Appearance: CFA Society of Chicago 2013 Conference

I’m really excited to be en route to Chicago today. I’ll be seeing a few clients and prospective clients while in town as well as visiting new and old friends from around the financial and trading community. Tonight I’m grabbing dinner with my pals Tadas Viskanta (Abnormal Returns), Tom Brakke (Research Puzzle) and the blogfather Howard Lindzon – I really can’t wait!

I’m hoping to make a quick appearance at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), I’ve never seen the trading floor there before. I also hope to get a few minutes to walk up and down Michigan Avenue, one of my favorite streets in any city, anywhere.

But the main event takes place tomorrow, I’ll be live onstage at the Spertus Institute Theater for the CFA Society of Chicago’s 2013 Education Conference. The theme this year is about rethinking theories and models, I’m there to discuss the new paradigm of institutional investors and analysts using social media as both a means of collecting information and sharing research. David Rosenberg, who is always terrific, is doing the lunch session keynote, there are some other great speakers as well.

The details are below if you’re in town and want to try to squeeze in last minute:

CFA Chicago Education Conference 2013: Rethink Financial Theories and Models

Rethink Financial Theories and Models
3/5/2013 8:00am – 5:30pm
VenueSIX10; Spertus Institute
610 S Michigan Ave.,
Chicago, IL 60605

Date, Time, and Location:
Tues., March 5, 2013
8:00am – 5:30pm
VenueSIX10; Spertus Institute, 610 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60605

Program Description:
Rethink Financial Theories and Models This one-day education conference will focus on how recent and future events may make us rethink the wisdom of current financial theories and models. We will bring the financial industry’s top experts and educators together for lectures and panel discussions designed to question our assumptions and challenge our decision-making processes. Speakers will share their insights on Sovereign Debt, Alternative Investments, Risk Management and Business Cycle Research.

Educational Conference Sponsorship Info and Availability

Speakers:

• Lakshman Achuthan – Co-founder & COO, Economic Cycle Research Institute
• Dr. Ranjan Bhaduri, CAIA, CFA – Chief Research Officer & Head of Product Development, AlphaMetrix Alternative Investment Advisors
• Tom Brakke, CFA – Principal, tjb research; Founder and Author, The Research Puzzle Blog, www.researchpuzzle.com
• Josh Brown – Advisor, Fusion Analytics; Founder and Author, The Reformed Broker Blog, www.thereformedbroker.com
• Tom Coleman – Executive Director, Becker Friedman Institute, Univ. of Chicago
• David Hale – Founding Chairman, David Hale Global Economics
• Sam Kunz, CAIA, CFA – Chief Investment Officer, Chicago Policeman’s Annuity and Benefit Plan
• Howard Lindzon – Co-founder and CEO, Stocktwits, www.stocktwits.com
• Roxanne Martino – CEO, Aurora Investment Management L.L.C.
• David Rosenberg – Chief Economist & Strategist, Gluskin Sheff
• Joseph Scoby – Chief Executive Officer, PEAK6 Advisors
• Conference Chair: Peter Cook – Chief Investment Officer, Performance Trust Investment Advisors

Session Descriptions:

Welcome/Opening Keynote; The Yo-Yo Years: More Recessions in the West and Volatility for the Rest – Lakshman Achuthan
Less than three years after the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) ended, most developed economies relapsed into recession despite unprecedented monetary policy easing. This was no surprise to ECRI, given certain longer-term patterns it had identified even before the GFC began in 2008. Those patterns imply that we are now in the “yo-yo years,” promising more frequent recessions for most developed economies and more cyclical volatility for the rest of the world.

Session 1: Economy and Markets – David Hale
Why is it important to understand events in seemingly unrelated parts of the world? The modern financial and economic systems have become much more complex and tightly integrated over the past several decades, and David Hale, with his extensive list of contacts with policy makers across the globe, will explore sovereign debt issues and identify other international investment themes.

Session 2: Beyond Volatility and VaR: Moving from Risk Measurement to Risk Management – Tom Coleman
The increasing complexity of securities and sophistication of markets requires that as managers we must understand and utilize quantitative risk tools. But measuring risk takes us only so far – we must take the next step and effectively manage the risk. Tom Coleman, whose background contains a rare combination as the head of risk management for large hedge funds plus strong academic credentials, will provide valuable insights into evolving investment and risk management methods.

