Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting

What Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting does

Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting, LLC ("CavMac") is a US-based actuarial consulting firm founded in 2005 by Tom Cavanaugh and Ed Macdonald that serves exclusively state and local government retirement systems and benefit plans. The company operates from offices in Kennesaw, Georgia and Bellevue, Nebraska, and works only for public-sector clients, explicitly differentiating itself from diversified consulting firms that also serve corporate plans. CavMac serves as the retained actuary and healthcare consultant for multiple statewide and municipal retirement systems, with named anchor engagements including the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System (KPERS), the Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund, and the Fire & Police Pension Association of Colorado (FPPA).

The firm's service portfolio consists of five integrated consulting practices: Actuarial Valuation Services (liability determination, GASB reporting, employer contribution recommendations), Benefit Administration Services (annual employee benefit statements), Pension and Healthcare Consulting (plan design, funding strategies, DROP/PLOP analysis, healthcare modeling, RDS attestation), Proposed Legislation and Modeling (actuarial impact analysis on legislative changes), and Public Plan Support (trustee education, board training, and stakeholder seminars). In May 2026, CavMac launched the CavMac Pension Portal, a proprietary secure online platform developed internally to support Defined Benefit plan administration and enhance participant experience, marking the firm's first technology product. The underlying technology stack centers on actuarial modeling and pension administration workflows rather than consumer-facing software; no AI/ML capabilities are disclosed.

CavMac generates revenue through professional services fees under multi-year retainer arrangements (as retained actuary) and project-based consulting engagements with government entities. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and contracts are negotiated per government procurement. The firm reaches prospective clients primarily through industry conference participation (NCTR, NCPERS, NASRA, P2F2, IFEBP, NIRS, MAPERS, GAPPT), thought-leadership articles and issue briefs, email newsletter outreach, and active membership in national public-sector retirement associations. The firm has 11–50 employees with team experience averaging over 30 years in public sector consulting; current leadership includes CEO Ed Koebel, Presidents Alisa Bennett and Todd Green, Chief Actuary Brent Banister, and Principal Bryan Hoge.

Name

Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting

Legal name

Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting, LLC

Website

https://cavmacconsulting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting is a US-based actuarial and healthcare consulting firm serving exclusively state and local government retirement systems and benefit plans, providing actuarial valuations, pension and OPEB consulting, benefit administration, legislative modeling, and trustee education.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Actuarial Consulting Services

NAICS

Offices of Certified Public Accountants (541211)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Reporting & Technical Accounting Advisory (GAAP/IFRS) (BPAHABAF)

Keywords

• Actuarial consulting services
• Public pension valuation
• OPEB healthcare consulting
• Government benefit administration
• Legislative actuarial modeling

Headquarters

HQ city

Kennesaw

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Actuarial Consulting Services: Professional consulting services including actuarial valuations, benefit administration, pension and healthcare consulting, legislative modeling, and public plan support for government retirement systems. Revenue is generated through retainer arrangements as retained actuary and project-based consulting engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting (CavMac) provides actuarial and healthcare consulting services exclusively to state and local government pension and benefit plans. Its portfolio includes actuarial valuations, benefit administration, pension and healthcare consulting, legislative impact modeling, and public plan support education. The firm serves as the retained actuary for statewide and municipal retirement systems across the United States.

Product overview

CavMac is an actuarial consulting firm serving exclusively the public sector with a unified portfolio of consulting services. The core offering consists of five integrated service lines: Actuarial Valuation Services (pension and OPEB valuations, GASB reporting), Benefit Administration Services (annual employee benefit statements), Pension and Healthcare Consulting (plan design, funding strategies, healthcare modeling), Proposed Legislation and Modeling (actuarial impact analysis), and Public Plan Support (educational training and stakeholder education). Additionally, CavMac launched the CavMac Pension Portal in May 2026, a proprietary online platform for Defined Benefit Plan administration. These services work together to provide comprehensive support for statewide and municipal retirement systems and retiree health plans.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Actuarial Valuation Services
• Benefit Administration Services Provides annual employee benefit statements tailored to each active participant, offering concise one-page summaries of retirement benefits including accrued and projected benefits.
• Pension and Healthcare Consulting Comprehensive consulting services for governmental employers including benefit change consultation, DROP/PLOP/retirement incentive plan review, plan factors and calculations, funding and budgeting, healthcare plan design modeling, and RDS attestation.
• Proposed Legislation and Modeling Actuarial impact statements on proposed legislation, legislative modeling, and analysis of how legislative changes affect pension and healthcare plan financing, benefits, vesting, and fiduciary responsibility.
• Public Plan Support Educational seminars and training for Boards of Trustees, staff, commissions, and public-sector stakeholders. Includes educational training for effective decision-making and understanding actuarial concepts.
• CavMac Pension Portal A secure, online platform designed to support Defined Benefit (DB) Plan administration and enhance participant experience. Developed internally by CavMac to support public sector defined benefit plan administration.

