Contributed by Holly H. Miller of Stone House Consulting, LLC
Executive Summary
Margins in the investment management industry are under siege, facing threats from both directions – lower fees and rising costs. The Glass Hammer / Stone House Consulting Survey of Buy-Side Industry Trends indicates that while regulators are contributing to the cost pressures, the industry’s own client base, together with the investment consulting firms that advise those clients, are a key factor in the equation. Not only are investors demanding greater due diligence, improved risk monitoring and controls, but they are calling for lower fees without any concession on the performance expectations, high levels of customization and quality client service they have always required.
Many managers, seeking to protect their margin, have responded in the market crisis with staff cutbacks and hasty outsourcing deals that, in some instances, have resulted in increasing operational risk within an investment management firm – or have set the stage for potential problems as the job market improves.
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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up
NewsContributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group.
The European Commission raised its forecast for European economic growth for 2010, while U.S. unemployment rose to 10.2% in October. These are but a few highlights of important market events that we’ve gathered to help you start the week well informed.
Economic Backdrop
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Giving for Good: Philanthropic Wealth Management
Industry Leaders, LeadershipBy Elizabeth Harrin (London)
Most people associate fund management with the hard-edged side of financial services. But it’s not all about fighting over the top stocks and knowing which off-exchange trading venue is hot. There’s a whole industry around getting the best out of other people’s money – philanthropic services.
“Our role is to offer guidance and support to our donors in every aspect of their charitable giving,” says Elizabeth Brown, Vice President of Philanthropic Services at the Marin Community Foundation, one of the largest community foundations in the U.S. It manages the assets of the Leonard and Beryl H. Buck Trust and 350 funds established by individuals, families, and businesses, and has invested over $800 million in the work of nonprofit organizations. “Each of our donors works with a personal philanthropic advisor to determine their giving strategy, which varies depending on their values and interest areas,” she adds.
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Why Aren’t There More Women on Corporate Boards in Australia?
Breaking the Glass CeilingBy Andrea Newell (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
In a previous article, we illustrated the positive impact that women can have on corporate boards, and how gender diversity on corporate boards translates into better business performance. While the number of women on corporate boards in the United States is still low, the representation of women on corporate boards in Australia is so dismal that Premier Anna Bligh called for Australian corporations to follow the example of the Australian government and set targets to increase the number of women on corporate boards.
The Australian government is determined to increase the proportion of women on government-appointed boards from 36 percent to 50 percent. The Australian corporate world is not only miles behind, the numbers have worsened in the last two years. The Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) has taken a census of women in leadership roles since 2002.
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Voice of Experience: Sabrina Callin, Managing Director, PIMCO
Voices of ExperienceBy Pamela Weinsaft (New York City)
“I think I ordered my first application to Harvard and Stanford’s Business Schools when I was roughly 10 years old,” said Sabrina Callin, a PIMCO managing director based in the firm’s Newport Beach headquarters. “My parents were both educators, and instilled a strong work ethic and belief in me that I could do anything I wanted to do. As a result, I was motivated from a young age by the ability to have an influence and make things happen.”
During her undergrad years at Texas Christian University—a school founded by her father’s ancestors back in the 1800s—Callin decided to pursue a career in finance, graduating with degrees in accounting, finance and economics. A focus on finance, she felt, would provide her with the opportunity to be in a “very dynamic and intrinsically interesting profession,” and could provide an opportunity gain unique insight and expertise that “is very broadly relevant, and well beyond the day-to-day workings of a given job.” In the period between her undergraduate and graduate programs, rather than heading to Wall Street as she’d originally planned, she earned her CPA. “I believed experience as a practicing CPA would provide me with an important knowledge base that would be beneficial for my longer-term career path.”
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Innovation: Finding the Way Out of the Recession
Managing ChangeBy Elizabeth Harrin (London)
The U.S. may have turned the corner and be on its way out of the recession, but what else is coming out of the recession? A new frugality? Consumers who will never invest in luxury products again? Not so. In fact, recessions have a history of giving us new and exciting things. The iPod was a product of the last recession, and this downturn also looks to be providing organisations with some great opportunities.