Luncheon Keynote – The Investment Outlook for 2013: Income Outcome – David Rosenberg
Cash may be the ultimate in capital preservation, but it earns you nothing and as such offers nothing in terms of generating any future return for you and your family. In a 0% return environment, notwithstanding all the uncertainties across so many levels — financial, economic and geopolitical, cash is not king. What is king is cash flow, however. In other words, maintaining a defensive and income-oriented investment strategy will yield the best outcome.

Session 3: Social Media and a New Information Era for Investors – Tom Brakke, CFA; Josh Brown; Howard Lindzon
How has the dissemination and analysis of information changed over the past decade? Does that change threaten the role of the sell-side analyst, asset management firm, or buy-side investment analyst? An entrepreneur/investor, an advisor, and a charterholder will discuss their experience in the capital markets and how they achieved significance among the many who post their investment thoughts via the internet.

Session 4: Alternative Investments Panel – Dr. Ranjan Bhaduri, CAIA, CFA; Sam Kunz, CAIA, CFA; Roxanne Martino; Joseph Scoby
Are hedge fund investments worth the fees? Does time horizon play an important role in answering that question? How should an institutional investor construct portfolios? Roxanne Martino, whose hand is on the pulse of the rapidly-changing hedge fund business, helps answer these questions by reviewing the most recent data to decompose hedge fund alphas and betas.

Conference Chair:
Peter Cook, CFA, is the Chief Investment Officer at Performance Trust Investment Advisors. He is responsible for all aspects of the firm’s investment activities including portfolio management teams and risk management. Cook is also involved in determining the strategic direction of the firm. Prior to joining PTIA, he founded and managed Rochester Partners, a long/short equity hedge fund, from 1997 through 2006. Previously, he ran an equity hedge fund for Templeton Global Investors and managed Templeton’s global equity trading desk in Nassau, Bahamas. Before working at Templeton, Cook was Vice President in interest rate and currency swaps at UBS in New York, and achieved his CPA certification in 1982 while employed at Deloitte & Touche. Cook received a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from University of Illinois in 1982 and an MBA with a Specialization in International Finance from University of Chicago in 1987. He is currently an active leader in the CFA Society of Chicago, focusing on continuing education issues.

Who Should Attend:
Anyone who realizes that the successful investing in the future will require different insights and frameworks than what has worked in the past. The data supporting that statement is return and volatility of performance over the past decade for stocks, bonds, and commodities. While fixed income managers have created good performance over that time frame, new dangers lurk as interest rates approach their lower bounds in an environment of financial repression.

• CIOs (Chief Investment Advisors)
• Portfolio Managers
• Securities Analysts
• Risk Managers
• Financial Advisors
• RIAs (Registered Investment Advisors)
• Wealth Managers
• CFPs (Certified Financial Planners)
• Corporate Financial Managers
• Consultants
• Pension Managers
• Academics

You Will Learn:

• How to adapt to a rapidly-changing environment
• The broad trends that will shape the future of investment theory and practice
• New frameworks for thinking about the relationship of return and risk
• How to integrate international events into your investment thinking
• How the asset management business is changing in a post-2008 world

Fee*:
Members: $275
Non-Members: $350

CFA Institute Qualified Activity: Eligible for 7 credit hours
Menu: Continental Breakfast, breaks, lunch and reception will be provided.
Attire: Business Casual
Hosted by: Education Advisory Group

Agenda:
8:00 – 8:30am – Registration/Continental Breakfast
8:30 – 9:30am – Welcome/Opening Keynote (Achuthan)
9:30 – 10:30am – Session 1: Economy and Markets (Hale)
10:30 – 10:45am – Networking Break
10:45 – 11:45am – Session 2: Risk Management (Coleman)
11:45 – Noon – Networking Break
Noon – 1:15pm – Keynote Luncheon (Rosenberg)
1:15 – 1:30pm – Networking Break
1:30 – 2:45pm – Session 3: Social Media and a New Information Era for Investors (Brakke, Brown, Lindzon)
2:45 – 3:00pm – Networking Break
3:00 – 4:30pm – Session 4: Alternative Investments Panel (Bhaduri, Kunz, Martino, Scoby)
4:30 – 5:30pm – Networking Reception

Link:

CFA Chicago Events