In 1959, Montreal hosted the first CFA Institute Annual Conference outside of the U.S. Fifty-seven years later, the conference returned to Quebec’s largest city, achieving a record attendance of more than 2,000 delegates from 70 countries. Over four days in May, participants had an opportunity to interact with colleagues from around the world, to learn about and understand CFA Institute initiatives, and to listen to leading experts speak on relevant topics in today’s fast-changing finance profession. The message was simple: we must work together to produce a more ethical and effective investment profession.

Welcoming the attendees to the conference, Paul Smith, CFA, president and CEO of CFA Institute, provided an update on the Institute’s initiatives. He acknowledged the excellent work being done by CFA Institute and its members but also emphasized the need for continued improvement in order to ensure a stronger, more trustworthy investment profession. To help advance its mission, CFA Institute will focus on three strategic outcomes:

• setting professional high standards;
• creating business models geared toward achieving investor outcomes; and
• advocating for regulations that align firms and clients.

He called on all CFA Institute members to take an active role in transforming the perception of our industry by adopting the following four “A’s”:

• advocating publicly for higher educational and ethical standards in the industry, individually or through your company;
• acting to broaden awareness of the difference a CFA charterholder can make with clients;
• adopting CFA Institute codes—the Asset Manager Code of Professional Conduct and the Global Investment Performance Standards—at your firm; and
• asking your HR department what your firm is doing to support the next generation of investment management professionals.

FINANCE AS A FORCE FOR GOOD

Investment professionals must be both technically competent and ethically minded. Using finance as a tool to improve the world is vital. But, increasingly, investors are no longer satisfied with financial benefit alone. Environmental, social, and governance factors are also important aspects of investment analysis and decision-making. Social entrepreneurship and impact investing are increasingly gaining traction, and investments with a social or environmental benefit—such as sustainable trade financing, affordable housing, clean energy, and clean water access—are becoming an important part of investment portfolios.

This theme was apparent in several comments by the high-profile speakers in attendance.

Daniel Goleman, an author, psychologist, and science journalist, noted that we need to develop a metric for the “proportion of goodness” wealth creates.

David M. Rubenstein, co-founder and co-CEO of The Carlyle Group, spoke candidly about the economy, investment environment, and philanthropy.

And Bob Geldof, musician, businessman, and political activist who founded the 8 Miles Fund, closed the conference by discussing the importance and benefits—both financial and social—of investing in Africa.

THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE

As the world goes through a period of rapid change, the financial industry is affected on many levels and must adapt and evolve to stay competitive. Central bank policies, geopolitical issues, and technology are just a few of the factors speakers touched on. Amy Myers Jaffe, executive director for energy and sustainability at the University of California, Davis, and chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Future of Oil & Gas, discussed the trends and changes in the global energy market.

Peter Zeihan, president and founder of Zeihan on Geopolitics, spoke about demographic concerns faced by countries around the world. He also addressed issues in the Middle East and the resulting financial, economic, and military developments in the area.

BEYOND THE NUMBERS

It’s no longer sufficient simply to be a technical expert. Increasingly, soft skills, such as the ability to communicate clearly and relate to clients, play a role in the success of investment professionals. Tom Brakke, CFA, a consultant and author of The Research Puzzle, discussed effective communication. We must get better at communicating with others so they understand what we know, he said, adding that, in order to build trust, we need to be able to say “I don’t know.” Lastly, he noted that good listeners are good analysts, because they pick up on what’s not said.

Jeremy Hunter, associate professor of practice at the Drucker School of Management and founding director of the Executive Mind Leadership Institute, talked about multi-tasking, mindfulness, and managing attention. He challenged the idea that multitasking is productive, pointing out that it actually fragments attention and produces poor results.

The conference was well organized and delivered a good mix of networking events, continuing education sessions, and coverage of current events affecting the finance profession. View select videos of the conference at http://livestream.com/livecfa.