Julie Meyer, founder and CEO of Ariadne Capital believes that one of the things businesses could benefit from is the shift towards what she calls ‘individual capitalism’. “The unit of business has come down to the individual,” she says. There’s a focus on providing customers with a more personalised approach – whether that’s in financial services products or giving them the chance to tailor their coffee to their personal tastes on the way into the office each morning.
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Ask-A-Career Coach: Don’t Forget To Share Your Success
Ask A Career CoachI am often asked for my biggest networking pet peeve. One of my tops, if not the top, is when people whom I have helped don’t let me know what happened.
The best time to look for a job is when you have one. We all know that instinctively. Yet, when most job seekers get a job, the first things that go out the window are the good job search strategies that won them the new job. Now I’m not saying that you start posting your résumé updated for your new position while you fill out your new hire paperwork, but I am saying that you maintain your network and do all the good habits that support your career maintenance. One of the best habits gained during a job search is networking. One of the best ways to maintain your network is to give your thanks and share a success update.
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The Glass Hammer / Stone House Consulting Survey of Buy-Side Industry Trends
Featured, NewsExecutive Summary
Margins in the investment management industry are under siege, facing threats from both directions – lower fees and rising costs. The Glass Hammer / Stone House Consulting Survey of Buy-Side Industry Trends indicates that while regulators are contributing to the cost pressures, the industry’s own client base, together with the investment consulting firms that advise those clients, are a key factor in the equation. Not only are investors demanding greater due diligence, improved risk monitoring and controls, but they are calling for lower fees without any concession on the performance expectations, high levels of customization and quality client service they have always required.
Many managers, seeking to protect their margin, have responded in the market crisis with staff cutbacks and hasty outsourcing deals that, in some instances, have resulted in increasing operational risk within an investment management firm – or have set the stage for potential problems as the job market improves.
Read more
Voice of Experience: Joanne Kinsella, Managing Director, ITRS America
Voices of ExperienceWhen asked how she ended up in the financial technology industry, Jo Kinsella, managing director of ITRS America quickly answers: “Pure unadulterated chance.”
Indeed, her career path has wound through industries and countries, starting with French proficiency upon graduation from university from Leeds, England. And although she was able to write a thesis in the language, Kinsella did not want to be a translator. Without much office experience, she went to work as an office temp for Carlton Television but was soon promoted to full-time events manager, organizing and running corporate events, hospitality, and public relations for the shows they did around England.
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Bonuses: Are You Getting a Fair Deal?
NewsBy Elizabeth Harrin (London)
Ever wondered why we still have the gender pay gap? Well, women receive around 80 per cent less in performance related pay than their male colleagues in some of the UK’s top finance companies – and that is a large chunk of why women’s salaries differ from their male counterparts.
An inquiry into the finance sector by the U.K.’s Equality and Human Rights Commission has found that women are much worse off when it comes to receiving bonuses. The average performance related payout for female employees was just £2,875 compared to an average of £14,554 for men. It’s not simply a few highly paid men, or a skew toward women in administrative roles on low salaries, either. There was a gender pay gap for men and women in the same grade or job category – where both sexes are assumed to be doing the same actual job – in 63 per cent of cases.
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Rumblings and Mumblings at the FIA Expo
NewsBy Jessica Titlebaum (Chicago)
Mere days before the 25th Annual Futures & Options Expo began on October 21st, the Chicago derivatives market was all abuzz. The cause: the report last week by Crain’s Chicago Business that the CME Group was considering an acquisition of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). Whether the acquisition will come to fruition is still in question, dependent on a resolution of a lawsuit between the CBOE and the Chicago Board of Trade (owned by the CME Group) concerning the ownership of CBOE. But that didn’t stop speculation about the potential acquisition from making its way through the Expo.
John Lothian, the publisher of the John Lothian Newsletters, believes that this is a ploy to put a price on the options exchange. “CBOE knows that to realize the value of their franchise they need to demutualize and conduct a public offering. It is only for that price information that they will be able to entertain any potential deals,” said Lothian.
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