IDX 2009: Influential Men and Women in Derivatives Gather in London

By Jessica Titlebaum (Chicago)

London is one of my favorite cities so I jumped at the chance to travel across the pond to cover the International Derivatives Expo (IDX) last week.  Hosted by the Futures Industry Association (FIA) and the Futures and Options Association (FOA), the two-day event gathered some of the most influential players in the derivatives industry to discuss the ever-evolving trading landscape. The meaty agenda covered a wide range of topics, from the future of electronic trading to the arms race that is developing in the credit default swap sector.  

Almost one entire day of the conference was dedicated to discussing the sticky issue of clearing of credit default swaps (CDS), the swap contracts at the heart of the economic crisis. Competition in this estimated $62 trillion dollar sector has been heating up as leading exchanges prepare to launch their CDS clearing divisions. Currently, the InterContinental Exchange (ICE) is the only exchange offering credit default swap clearing services through their clearing arm, ICE Trust U.S., which began operating in March of 2009.  Since inception, it have cleared over $1 trillion in CDS index-based contracts.    Read more

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Faking It: Pretending to Go To Work When You Don’t Have a Job

Faking ItIn the 1997 blockbuster movie “The Full Monty,”  Tom Wilkinson’s character loses his job but fakes having one to hide the truth from his wife.

He gets up every morning, puts on his suit, tucks his morning paper under his arm and heads out, only to return home after five p.m. In today’s economy, with the unemployment rate rising steadily from 7.9 percent in January to 9.4 in May, almost everyone knows someone who is out of work. Is there still a need to be faking it? For some, yes.

Sara Clemence, co-founder of Recessionwire, a website that provides news, advice and perspective to urban professionals affected by the downturn, says that even though being unemployed has become more common, “it’s been a real ego blow for a lot of people.” Clemence says she’s seen a few women “faking it” or pretending to go to work when they don’t have jobs. Clemence says that while faking it may seem like a healthy response to losing a job, the people who do it are in denial.

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Ask-A-Recruiter: How Can You Ensure Your Resume Is Seen?

jobsearchContributed by Caroline Ceniza-Levine of SixFigureStart

What can I put in the resume to guarantee an interview? How do employers decide who to invite from the resume pile? What keywords can I use to make my resume stand out online?

I get a resume-related question at every workshop. I have written before and say in every workshop response that there is no magic bullet. What you put in a resume needs to be two things:

  1. authentic and true to you; and
  2. tailored to the employer you are targeting.

As you can see, these two attributes are different for everyone. Furthermore, even for one person, there may be a case for different resumes if the person is targeting very diverse employers.

The best way then to ensure your resume is seen is not by perfecting your resume, but by perfecting your job search. The best job search is proactive, so you are out in the market meeting people and talking to people. Your resume is one part of that campaign (resumes do lead to meetings) but never the only part. In fact, sometimes the best job leads result from a verbal pitch, and the formal resume is an after-thought after you have already started meeting with people.

So the best way for your resume to be seen is for you to be seen. Make sure the resume is a powerful and accurate depiction of your background, skills and experience. Use language and examples that engage your target sector. But do not rely on your resume for the heavy lifting in your job search.

Caroline Ceniza-Levine is co-founder of SixFigureStart, a career coaching firm comprised exclusively of former Fortune 500 recruiters. Prior to launching SixFigureStart, Caroline recruited for Accenture, Time Inc, TV Guide and others. Email Caroline at caroline@sixfigurestart.com and ask how you can attend a free SixFigureStart group coaching teleclass.

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A Call for Women to Serve on Corporate Boards

By Andrea Newell (Grand Rapids, Michigan)istock_000004780540xsmall1

As we have previously reported, a 2004 study by Catalyst, a global non-profit organization dedicated to expanding opportunities for women in the workplace, showed that Fortune 500 companies with more women board directors performed significantly higher than the companies with the least number of women board directors: 53% higher return on equity, 42% higher return on sales, and 66% higher return on invested capital.

As employees, consumers, investors, and voters, women play a significant role in the workplace and have a substantial impact on our economy. According to the 2008 article, Getting from a Good to a Great Board, “women make or influence 80% of consumer decisions and occupy more than 50% of managerial and professional positions.” Despite this huge consumer presence, women only represent 15.1% of corporate board directors, and that number drops to 3.2% for women of color.

