Please note the schedule is subject to change.
Sunday, 12 May 2019
12:00–19:00
12:00–17:00
14:00–16:30
The Research Foundation Workshop for the Practitioner
The Research Foundation Workshop for the Practitioner draws from the work supported by the CFA Institute Research Foundation to help participants enhance their practical investment knowledge, understand and apply new research, and contribute to effective client service. This is an optional, free workshop for delegates of the 72nd CFA Institute Annual Conference.Ted Aronson, CFA,
Ted Aronson, CFA, Workshop Moderator
Founder and Managing Principal
AJO
Popularity: A Bridge between Classical and Behavioral Finance
Roger G. Ibbotson
Professor in the Practice Emeritus of Finance, Yale School of Management
Chairman, Zebra Capital Management, LLC
The Future of Investment Management
Ronald N. Kahn
Managing Director and Global Head of Systematic Equity Research
BlackRock
- Investment management is in flux, arguably more than it has been in a long time.
- This changing landscape includes seven key trends that are affecting the future of investment management.
- We are evolving toward a world with three distinct types of products, each with their own challenges and requirements for success.
14:00–15:00
Beyond the Numbers Sessions
Beyond the Numbers Sessions provide training in soft-skills in a variety of areas of personal development for investment professionals.
14:00–15:00
The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload
Daniel Levitin
Founding Dean of Arts and Humanities, Minerva Schools at KGI
James McGill Professor Emeritus, McGill University
- The information age is drowning us with an unprecedented deluge of data while we’re expected to make more—and faster—decisions about our lives than ever before.
- Discover how cognitive neuroscience research into attention and memory can be applied to the challenges of our daily lives.
- Obtain methods to regain a sense of mastery over the way we organize our homes, workplaces, and time.
- Learn how the latest findings in cognitive neuroscience can help all of us increase our well-being, productivity, and creativity.
14:00–15:00
Investment Professional of the Future: New Research from CFA Institute
Rebecca Fender, CFA
Head, Future of Finance
CFA Insitute
Paul Smith, CFA
President and CEO
CFA Institute
Roger Urwin, FSIP
Global Head of Investment Content, Willis Towers Watson
Co-Founder, Thinking Ahead Institute
- Changing roles: How trends in the industry will affect investment roles, including tech substitution and the gig economy, and differences by region
- Changing skills: What skills will be most in demand and how investment professionals can “future-proof” their careers
- Changing cultures: Expectations of the pipeline of investment professionals, building effective teams, and differentiating firm culture to attract the top talent
15:30–16:30
15:30–16:30
Psychology and the Good Life: What the Science of Psychology Says about How to Lead a More Flourishing Life
Laurie Santos
Head, Silliman College
Professor of Psychology, Yale University
- Introduction to the most popular class ever at Yale
- The most common misconceptions about what makes us happy
- The top seven tips for what really can help us live a more satisfying life
15:30–16:30
Crashed: How a Decade of Financial Crisis Changed the World
Adam Tooze
Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Professor of History
Columbia University
- How did a global bank run threatened banks on both sides of the Atlantic?
- What did it take to restore stability, and could the rescue be repeated?
- How risky is the global financial system now?
17:00–18:15
Annual Conference Sunday Keynote: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing
Daniel Pink
Author, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, Drive, and A Whole New Mind
- Discover how to effectively confront the series of “when” decisions that apply in all aspects of our lives.
- Research from psychology, biology, neuroscience, and economics reveals that timing is a science, not an art.
- Understand how the hidden pattern of the day affects analytic and creative capabilities—and how simple work rearrangements can improve effectiveness.
- Learn how best to live, work, and succeed by identifying the timing for decision making.
18:30–19:30
Monday, 13 May 2019
08:00–18:00
08:00–16:15
08:00–09:00
09:00–09:30
09:30–11:45
Plenary Sessions
Plenary Sessions feature global thought leaders who provide big picture perspectives, innovative insights, and broad outlooks on current issues of interest to the entire audience.
09:30–10:15
The New World (Dis)Order
Peter Zeihan
President and Founder
Zeihan on Geopolitics
- The threats to the global order are not simply serious but are also mortal and unavoidable, setting the stage for at least two decades of global breakdown.
- Exploring the intersection between demography and finance—highlighting why something much worse than the 2007–09 financial crisis is right around the corner.
- Forecast how political evolutions in a host of countries are interacting with the Trump administration to remake the future of every country in the world.
10:15–10:45
10:45–11:45
Reinventing Capitalism in the Age of Big Data
Viktor Mayer-Schönberger
Professor of Internet Governance and Regulation
Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford
- Data isn’t just the new oil; it greatly enhances markets, thereby reshaping the economy.
- Data’s new role has profound implications for the financial services sector and for finance capitalism more generally.
- The biggest challenge for the data economy is structural, and competition rules are ill suited to address this challenge.
11:45–13:30
12:30–13:15
Sponsored Corporate Presentations
Sponsored Corporate Presentations offer a range of best practices, strategies, tools, tactics, and insights for successful investment management and financial analysis from senior-thought leaders at leading financial services firms.
