Dear Fellow Charterholders and CFA Society Chicago Members:
Based on feedback we have received, we are initiating this quarterly Chairman of the Board Message to all our members. The intent is to keep the membership informed of the activities and priorities of the Board of Directors.
This Board for the 2016 – 2017 fiscal year met for the first time on July 27, 2016. We began the session by reviewing the previous year and are happy to report CFA Society Chicago finished the 2015 – 2016 fiscal year on June 30, 2016 with strong with reserves of nearly $1.89 million on revenues of $1.4 million. Membership grew to a record 4,563 members, a 2.7% increase from a year ago. We finished the year with an operating loss of $86,600 versus a projected loss of $185,000. The unrealized loss was $18,400 for a total Net Loss of $105,000. During the year, over 140 events were held ranging from 25 to 1,200 participants.
Two primary areas of focus for the 2016 – 2017 period will be to promote Employer Engagement and Society Volunteerism. The Society has developed tools and reports to track the levels of each, and we will utilize the information to target growth areas during the year. The success of our programming depends on our volunteers and their employers support. We aspire to develop a community of inclusion, diversity and respect, which is one of our five organizational pillars. Please get involved!
We also discussed and continue to evaluate opportunities in the areas of Advocacy and Financial Literacy which will continue to be developed over the coming year by a new Advocacy Task Force and the Membership Engagement group, respectively.
The CFA Institute has begun to elicit feedback from the Societies on the Continuing Education (CE) program. As part of this process, David Larrabee, CFA, Director, Member and Corporate Products with CFA Institute, attended the board meeting and presented an overview of the current CE program. CFA Institute is examining the voluntary status of the program and assessing the effects of making it mandatory. There are no near term plans to make CE mandatory but the Institute is seeking input globally on the matter, as well as the broader topic of how it might strengthen the current CE program.
The Board discussed in detail many of the issues that would need to be addressed before mandatory CE would be considered such as: encompassing current employer training and educational programs, incorporating other professional designation CE programs and events, and developing a robust, accessible and affordable programming.
The Board offered suggestions on incentives to encourage members to take continuing education which included an online assessment when renewing membership, a recognition program for members that take continuing education, and a communication presenting the value proposition on why continuing education is important.
We would like to thank Mr. Larrabee and the Institute for providing us the opportunity to discuss continuing education. We are anticipating additional information regarding important issue in the future and we will keep you apprised of any developments.
During the next few weeks CFA Society Chicago will be holding events including the Distinguished Speaker Series luncheon programs featuring Jeff Ubben, Chief Executive Officer of Value-Act Capital, on September 21st and Jimmy Levin, Managing Director of Och-Ziff Capital Management, on Oct 4th. The Education Advisory Group will be presenting “Investing in Innovation” on September 28th. Please visit www.cfachicago.org for additional information and registration details.
The end of summer also means CFA Society Chicago’s Annual Dinner is around the corner, with this year’s event being held at Navy Pier on November 2, 2016. Registration for the 30th Annual Dinner is now open and features Cliff Asness, Managing Principal and CIO of AQR Capital, as this year’s keynote speaker. The Hortense-Friedman Award for Excellence will be presented to Richard Ennis, CFA, and posthumously to George Norton. If you are interested in sponsoring this year’s dinner please contact Kim Augustyn, Director of Programming and Sponsorship at kaugustyn@cfachicago.org or (312) 251-1301.
The strength of CFA Society Chicago benefits from the efforts of all our volunteers and the support of our local firms. We hope to continue to be a leading voice and a resource for our members and your firms. Thank you to all the current volunteers and the support of your firms. If you would like to learn more about how you or your firm can participate in our programming opportunities, please reach out to CFA Society Chicago at (312) 251-1301 or info@cfachicago.org.
Sincerely,
Douglas Jackman, CFA
Chairman, CFA Society Chicago