms and other financial institutions.

Peters said the fact that community banks didn't help blow up the economy with derivatives has resonated with lawmakers and now creates another selling point with customers.

"Right now, the big banks are being portrayed as the bad guys and the other 8,100 banks are being seen as the good guys," he said.

He expects this perception to enable his bank to continue to grab market share over the next year. But he isn't expecting any miracles.

For instance, Obama pledged Tuesday, in response to complaints from the Independent Community Bankers of America about heavy-handed regulation, to "see if there are possibilities to cut some of the red tape."

But Peters remains skeptical. "I've been a bank president for 25 years, and I'm still waiting for them to cut red tape for the first time," he said.

Bank CFOs should look to their branch locations for savings through real estate Lease Terminations or Buyouts. Financial Institutions employing this strategy have saved millions of dollars in lease obligations. An expert in this field is Cambridge Consulting Group. For a white paer onthis subject please go to www.commercialleaseterminations.com

Hospital CFOs Looking for Cost Cutting Approaches

Even as they wait to see what impact health-care reform may have on their businesses, CFOs at the nation's hospitals and health-care groups are working hard to streamline their operations and drive costs down as profits slide.

To do that, they are open to any sources of inspiration. When ThedaCare, a four-hospital chain based in Appleton, Wisconsin, cast about for practices that it might emulate, it looked to a nearby company — Ariens, a manufacturer of snowblowers.
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Ariens had embraced so-called lean techniques as it sought to fend off competition from Asian rivals, a business challenge that would seem to have nothing in common with that faced by hospitals. But ThedaCare found that what worked for Ariens could also work for its business; in fact, Ariens's CEO ultimately assumed a seat on a ThedaCare spin-off devoted to advising health-care systems about operational efficiency.

Reform efforts aside, health-care providers have been under pressure for years. Medicare has been steadily tightening up its reimbursement policies — eliminating payments for some hospital-acquired infections, for example, and inspiring private insurers to do the same. At most, Medicare reimburses hospitals for 80% of their costs — at a time when hospital costs are rising, partly because high unemployment is churning out fresh supplies of uninsured arrivals.

In July, as part of an agreement with the Administration to help pay for reform, hospitals agreed to forgo $155 billion in government reimbursements over the next decade. That translates into $2.7 million of annual cuts for each of the country's 5,700 hospitals.

"Hospitals need to eliminate anything that does not add value to the customer," says Mike Chamberlain, president of consulting firm Simpler North America and general manager of its health-care division. "They can't generate that amount of savings through easy measures. They need to undertake a cultural transformation."

For rest of article at CFO.com please select link below

http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/14457598/c_14457851?f=magazine_featured

Virgin CFO Outlines Cost Cutting

CFO says looking to continually take costs out of the business * CFO says broadband pricing environment now more benign * CFO says pricing power will be sustainable in future * CFO says doesn't see any pressure to open up their network * CFO says expects to reduce numbers of properties to save costs The Virgin Media CFO was speaking at the Morgan Stanley TMT conference carried live on the group's Web site.