Jack Williams
Senior Managing Director
Mesirow Financial Consulting
Excellence in Client Service
There can't be a whole lot of empty days on Jack Williams' calendar. A full-time consulting job is enough to fill up anyone's bandwidth. But not Williams.
For starters, Williams is an archaeologist. He is in the process of wrapping up his Ph.D. in the field. He is also tenured professor at Georgia State University College of Law and the Middle East Institute. What could archaeology, teaching and consulting have in common?
Plenty, says Williams, including the fact that he's "used the tools and techniques I have encountered and mastered in archaeology to provide insightful and creative solutions to challenges confronted by my clients." And this semester, he's teaching an advanced business reorganization class focusing on businesses in financial distress related to Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Every phase of the class is a reflection of work he is doing or has done over the last three years, he says. Plus, he "really enjoys the interaction with my students as a university professor.
So much so, in fact, he was voted Professor of the Year by the students in 2011. And, Williams also happens to be a Senior Managing Director with Mesirow Financial Consulting, where he brings more than 25 years of domestic and international experience in bankruptcy-related litigation, including fraudulent transfers and preferences; distressed business valuations; commercial damages modeling; crisis management, catastrophic risk management and business intelligence services.
Along with six other professionals, he helped establish the Atlanta office of Mesirow Financial Consulting, so that the firm could better serve clients in the Southeast.
"My team is the biggest factor to my success," he says. "Each member plays an important role in every engagement, and I am lucky to be surrounded by very talented people.
I am only as good as the weakest member of my team."
Embedded in that approach, he says, is the foundation of trust. "For a team to be successful, that trust must be mutual," he says.
"Knowing that my clients and my colleagues depend on me, act on the suggestions I make, and have, in many instances, bet their company on my advice" is all the motivation he needs, he says.
"I strongly believe that together we can make things better," says Williams. "The core of making business better is developing, maintaining, and nurturing relationships. Through relationships, we can help people and help the organizations run by those people."
Q&A: What does winning the Top 25 award mean to you?
"It is a great honor and means a lot to my team and me. It is an award given by colleagues who have traversed similar ground and met similar challenges. They not only appreciate, but also understand, the sacrifices that one must make to perform at this level."
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