Jeff Ransdell understood where it was coming from, but he was still struck by the fear and uncertainty he saw in those around him. After nearly 100 years of operation, Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. was no longer independent.
The formal announcement came down Jan. 1, 2009, as the world learned that the well-known wealth management firm had been acquired by Bank of America Corp.
With the global economy seemingly coming apart at the seams, Ransdell recognized that his people, employees and clients alike, might be feeling a little bit woozy about their future.
“We were part of Bank of America and we weren’t sure what we were really going to look like,” says Ransdell, regional managing director in Miami for Merrill Lynch in Florida and the Caribbean. “There were a lot of people that were scared and there was a tremendous amount of uncertainty. When people lack information, they tend to make things up. We wanted to take that out of the equation.”
That wouldn’t be easy as there were a lot of unanswered questions out there. What changes would take place under this new structure? How would jobs be affected? What would it all look like a year from now or even six months from now?
“The low point was the end of the first quarter of 2009 where our clients were very afraid, largely because of what they were reading and what they were hearing, which quite frankly had nothing to do with their individual financial future,” Ransdell says.
Unfortunately, perception had become reality. The combination of the Bank of America deal and the bad economy had created a state of high anxiety.
Ransdell needed to act fast.
“My biggest challenge was to get everywhere I could as quickly as I could,” Ransdell says. “This wasn’t something I could do via the phone. I needed to get out in front of people, hold their hands, sit down in front of them and be a great listener. ‘Tell me what’s on your mind. Tell me what keeps you up at night.’”
But what do you do when you have 67 offices filled with 1,858 employees across Florida and the Caribbean who all have their own questions? All of these people want to see you in front of them answering their questions and easing their fears about what’s going to happen next.
If you’re Jeff Ransdell, you grab your suitcase and hit the road.