So why don’t all boards just add a token woman and reap the rewards? A study by the Wellesley Centers for Women reports that “the magic seems to happen when three or more women serve on a board together.” One woman can have a strong impact, and two women are better than one, but “increasing the number of women to three or more enhances the likelihood that women’s voices and ideas are heard and that boardroom dynamics change substantially.” One woman is seen as having a “woman’s point of view,” but three women might have differing viewpoints on an issue – effectively negating that argument. The higher the number of women serving on a board, the more they are treated as individuals.

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In Case You Missed It: News Round-up

Martin Mitchel of CTGContributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group

In case you were too busy to have kept up with all the news, contributor Martin Mitchell has gathered some important market events from last week to help you start this week well informed:  

Mergers and Acquisitions

  • Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy after a deal to sell most of its assets to Fiat, the US and Canadian governments and the United Auto Workers healthcare trust was approved by a US appeals court. The deal sees Fiat hold an initial 20% stake that can rise by another 15%. Fiat is barred from taking majority control until Chrysler has repaid all taxpayer-funded aid, which stands at $4bn. Fiat will hold three seats on Chrysler’s nine-member board.    
  • German carmaker Porsche is in advanced talks about selling a 25% stake to the Qatar Investment Authority. Porsche is struggling under debt of more than €9bn and is in merger talks with Volkswagen.
  • UK college and training company BPP has agreed a £303.5m offer from Apollo Global. The two companies announced they were in preliminary discussions in April. Apollo Global is 20% owned by private equity group Carlyle and 80% owned by Apollo Group, a listed US education provider that owns the University of Phoenix and is the world’s largest provider of MBAs. In particular, the BPP deal has been driven by rising student rates in professional and legal markets and the strong international reputation of UK degrees.
  • Talks commenced on two private equity deals in the UK. Charterhouse Capital is hoping to buy energy research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie for around £550m. Wood Mackenzie is currently owned by Candover, and the plan will be financed with 50% debt and 50% equity, with incumbent banks led by Lloyds Banking Group remaining involved.
  • Lloyds Banking Group is also talking to the management team of the asset management arm it acquired when taking over HBOS last year. The managers of Insight Investment Management are hoping to use private equity backing to buy-out the third party business amounting to £74bn of funds under management. The in house business will remain within Lloyds banking Group and merged into Scottish Widows Investment Partnership.
  • Baxi, the UK boilermaker owned by private equity firms BC Partners and Electra Partners, is close to agreeing a merger. The merger partner is set to be a smaller Dutch rival De Dietrich Remeha Group. The merger rationale is thought to be partly based on solving Baxi’s debt problems, with some £445m of debt to be repaid between now and 2014.
  • India-based mining group Vedanta Resources is paying $368m in cash to buy rival iron ore producer VS Dempo. VS Dempo controls reserves of 70m tonnes of iron ore in Goa.

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Swine Flu (H1N1) and the Working Mother

istock_000009353072xsmall1by Liz O’Donnell (Boston)

While health officials scramble to control an influx of questions, guidelines and cases related to swine flu, or the H1N1 virus, another demographic is impacted–working parents. Schools have been closing all over the country. In Boston, at least six schools closed. In New York City, 16 schools closed. Entire districts have been shut down in Texas. Even in areas where the schools have remained open, students showing any flu-like symptoms have been asked to stay home for seven days. How do working parents, and especially professional women, manage their careers and their family-life under extenuating circumstances such as these?

Katherine Chalmers, a software marketing manager, is also the mother of two toddlers. Chalmers and her attorney husband have what they describe as a “carefully choreographed schedule that goes completely to hell when one of the kids gets sick.”

When that does happen, Chalmers and her husband choose from a number of options. Sometimes, one of them chooses to work from home. But Chalmers is quick to point out that this can be difficult with little children underfoot. Chalmers’ children are 14 months and 2 years old. “Working at home is very difficult,” she says. “They are not at an age they can play by themselves.”

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Underrepresented Minorities in Tech: African-American and Latina Women at Double Disadvantage

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African-American Woman with computerby Pamela Weinsaft (New York City) 

 

Last week, the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology released an eye-opening report. Entitled  “Obstacles and Solutions for Underrepresented Minorities (URM) in Technology”, the report examines why women—and men— from underrepresented minority (URM) backgrounds, namely African-American/Black; Hispanic/Latino, Native American, or Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, are generally in few in number in computer science and engineering fields.

 

Dr. Caroline Simard, Ph.D., Director of Research and Executive Programs at the Anita Borg Institute spoke with The Glass Hammer about her findings. 

