Bios

Arthur Anderson is co-founder and principal of Morgan Anderson Consulting. Born and raised in Western Michigan, he did double degrees in chemistry and American economic history at Brown and focused on intellectual property antitrust and Federal practice at Yale Law School.

After law school he joined Fish & Neave (now Ropes & Gray), the leading New York IP Federal litigation firm with such clients as AT&T, IBM and Xerox. The entrepreneurial bug then hit him, and he co-founded with a college roommate a private investment management and technology research firm on Wall Street. With the advent of the NASDAQ computer terminal, this evolved into the first full-service discount stock brokerage firm. The firm could offer discounted brokerage fees, as it was not a NYSE member firm notwithstanding it cleared through a member firm.  As the firm advertised and prospered publicly, the NYSE came knocking on its door and tried to shut the firm down. Whereupon, Arthur initiated rule making at the Securities and Exchange Commission, Washington, DC, on the grounds that NYSE fixed commissions were anti-competitive under U.S. antitrust laws. The SEC agreed, whereupon any brokerage firm could offer discounted fees.  Competitive brokerage fees became the law of the land, and others entered the market including Charles Schwab. The brokerage model changed, and the rest is history.  Later the firm was sold to Fidelity as its discount brokerage arm. Arthur’s focus on Wall Street was also technology investment research, in particular the emerging cable television industry.

With his expertise in cable television and law, he then joined the management team at Teleprompter Corporation as legal counsel and corporate secretary where he founded its legal department.  Teleprompter was the largest cable television holding company and NYSE-listed, but it became the subject of a hostile takeover which it lost) Arthur returned to private law practice as partner in a small NY specialty law firm.

Always having had an interest in marketing, Arthur shifted his focus from law and co-founded Morgan Anderson & Company, marketing strategy advisors. This evolved into Morgan Anderson Consulting, marketing communications management consultants. At the time ad agencies were extremely profitable given media inflation and opaque fixed commissions (much like earlier NYSE brokerage rates). Morgan Anderson’s business premise was, rather than paying opaque fixed commissions based, a major advertiser should require its ad agencies to be transparent and be compensated by a fixed annual fee based on full disclosure of the agency’s scope of work, staffing plan, and economics for the client.  Using Morgan Anderson’s proprietary methodology and databases, agency economics could benchmark.  This changed how ad agencies were compensated, and it became the methodology Morgan Anderson clients such as IBM, Novartis, Unilever, and GM used.  Morgan Anderson fee-compensation methodology became the global advertising industry standard and “best practice.”

Arthur’s interests in addition to management consulting include long-distance sailing (Cape Horn), high-altitude trekking (Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Switzerland), Buddhist art, and, particularly, researching and collecting 20th century American art.  In 2017 he donated his study collection of 1500 works of the Historic Woodstock Art Colony to the New York State Museum, Albany, where it was exhibited calendar 2019.  In 2023 the collection was loaned for exhibition at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, SUNY New Paltz, including in the endowed Morgan Anderson Gallery.  Given art a major interest, Arthur sits on museum and non-profit boards in the Hudson Valley, and Morgan Anderson serves as strategy advisors to artists, artist estates and foundations on developing and implementing strategies for enhancing and venue-placing art collections..

Eric R. Lapp is senior consultant at Morgan Anderson Consulting. Born and raised in New York’s Hudson Valley, Eric’s academic pursuits began in psychology and art history at SUNY Ulster and SUNY New Paltz. However his volunteer efforts lead him to a path toward administration and finance management. Some in formal roles as President of the Student Government Organization, and Vice President on the College Association board of directors, or less formal ways through various community volunteer work.

While working in the public sector at the Ulster County Department of Social Services he honed his research and investigative skills. As head of the UCDSS Resource Unit, he managed the auditing of applicant business operations. As well as review and investigation of any applicant assets or potential resources. Likewise Eric executed and managed any appropriate recovery efforts and repayment in accordance with Social Services law.

In the private sector Eric’s worked for Prudential Financial as a Financial Advisor and SEC registered representative. Leading to his position here at Morgan Anderson Consulting, as a key colleague doing research, data analytics, and reports. As well as having an instrumental role in researching, validating and managing of Arthur’s study collection of the Historic Woodstock Art Colony. 


Advisor/Consultants

Morgan Anderson utilizes experienced quality advisor/consultants for assignments. These are professionals we know, respect, and have a long standing relationship with us. Their participation helps us deliver a high value-for-money service to our clients.