Michael Ballou

Michael Ballou is a Managing Director in the Data & Analytics practice of FTI Consulting and is based in Boston. Michael has comprehensive expertise in database modeling for business analytics, complex financial system reconciliations and building analytic methods to investigate fraud in the financial sector.

Michael has extensive experience driving quantifiable business process improvements through data modeling and visual report development. His project work has enabled real-time multi-sourced sales forecasting, optimized salesforce behaviors based on key product and customer attributes, increased control over order to cash cycles and reduced human processing time for key recurring analyses.

To achieve successful process improvement, Michael works with business leaders to define areas where enhanced reporting would be most impactful. His teams connect disparate data sources through a centralized platform, highlight data gaps and work with data owners to resolve critical issues. Michael and his teams interview business stakeholders to define and develop logic to support actionable reporting then create, distribute, and transition a suite of visual reports that drive process improvement. Utilizing a combination of relational database functionality, APIs, automation scripts and data visualization software, Michael’s teams create end-to-end processes that refresh reports at a regular cadence with minimal human interaction, saving valuable time, reducing human error, and allowing business leaders and managers to easily review metrics and track progress towards goals.

Michael has also designed and executed multiple financial reporting system reconciliations that have allowed him to better understand clients’ diverse underlying data structures. Utilizing system mappings and account hierarchies, Michael has built refreshable SQL-based models that compare legacy systems to newly implemented reporting structures. His experience includes presenting variances to key business stakeholders for review and approval, as well as coordinating with implementation teams to execute business decisions in new systems.

Throughout Michael's career, he has also developed analytical testing methods to support financial fraud investigations at both financial services firms and corporations. Utilizing relational databases to analyze trading patterns, fixed income position movements and wire transfer activity, Michael has designed and executed tests to identify and track specific behavior patterns and data characteristics associated with fraudulent transactions and flag suspicious activity for review.