 

The report states that [URM] represent 27% of the US population, hold 46 18% of Bachelor’s degrees in computer science, and 12% of engineering degrees,” but are only 6.8% of technical employees. Also, “since 1995, the representation of African-American and Hispanic/Latina women among computer science degree recipients has remained flat—Hispanic women earn less than 2% of computer science bachelor’s degrees. Despite the growth of the Hispanic population in the US, only 0.03% of all female Hispanic freshmen planned to major in computer science in 2006, the lowest of all Science and Engineering disciplines.”

 

Native American women are lagging as well: they represent less than 1% of computer science degrees. And, according to the report, “African-American women represent 4.8% of the graduate enrollment in computer science, yet they represent 7% of the US population.”

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In Case You Missed It: News Round-up

Martin Mitchel of CTGContributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group

In case you were too busy to have kept up with all the news, contributor Martin Mitchell has gathered some important market events from last week to help you start this week well informed: 

Mergers and Acquisitions

  • Data Domain, a data de-duplication company already under offer from NetApp for $1.5bn stock and cash, received a competing all cash $1.8bn offer from EMC, the world’s largest maker of storage systems and software.
  • London-listed insurer Amlin is buying the corporate insurance business of Fortis for €350m. It is being purchased from the Dutch government after it took over the Dutch assets of Fortis last October. Fortis Corporate Insurance focuses on marine, property and liability business in The Netherlands and Belgium.
  • The planned injection of $19.5bn by Chinalco into Rio Tinto was finally abandoned. The deal had been much criticised by Rio Tinto’s Australian shareholders because the Chinese were to own assets near Australian defence interests, and by the UK shareholders because they wanted to share in what they saw as very favourable terms. Instead, Rio is going to raise money via a $15.2bn rights issue, led by Credit Suisse and JPMorgan Chase, and by allowing rival BHP Billiton to enter into a joint venture on some iron ore mines in Australia for $5.8bn. Chinalco will enjoy the $195m break fee.    

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The “New” Homeless: Women on the Edge

istock_000003428207xsmall1-300x199.jpgby Liz O’Donnell (Boston)

The National Alliance to End Homelessness recently issued a report stating the current recession will cause more than 1.5 million additional Americans to experience homelessness in the next two years. Reflected in those numbers are professional women who never thought they were at risk to lose their security and independence. While the media sometimes refers to these women, and others affected by the economy, as “the new homeless,” those in social services simply say homeless is homeless regardless of the contributing circumstances.

Sue Marsh is the Executive Director of Rosie’s Place in Boston, the nation’s first homeless women’s shelter. Says Marsh, “Across the board, the first time a woman comes to Rosie’s without a place to stay is the worst day in her life. It’s a disorienting, horrific experience. That is very much in common for everyone.”

Marsh, who has worked at Rosie’s for ten years, says she is “very struck” by the similarities of the women she serves. “I am not seeing different, I am seeing more,” she says of the influx of women to the shelter. “People who are in different situations, people who owned homes, they experience the same kind of difficulties and emotions.”

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Linda Cook: Another Female Executive Feels the Effect of the Gender Recession

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linda_cook_cut_out.jpgby Caroline Shannon (Dayton, Ohio)

Early last week, Linda Cook, one of just two women on the Royal Dutch Shell board of directors, announced her decision to step down from her position at the company. The reason? Cook, a 29-year veteran of the company, was nixed for consideration as Royal Dutch Shell’s new chief executive officer, a position that is currently held by Jeroen van der Veer. The top spot will instead be filled by Peter Voser, the company’s current chief financial officer.

Cook’s relinquishment means she will be giving up the $1.26 million loyalty bonus she would have received had she stayed on board until 2011. Now, no one is suggesting the making of anti-men propaganda. The company said Ms. Cook left as part of a mutual agreement and will continue to advise the company until her new successor is implemented.

Instead, the real concern is the economic recession and the steadily declining tally — better known as women in the workplace — that is following close behind. But can the two be linked? Marilyn Tam, a global corporate consultant and executive director of the Us Foundation, says while it may be subconscious, the pair show a definite relationship. “In times of crisis people often revert to what they are most familiar with,” Ms. Tam said. “In the case of corporate America that frequently would mean that people gravitate towards people who look and think like themselves. Since the predominant number of top positions are filled by men, this can place women business leaders in a vulnerable position.”

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