13:15–13:30
13:30–15:15
Technical Workshops
Technical Workshops are interactive small group sessions designed to engage investment professionals in skill-building.
13:30–15:15
Progression beyond Regression: Using AI to Transform Traditional Analysis
Malcolm White, CFA
Portfolio Manager
Signature Global Asset Management – CI Investments
- Hands-on technical session focusing on how to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance analytic capabilities
- Introduction to a revolutionary AI technology called neural networks, followed by a walkthrough of how the technology can be applied to an actual financial prediction problem
- The solution will leverage the latest in cloud computing technology used by leading data science practitioners.
13:30–14:15
Concurrent Practitioner Sessions
Concurrent Practitioner Sessions explore key topics with analysis and commentary on investment trends and strategies, financial technology, career skills, psychology and decision making, and Brexit.
13:30–14:15
Global ETFs: Products and Trends
Deborah Fuhr
Managing Partner
ETFGI LLP
- Discussion and analysis of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and exchange-traded products (ETPs) being used by institutional investors and others
- Ways to use ETFs as a part of your investment strategy
- Advice for selecting an ETF for your portfolio
- Trends in ETFs: What the future may hold for robo-advisers, smart beta, ESG, thematic, active, China A shares, China bonds, crypto ETFs/ETPs
Topical Track: Global Opportunities
13:30–14:15
13:30–14:15
Digital Financial Attention
Jane E. Henshaw
Head of Digital Research
Vanguard Center for Investor Research
- Facebook and Amazon routinely study the attention customers pay to their websites; financial institutions should learn to do the same.
- In the era of “robo,” what can we learn from the emerging science of digital interactions with our finances?
- How can neuroscience help us understand the brain mechanisms of attention?
Topical Track: Capital Markets
13:30–14:15
The Perfect Financial Services CV
Victoria McLean
Founder and CEO
City CV
- Your CV/resume is your future. Bridge the gap between where you are now and where you want to take your career.
- It’s marketing: What’s your brand? What’s your pitch? Get ready for action.
- Artificial intelligence and the ATS: 80% of jobs advertised online could be screened by a computer. Beat the bots to ensure you get over the first hurdle.
- Tell a story, start with a bang, and provide just the right amount of context to hook your audience—show don’t tell.
Topical Track: Career Development
14:15–14:30
14:30–15:15
14:30–15:15
Dynamic Currency Management: Yes Alpha, No Beta
Thomas Clarke
Partner, Portfolio Manager
William Blair
- Investors always seek diversifying opportunities, and today this search takes place in an environment of high equity valuations, low bond yields, and increasing interest rates in some locations.
- Geopolitical, trade, and other macro influences pose vulnerability to potential downside from taking on more capital market beta.
- The merits of dynamic currency investing as a source of macro diversification and positive real return are often underappreciated and underused.
- Amid new and alternative asset classes, dynamic currency management is a well-founded, liquid, and viable source of investment alpha.
Topical Track: Global Opportunities
14:30–15:15
Forecasting Long-Term Portfolio Returns: The Efficient Valuation Hypothesis
Niall Gannon
Private Wealth Advisor
The Gannon Group
- What is the “expectations gap,” and why does it matter?
- Can earnings yields be predictive of future returns in an equity portfolio?
- What does research tell us about the “random walk”?
Topical Track: Capital Markets
14:30–15:15
ESG Investment: From Process to Product
Amanda Young
Head of Global ESG Investment Research
Aberdeen Standard Investments
- Discussion of values-based investment options
- Strategies for integrating ethical considerations and sustainability, climate, and social impact issues into your investment process
- Managing environmental, social, and governance risks in your business model to ensure that shareholder value is protected and enhanced
- Thoughts on making money and making a difference
Topical Track: Sustainable Investing
14:30–15:15
AI and Big Data in Investing: Present and Future Use by Investment Firms
Thorsten Heymann
Global Head of Strategy
Allianz Global Investors GmbH
Topical Track: FinTech
14:30–15:15
The Art of Business Influence
Mark Jeffries
Author, Keynote Speaker and Former Stockbroker at Merrill Lynch
- Discussion of the link between communication excellence and business success
- Focus on innovative communication, networking, and influence tools designed to accelerate your business success
- Focus on the three Cs of communication excellence, to the L-WAR (Listen, Watch, Anticipate, and React), and selling without selling to the BRAINS (Bridging, Rationalizing, Asserting, Inspiring, and Negotiating) of influence
Topical Track: Career Development
15:15–15:45
15:45–16:30
15:45–16:30
Alternative Assets in 2023: What Does the Future Hold?
Amy Bensted
Head of Data Products
Preqin
- Projections for alternative asset growth, covering private capital and hedge funds
- What should fund managers and investors be thinking about today to be part of the growth story of tomorrow?
- What will drive growth over the next five years, and how will technological innovation shape the alternative investment sector?
