The CFA Institute announced this week that Paul Smith, CFA, has been named President and CEO. He succeeds Dwight Churchill, CFA, who has served as President and CEO on an interim basis since June 2014. We should be grateful for Dwight's willingness to assume this...
Performance Perspectives Blog
Thoughts on performance measurement from David Spaulding and other members of our team.
Paul Smith, CFA, named President and CEO of the CFA Institute
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Dispersion around what, exactly? A question worth pondering
This is a topic I brought up many years ago, but haven't discussed lately. Just as you might have a nagging itch that just won't go away, this one has remained with me. GIPS requires a measure of dispersion ... but of what? Let's begin by defining dispersion,...
Rules are made to be broken … or ignored … at your peril
"Of all the things I hold in high regard, rules are not one of them. " Francis (Frank) Underwood Our son, Chris, gave us a device for our television that allows us to watch Netflix, as well as other Internet based programs. Several folks had recommended "House of...
The year of controls: trust, but verify … or, don’t believe everything that comes out of a computer … or, do your own math!
First, Happy New Year! I managed to be away from the office for almost two weeks, which is virtually unheard of, but it's great to be back. The absence of controls leads to problems While away, my wife and I made it to the movie theater on three occasions, and one is...
Promoting benchmark costs transparency: One custodian at a time …
On Monday, P&I Daily ran a story about an initiative we're behind to promote transparency into benchmark costs. And yesterday, we published a press release (which is available on the CNN Money page, NASDAQ as well as other news sources) that details much behind...
What George Carlin would say about money-weighted rates of return
"Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music." Having never been a George Carlin fan, I must confess that I'm a bit surprised to be quoting him, but this line recently appeared on Facebook, and it immediately resonated with me, relative to...
A software vendor’s choice: to lead or to follow
I've conducted a few Software Certifications lately, and it recently occurred to me that software vendors can generally take two positions, which I simply refer to as: to lead, or to follow. And what do I mean by these terms? Well, let's take a look. A software...
A Performance Measurement Professional’s Dream vs. Reality
We created this fun video earlier this year, and hope you enjoy it. The intent: don't take ourselves too seriously. My younger son, Douglas, along with his friend, Debbie Barr, are the stars of the show; they're accompanied by some of our colleagues. Please let us...
Happy Thanksgiving from TSG!
This week we will celebrate Thanksgiving. And while it may be a holiday associated primarily with the United States, it's still worthwhile to periodically reflect upon those things we are thankful for. My list is excessive, and I won't detail it here, but will...
GIPS Annual Notification Requirement: Maybe Not as Bad as You Thought
Arin Stancil, Managing Director and Principal at Guardian Performance Solutions LLC, is our guest blogger. As you have probably heard, earlier this year the CFA Institute proposed a new requirement for firms that claim compliance with the GIPS standards to provide...