Faces of the Atlanta Fed: Mike Mauntel

September 30, 2024The Atlanta Fed's Mike Mauntel. Photo by Stephen Nowland

Mike Mauntel makes difficult things easy to understand. That includes his work as a bank examiner in the Atlanta Fed's Supervision and Regulation (S&R) Division.

Recently, for example, Mauntel sent an email revising his description of a bank examination, the process that helps ensure customers' bank deposits are handled properly. He felt the average reader might better understand the purpose of examinations if he provided some context.

Mauntel's revision began: "At a very basic level, banks make money by 'borrowing' from people like us (in the form of our deposits) and earning interest on the loans they make and collecting fees on the products and services they provide." He went on to observe that a bank examination "ensures a bank is operating in a safe and sound manner so that your money is there when you need it."

Mauntel's approach illustrates the reason he's been able to carve a niche as a player/coach in S&R. The position plays to his strengths. He's a bank examiner with a background in commercial lending and audit. He's a mentor whose influence is evident at the Atlanta Fed and across the Federal Reserve System.

"Everything in life is about relationships," Mauntel noted. "I am driven by opportunities that allow me to make a difference, whether it is in the lives of others (i.e., people) or on the way things get done (i.e., processes). When I look back on my journey here at the Reserve Bank, my accomplishments bear that out."

For the past two years, Mauntel has assisted the Atlanta Fed bank supervisor who's the main contact for a complex state member bank. In this role, he supports a broad scope of work to oversee the member bank, including supervisory activities, System initiatives, and risk management.

Manuel Medina, Mauntel's manager, said Mauntel "is always mindful and respectful" in dealing with others. "First and foremost, Mike is selfless," Medina said. "Mike is always looking out for everyone's well-being, and this is not just in work matters. You can count on Mike whenever something is needed. I have the utmost respect for him."

Prior to his current position, Mauntel was on a two-year rotation based at the St. Louis Fed. He led a Systemwide team responsible for the examiner commissioning program for community banking organizations, including continuing education programs for the examiners. The training programs aim to foster "the strong judgment necessary for examiners to make sound supervisory decisions while considering the unique facts or circumstances of each institution," according to a Minneapolis Fed article.

Mauntel started at the Atlanta Fed in 2013 and has spent his Bank career in S&R. He's handled community banks, regional banks, and large banks; each category has a unique set of responsibilities. Early in his tenure, Mauntel's supervisors recognized his leadership qualities. He was selected for the division's two-year high-potential staff development program. He's developed internal training courses and trained foreign examiners through a Board of Governors' program and also led the internship program for S&R.

Mauntel arrived at the Atlanta Fed at a time of sweeping reform in bank supervision and regulation. T he Federal Reserve Board was issuing a number of rules under the Dodd-Frank Act, enacted by Congress in 2010 in response to the financial crisis of 2007-08. More recently, he has served during an era in which the Fed has established programs to enhance the supervision of activities involving crypto-assets and bank relations with nonbanks to deliver financial services to customers.

"Innovation is critical to long-term success in any industry," Mauntel said of the evolving bank and financial sectors. "When it comes to financial service innovation, it's important to understand and address risks to ensure the safety and soundness of the banking industry. The Novel Activities Supervision Program established last year is an example of how that impacts our supervision of banks."

Mauntel portrays his career experiences as building blocks that enable him to perform his current work. The lessons started during his first job after college, with a Big Four accounting firm, which served as "boot camp for the real world, because it shaped my work ethic." Over the course of his career, he's learned to manage "for the greater good," using the "dominant" part of his personality, as defined in several DISC assessments. (DISC refers to the personality types of dominance, influence, steadiness, and conscientiousness.) He called the learning process "one of the most important things in my career development."

Joe Davidson, the Atlanta Fed's senior vice president for S&R, had a quick response when asked what question he would pose to Mauntel: "What's his secret to managing work/life balance?" Mauntel's answer: keep your priorities in order.

"I try to limit my work 'yes' to things that drive me, opportunities to make a difference, and prioritize the things that are important to me personally-faith, family, and fishing," he said. "Not being a workaholic often results in my family extending grace when work demands a little more. The tension is real. Make sure your 'yes' aligns with what is important to you."

The importance of family in his life is evident in his comments and those of his colleagues. Medina remarked on Mauntel's decision, with his spouse, to adopt a child to join their two children. Mauntel referred to a "significant professional sacrifice" his wife had made before he joined the Atlanta Fed when he credited their marriage as his greatest personal accomplishment.

"I am proud to be celebrating my 20th wedding anniversary in September," Mauntel said. "It is not always easy (because of me!), but, as Theodore Roosevelt said, 'Nothing worth having comes easy.'"

Mauntel's personal guidelines for life embody a lifetime of learning during a career spent in a rules-based environment. Some of his maxims include:

• "Humility is important. Also, it is important to 'walk the walk,' meaning that you seek feedback yourself, evaluate it, and adjust as needed.
• "There is only so much time in a day. There are only so many plates we can keep spinning.
• "Good rapport does not make difficult conversations easy, but I have found that it makes difficult conversations less difficult."

Elizabeth Olmstead, a communications manager in S&R, recalled a situation where Mauntel's demeanor to "walk the walk" helped foster a decision reached by committee. Mauntel co-led the committee, and Olmstead remembered that he remained quiet during a lively discussion in which he encouraged others to express their opinions.

"Mike intentionally held back," Olmstead said. "He let the conversation play out, and he encouraged everyone to share their perspectives. By reserving his input until the end, he avoided swaying opinions and let the group come to a collective decision. It was a great leadership moment."

Mauntel offered the following insight when asked if there is one rule, one insight, he could share with others to help them manage risks they face in their households.

"While risk is most often associated with a negative outcome, there is also a reward side to risk. Simply put, risk is a variable that can impact a desired outcome. At a very basic level, managing risks is a matter of knowing your goals, identifying the risks that could impact those goals, knowing how much risk you are willing to take, and determining how you are going to respond to the risks, especially the downside."

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