August 2016
Welcome to the CFALA e-newsletter, a periodic publication with stories about noteworthy events and programs sponsored or hosted by the society, guest articles by members, book reviews, and other items of interest to CFALA members. Click on the headlines below to read the full stories. And if you’d like to contribute a story suggestion or, even better, write an article, we’d love to hear from you. Please email Executive Director Laura Carney at laura@cfala.org.
*Please note that the content of this e-newsletter should not be construed as investment advice, nor do the opinions expressed necessarily reflect the views of CFA Society Los Angeles.
In this issue ...
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It's Not Always About Finance: The CFALA Community Outreach Committee
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CFALA Remembers Bonnie Baha
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Social Profile Guidance
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The Perception Gap between Investors and Managers
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Book Excerpt: Charles Ellis and the Index Revolution
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Millennials Remain Avid Fans of ETFs
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Millennials Will Be the First Generation To Earn Less Than Their Parents
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How Millennial Are You?
It's Not Always About Finance: The CFALA Community Outreach Committee
As one would expect in an organization such as CFA Society Los Angeles (CFALA), there are many Communities of Interest and Committees that revolve around something to do with finance. Members volunteer and participate in groups such as Alternative Investments and Private Wealth Management. Members serve on committees such as Career Development and Education. But for members who would like to contribute outside the world of finance, CFALA has recently added the Community Outreach Committee which is dedicated to serving the local community in activities not normally affiliated with finance.
The committee is co-chaired by Justine Fonseca, Mirjam Weber and Brian Morrison. Fonseca explains how the committee got started. “I was attending a CFALA women’s committee event in Santa Monica when Laura Carney approached me with the opportunity to spearhead a community outreach committee. She had recently attended a conference where she learned about Seattle and San Francisco societies’ community involvement. She said that she would like CFALA to follow in that same direction. Laura recalled a conversation where I told her about my volunteer work with the Ketchum Downtown YMCA. She thought that I would be a good fit for this committee. I was overwhelmed by the opportunity and agreed to help.”
The three committee members met each other for the first time one afternoon in downtown Los Angeles. Weber added, “I periodically volunteered on my own before this committee was formed. I thought it was a great way to engage others to do the same, help out our local communities, and promote the CFA name in a positive way.”
The committee has participated in several events already including assisting at LA Food Bank, a beach cleanup (with the Surfrider Foundation) and teaming up with The Compton Initiative to help beautify and transform Compton. According to Fonseca, the response has been all good. “The reaction has been overwhelmingly positive, not only from the organizations themselves, but also regular people in the respective communities. During the beach cleanup for instance, many people came up to our group to thank us for picking up trash, and to ask us what the CFA organization was all about (we were all wearing CFA T-Shirts). Our efforts were greatly appreciated across the board.”
The committee is relatively new, and participation has already been abundant. However, one of the goals for the new year is to get even more people to join in the efforts. Because the committee focuses on episodic volunteering – time commitment is limited to a one time event – members don’t have to be concerned with a long-term commitment to a committee or board. Still, because most events have been on Saturday mornings, it is often a bit tougher to get volunteers away from their weekend activities and pitch in. To help with that, there has been a focus on family friendly events such as the beach cleanup where volunteers can bring their kids. When the CFA Los Angeles Community Outreach Committee hosts an event, organizations such as the Surfrider Foundation and The Compton Initiative receive assistance. But the financial profession receives a boost also. “The financial sector still struggles with overall industry reputation,” Fonseca said. “What’s not emphasized is the fact that all CFA charter holders are bound to a code of ethics and standards of professional conduct. By engaging CFALA members in community outreach volunteer work, we’re helping to turn that image around.”
The initial goal was one event per quarter which is above the frequency for most CFALA committee events. The committee is already planning another LA Food Bank volunteer event which is scheduled to take place in December. Another beach cleanup is also likely in the future. Beyond that, the goals of the committee include increasing volunteer attendance, locating volunteer activities where finance skills are put to use, and possibly a Community Outreach Day where members take a day off work and volunteer as a large group.
The events are fully hosted so members are not asked to pay any additional amounts. There is often food and drink included. However, most importantly, members can have a direct impact on improving their community. Fonseca noted, “Aside from industry reputation, it’s also import to help serve the local community. There are so many organizations in need of help from volunteers. It’s great to lend a helping hand.”
By Tom Derse, CFA Back To Top ^^
CFALA Remembers Bonnie Baha
The CFA Society Los Angeles Board of Governors, staff, and community are deeply saddened by the recent loss of Bonnie Baha, CFA, CIC. Bonnie was a member of CFALA since 1989 and profoundly impactful to the financial community. Bonnie has contributed to CFALA in a variety of ways, but most recently has served on the CFALA Experts list for Corporate Credit. Her obituary on the Los Angeles Times can be found here and her bio for the CFALA Experts list is as follows:
Ms. Baha is the Senior Portfolio Manager of DoubleLine’s Global Developed Credit Group. Prior to DoubleLine, Ms. Baha was a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager overseeing the Corporate Bond group at TCW for 19 years. Before TCW, she worked for Deloitte & Touche, where she was a manager and specialized in the valuation of publicly traded and privately held companies in a variety of industries. Prior to that, she was employed as a Senior Analyst with Standard Research Consultants, a former division of Standard & Poor's Corporation. Prior to her graduate studies, she worked at Kidder, Peabody & Co. where she was responsible for the regional distribution of new issues and secondary offerings of corporate debt and equity securities. Ms. Baha received her BA in Political Science from the University of California at Irvine and her MBA from the University of Southern California. She is a CFA charterholder and a Chartered Investment Counselor.
On behalf of the CFA Society Los Angeles Board of Governors and staff, we send our sincere condolences to all of Bonnie’s loved ones.
By eNewsletter Staff Back To Top ^^
Social Profile Guidance
LinkedIn and Twitter members, please note: In August, the CFA Institute shared/tweeted a link to the latest social profile guidance. It's designed to help us properly display, in accordance with the Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct, our status as CFA charterholders, CIPM certificate holders, Claritas certificate holders, or as candidates of one of the CFA Institute's educational programs. Read more... Back To Top ^^
The Perception Gap between Investors and Managers
Do your clients want what you are offering? There may be a huge gap between what investors say they want and what the investment management industry is delivering. In this article, Kurt Schacht, JD, CFA and managing director of the Standards and Advocacy division of CFA Institute, presents the main findings of the 2016 joint CFA Institute and Edelman study,
Book Excerpt: Charles Ellis and the Index Revolution
In this exclusive excerpt for Institutional Investor from his upcoming book,
Millennials Remain Avid Fans of ETFs
Lower fees, efficient diversification, and ease of access to a broader range of market segments and strategies are some of the reasons why ETFs are comprising as much as 41% of millennials’ portfolios. In this TheStreet.com article, journalist Ellen Chang reports on the findings of
Millennials Will Be the First Generation To Earn Less Than Their Parents
In this July World Economic Forum article, formative content writer Joe Myers walks us through the findings of a report by the UK-based Resolution Foundation's new Intergenerational Commission. According to the report, not only did UK millennials have a poor start as a result of the Great Recession, but their future earnings could also experience downward pressure as a result of the current economic uncertainty. Myers concludes by briefly discussing similar findings across Western economies.
How Millennial Are You?
In 2010, the Pew Research Center used the results of one of its surveys to construct a quiz for gauging "how 'millennial' you are." One Baby Boomer/Generation X "cusper" on your Curated Content staff scored an 86. Read more... And more... Back To Top ^^
