Society Members –

I just returned from the CFA Institute’s annual Americas Regional conference, held this year in Miami, FL. Also attending the conference were Society Vice President Mark Peiler, CFA and two of our Society staff, Mark Salter, CAE, ABC and Diane Senjem.

The Americas Region is the largest of three regions into which the Institute has grouped Societies: the other two are Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and the fastest growing region, Asia Pacific (APAC). Even though this conference was a regional conference I once again came away impressed with the global reach of the charter. I listened to presentations from Society leaders from Mexico and Cayman Islands, networked with charterholders from Bozeman, Bahamas, and Boston, and attempted to keep up at social events with the Argentinians.

I want to convey to the members of CFA Society Minnesota my takeaways from the conference. The theme of the conference was “Ideas to Impact.” Too often great ideas have little impact because there is no strategy in place to execute those ideas. This conference attempted to get all of us to focus on not just coming up with big ideas, but to consider our strategy for implementing those ideas to have the greatest impact on our membership.

After last fall’s Society Leadership Conference I wrote to you about the CFA Institute’s determination to better partner with Societies through additional funding, improved IT resources, better branding and increased dialogue between Institute staff and Society volunteers. I can attest that this has occurred over the past year and is expanding over time, which allows volunteers at the local Society level to better implement our ideas and have a bigger impact.

The Institute staff – from CEO Paul Smith to Society Relations personnel – continue to listen to us, involve us in major initiatives and provide funding for innovative programs and projects. Through the brand campaign they are raising awareness of the CFA charter amongst employers, clients, potential charterholders and regulators. Through the Asset Manager Code of Professional Conduct, now adopted by over 1,300 firms worldwide, they are leading the investment profession to maintain the highest standards of ethics when dealing with clients. Through their credentialing programs they are educating the next generation of investment professionals with the latest skills and knowledge required to work in the industry today.

We are part of an organization that has over 147,000 members in 158 countries, represented by 147 Societies. We are committed to upholding the highest standards of professional excellence and education, and I am excited to lead the local Society as we partner with the global body to develop future professionals, deliver member value and build market integrity.

Josh Howard, CFA
President, CFA Society Minnesota