THIS PAST YEAR, CFA Society Toronto has made excellent strides towards achieving all of our initiatives within three strategic objectives. As the fiscal year ends, this is a suitable time to reflect on how we’ve prioritized each strategic objective as we usher in the next year. Here are some key initiatives we have recently undertaken. 

Increase growth and connectivity for key stakeholders 

Our members remain vital stakeholders and the driving force behind our successes. Providing opportunities to help foster collaboration and camaraderie among members allows us to build our community and stay connected with one another. In March, we hosted a sold-out new member reception at Judy’s cocktail lounge to welcome CFA Society Toronto members who joined the Society in the past three years. The reception provided a unique opportunity for our newest members to build relationships with other financial professionals, Society staff, and Board members and provide us with welcome feedback on Society events and services. 

I have also hosted a series of small-group breakfast sessions with some of our early cohort of charterholders to get their thoughts on what we do well, what we can do differently, and how they can assist in these efforts. I look forward to several more sessions and to perhaps formalizing these groups in some manner. 

The Annual CFA Charter Recognition (Class of 2022) event, held at the end of April, was an outstanding success! I am always moved when celebrating with our newest charterholders. They bring enthusiasm and excitement to the organization. Congratulations to the more than 400 who attended the sold-out evening and to the whole cohort of 815. We look forward to your participation with CFA Society Toronto. 

Build designation value 

We continue to collaborate with CFA Institute to promote the value of the charter. We are utilizing our communication platforms to help promote general awareness of the designation and the Evolution of the CFA^® Program, most notably, the six recent updates to the Program. In particular, this April, we hosted roundtable sessions with senior industry leaders and executives. We appreciated their valuable insight on these changes and their view on how it will impact their organizations as we look to enhance the Program with relevant skills for a rapidly changing world. Sessions such as these remain the cornerstone of our efforts to increase our connectivity with key stakeholders and build designation value and awareness. 

Advance sustainability and resilience for the Society 

Strengthening our technology and communications tools to better reach our desired audiences continues to be a priority. Digital ad campaigns, social media promotion, and a targeted electronic presence have allowed us to gain increased impressions and engagement from an audience that shares our core values and would benefit from Society membership. 

In the coming months, we will launch Higher Logic, a community and communications-based platform designed as a forum where members can share insights on specific topic areas and get advice from their colleagues, all of which speaks to our objective of building a strong CFA Society Toronto community. 

Thank you for working alongside us to help move the needle closer to our strategic goals. I wish you all a wonderful summer and look forward to connecting soon. 

All the very best, Fred