Topical Track: Global Opportunities
15:45–16:30
How ESG Factors Impact Corporate Valuations: Trends and Analysis
Jessica Alsford, CFA
Managing Director and Head of Global Sustainability Research
Morgan Stanley
Topical Track: Sustainable Investing
16:30–16:45
16:45–17:45
Tuesday, 14 May 2019
08:00–18:00
08:00–08:45
Sponsored Corporate Presentations
Sponsored Corporate Presentations offer a range of best practices, strategies, tools, tactics, and insights for successful investment management and financial analysis from senior-thought leaders at leading financial services firms.
08:30–16:45
08:30–09:00
09:00–09:15
09:15–11:45
Plenary Sessions
Plenary Sessions feature global thought leaders who provide big picture perspectives, innovative insights, and broad outlooks on current issues of interest to the entire audience.
09:15–10:15
The Great Separation: Why the Future Is Bright for Emerging Markets Investors
Mark W. Yusko
CEO and Chief Investment Officer
Morgan Creek Capital Management, LLC
- Learn why the killer D’s of demographics, debt, and deflation will present a huge tailwind for emerging markets and a huge headwind for developed markets
- Discover why now is the time to build a foundation of your portfolios with BRICKs (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Korea)
- A discussion of value of value and why, just like in 2000, now is the time to sell what is expensive and buy what is on sale (emerging markets equities)
10:15–10:45
10:45–11:45
The Investing Outlook in a Changing World: Redefining Risk and Opportunities
Anne Richards
CEO
Fidelity International
- Global market outlook – where are we going in the next 6 months?
- Trends and opportunities in fund management and in the brokerage business.
- Moving ahead in your career and how to promote gender balance in finance.
11:45–13:30
12:30–13:15
13:15–13:30
13:30–15:15
Technical Workshops
Technical Workshops are interactive small group sessions designed to engage investment professionals in skill-building.
13:30–15:15
Extended Sessions
Extended Sessions allow for a deeper exploration of investing topics relevant to investment professionals.
13:30–15:15
Life After Brexit – Implications, Opportunities, and Known Unknowns
Michala Marcussen, CFA
Group Chief Economist and Head of Economic and Sector Research
Societe Generale
Thomas Mayer, CFA
Founding Director
Flossbach von Storch Research Institute
Topical Track: Brexit
13:30–15:15
Principles of Manager Due Diligence and Selection
Tom Brakke, CFA
Consultant
Author, The Research Puzzle
- Understanding and evaluating a manager’s organizational structure and culture
- Breaking down and understanding a manager’s investment process
- How to conduct an appropriately thorough due diligence and selection process
- Exploring manager incentives, capacity issues, and the impact of size
Topical Track: Asset Management
13:30–15:15
Global Private Wealth Management
Philip Marcovici
Principal
Offices of Philip Marcovici
- Global regulatory trends in tax transparency and compliance and the massive impact on private wealth management
- The evolving needs of today’s international wealth owners and the changing role of advisers in the decade ahead
- How advisers can best use trusts, insurance, and other tools of wealth management in meeting client goals
- Family retreats, family and family business governance, and best practices for today’s business and wealth owners
- Strategies for building a successful 21st century private wealth practice
- How tax systems have to and will change and reflections on political challenges, including Brexit
- The realities of income and wealth inequality and the responsibility of wealth and business owners and their advisers
Topical Track: Private Wealth Management
15:15–15:45
15:45–16:30
Concurrent Practitioner Sessions
Concurrent Practitioner Sessions explore key topics with analysis and commentary on investment trends and strategies, financial technology, career skills, psychology and decision making, and Brexit.
15:45–16:30
Applying Behavioral Finance to the Investment Process
Clare Flynn Levy
Founder and CEO
Essentia Analytics
- Why focusing on performance is missing the point
- How top managers are competing for survival of the fittest and why others are missing a trick
- How to mitigate behavioral bias in your own investment process
Topical Track: Psychology and Decision Making
15:45–16:30
Rethinking Investment Management Fees, and the “Value for Money” Equation
Daniel Brocklebank, CFA
UK Director
Orbis Investments
- Are traditional management fee arrangements adequate to meet the needs of the evolving investment management industry?
- How can new approaches to management fees better align interests between investors and managers?
- Are refundable fee models a feasible innovation for the active management business, and how might they be implemented?
Topical Track: Asset Management
15:45–16:30
Cycle Considerations: Building Multi-Asset Portfolios
Geraldine Sundstrom
Managing Director and Portfolio Manager
PIMCO
Topical Track: Valuation
16:30–16:45
16:45–17:45
The Global Markets: Disruptions, Opportunities, and Risks
Mohamed A. El-Erian
Chief Economic Advisor
Allianz
- The changing nature of global growth
- Liquidity regime changes and central banks
- Baseline and balance of economic and financial risks
- Active investors regaining the upper hand
- The added complexity of risk mitigation
18:30–22:00
Wednesday, 15 May 2019
08:00–13:00
08:00–10:45
08:00–09:00
09:00–09:15
09:15–12:45
Plenary Sessions
Plenary Sessions feature global thought leaders who provide big picture perspectives, innovative insights, and broad outlooks on current issues of interest to the entire audience.
10:15–10:45
10:45–11:45
AI and the Future: Developments, Ethics, and Financial Transformation
Rumman Chowdhury
Global Lead for Responsible AI
Accenture Applied Intelligence