Quantifiable outcome

• CavMac is the retained actuary and health care consultant for statewide and municipal retirement systems and health care plans

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac maintains active involvement with NASRA, participating in annual meetings and collaborating on industry issues affecting public retirement systems. The firm attends NASRA Winter System Roundtable and Joint Legislative Conference.
• National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems (NCPERS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac is an active participant in NCPERS conferences and educational programs, with team members presenting on topics including DROPs, pension funding, and public safety retirement issues.
• National Council on Teacher Retirement (NCTR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac serves as sponsor and presenter at NCTR conferences and trustee workshops, supporting the organization's mission of advancing teacher retirement system management.
• International Foundation of Employee Benefits Plan (IFEBP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac participates in IFEBP's Certificate of Achievement in Public Plan Policy (CAPPP) programs, with team members presenting on healthcare plan strategies and emerging health issues.
• National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac team members contribute to NIRS research and publications, including articles on defined benefit pensions and public safety workforce retention.
• Public Sector Healthcare RoundtablecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac participates in the Public Sector Healthcare Roundtable's annual conferences, connecting with industry experts on healthcare benefits for public employees.
• Public Pension Financial Forum (P2F2)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac is a conference sponsor and regular presenter at P2F2 events, including the annual conference and Pension 101 Training events for public pension professionals.
• Conference of Consulting Actuaries (CCA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCavMac consulting actuaries participate in CCA annual meetings and contribute to white papers on public plan funding policies, including the CCA Public Plans Funding White Paper 2.0.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Milliman: Global actuarial and consulting firm with a substantial public-sector retirement practice. Competes with CavMac on larger state and municipal engagements where breadth of services and geographic reach matter.
• WTW (Willis Towers Watson): Global advisory firm with deep public-sector retirement and benefits consulting capabilities. A direct competitor to CavMac in retained-actuary and OPEB engagements, often with broader service bundling.
• Aon: Global professional services firm offering actuarial, retirement, and investment consulting to public-sector clients. Competes with CavMac in the same RFPs as a larger, multi-line incumbent.
• Mercer: Global consulting firm with a large actuarial and benefits practice serving public-sector plans. Competes with CavMac on integrated retirement and health engagements, often as a bundled-services incumbent.

Direct peers

• Segal Group: Large independent consulting firm providing actuarial, benefits, and investment consulting to public-sector plans. Overlaps with CavMac's core service portfolio for state and municipal retirement systems.
• Bolton: Actuarial and benefits consulting firm with a dedicated public-sector practice. Competes with CavMac on pension and OPEB valuation, healthcare consulting, and legislative modeling for government clients.
• Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company: One of the largest US actuarial consulting firms dedicated exclusively to public-sector retirement systems. GRS competes head-to-head with CavMac in retained-actuary RFPs for state and municipal pension and OPEB plans.
• Foster & Foster: Actuarial consulting firm serving primarily public-sector retirement systems across the US. Offers nearly identical service lines (valuations, GASB reporting, benefit administration) to CavMac's core practice.
• Cheiron: Independent actuarial consulting firm with a strong public-sector retirement practice. Directly competes with CavMac for retained-actuary mandates from state and local government pension systems.

Emerging players

• Buck Global: Mid-sized actuarial, benefits, and retirement consulting firm with growing public-sector exposure. Competes with CavMac on state and municipal pension and OPEB advisory engagements, often overlapping on plan-design and funding-policy work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cavanaugh-macdonald-consulting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cavanaugh Macdonald Consulting