Enterprising Investor

In Episode #290, Kazuhisa Okamoto, CFA, from I-O Wealth Advisors in Tokyo, formerly President of CFA Society Japan and CEO of Barclays Global Investors Japan, offered an explanation from the angle of Japan's deep cultural heritage and, in particular, the "merchants' way" (as opposed to the "samurai's way" that is well known in popular culture), the origin of which traces back to the Endo era.

In Episode #291, Ashby Monk discusses how leading investors are making use of these emergent technologies. Technology has been a force in investment management since the telegraph machine, but recent developments are intensifying the pace of change. As executive and research director of the global projects center at Stanford University, Ashby Monk is a frontline observer of what these changes mean for the world's major investors.

In Episode #288, Energy expert Amy Myers Jaffe walks through the breadth of innovation in the energy markets both in traditional energy sources (e.g., oil) and so-called alternative energy technologies (e.g., solar). Energy breakthroughs have lowered the costs of alternatives dramatically and provide a viable channel for both capital investment and government policy to flow. In particular, Jaffe expects a wave of climate change related policies to push economies more forcefully into alternatives going forward.

In Episode #289, Rupal J. Bhansali, a value investor whose patience and emphasis on risk management has helped set her apart from her peers, draws the important distinction between risk and volatility, addresses the perils of "value traps," and shares other valuable lessons that she has learned over the course of her investing career.

In Episode #287, Dr. Daniel Goleman, best-selling author of Emotional Intelligence and A Force For Good, the Dalai Lama's Vision for Our World, discusses the role of empathy in emotional intelligence and ways emotional intelligence can help finance professionals succeed and be a force for good.

In Episode #286, Investment manager and author Jacques Lussier, CFA, discusses what, other than superior analytical abilities, leads to investment manager outperformance, as well as the proper way of assessing investment manager performance. Hint: a factor-based approach is his preference. Additionally, Lussier discusses the important role that risk management has in driving outperformance, as well as what kinds of clients make for the best kind of client for investment managers.

In Episode #285, Sir Bob Geldof, a businessman, political activist, songwriter, musician, author, and former lead singer of the Boomtown Rats, sat down with John Authers of The Financial Times following the 69th CFA Institute Annual Conference to talk about Geldof's journey from rock star to private equity investor. Amid the topics discussed: What's the case for investing in Africa? Why aren't more investors harnessing the continent's prospects? What about concerns about corruption? And, where in Ethiopia is 8 Miles LLP, the London-based private-equity firm he chairs, finding investment opportunities?

In Episode #284, Martyn Davies, managing director of emerging markets and Africa at Deloitte Frontier Advisory, discusses the coming demand shock for some emerging markets, the relationship between China and Africa, and what needs to happen for emerging markets to divorce themselves from moves in commodities and simple currency fluctuations. The Take 15 Series is a series of short interviews with leading practitioners on timely topics focused on the investment profession.

In Episode #283, Chester Santos, one of the world's foremost experts on memory training and the 2008 USA Memory Champion, discusses why it's important for financial professionals to exercise their memories. Santos reviews the three main principles of memorization—visualization, invoking additional senses, and applying creativity; and offers practical tips on how to become better at remembering people's names.

In Episode #282, Carolyn McClanahan, a physician and founder of Life Planning Partners, tells CFA Institute why it is essential that financial advisers talk to their clients about their health and then walks us through the components of a health care discussion.