Calgary Connects - A CFA Society Calgary Podcast

Welcome back to Calgary Connects!  This month, in honour of International Women's Day (celebrated on March 8th), Matthew connects with Geeta Kapadia, CFA, to learn from her experience as a woman in finance as well as her experience being a mixed race, first generation Indian American. Additionally, Geeta has lived and worked in the United States, England, Scotland, and India. Join us to hear Geeta's story - her enthusiasm and energy is sure to leave you feeling inspired! Geeta Kapadia is the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Fordham University, where she manages the endowment of $1 billion in assets and oversees all aspects of the portfolio management process. Prior to joining Fordham in August 2022, she was the Associate Treasurer of Investments at Yale New Haven Heath System, where she led the team responsible for managing over $5 billion in system assets. She is a CFA Charterholder and serves as Board President of Chester Country Family Academy.   

Today's episode features a special face-to-face conversation between Matthew and Genevieve Roch-Decter, CFA. Genevieve is the CEO of GRIT, a financial media company democratizing access to institutional insights for the masses. She founded GRIT after realizing that only the top 1% were receiving the best insights.  Genevieve joined us in Calgary at the 47th Annual Forecast Dinner. While in Calgary, her and Matthew sat down to discuss the inception of GRIT, why democratizing access to financial insights has become such a passion for her, and more. Join us to learn all about Genevieve's career journey! Genevieve is a CFA Charterholder with a Level 1 Chartered Market Technician (CMT) designation. She and her content have been featured on FOX, Bloombert, VICE, CNN, The Globe & Mail, The National Post, and BNN. Outside of her professional pursuits, Genevieve is an avid skier, tennis player, golfer, and wake surfer. 

Today's episode brings back Hugo Ste-Marie from Scotiabank Global Banking and Markets (GBM) to recap 2023 and dive into what’s in store for 2024. What most surprised Hugo about the markets in 2023 and what surprised him the least? What can we expect in 2024? Hugo leads the Scotiabank GBM portfolio strategy team, which uses macroeconomic trends, equity market fundamentals, and quantitative models to determine optimal asset-mix, global-equity, and sector-allocation strategies, complementing the top-down perspectives offered by Scotiabank Economics, as well as the bottom-up research of sector-specific analysts.

This special episode features a discussion with Jan Stuart regarding the current situation in the Middle East as it relates to the war in Israel and the implications it holds for both geopolitics as well as the commodities market.  Johannes (Jan) Stuart serves as Global Energy Strategist at Piper Sandler. A self-described oil-geek, Jan and his team take a micro-fundamentals approach to energy analysis and forecasting – which frequently lands them away from consensus. Previously, Jan spent 11 years in sell-side research, building leading energy-macro franchises at Credit Suisse, Macquarie and UBS. He was a journalist for much of the nineties and started his career at the International Energy Agency in Paris.  (Recorded on October 27, 2023)

This episode features a discussion of current trends, hiring practices, and what to watch for in the labour market with Adam Pekarsky.  Adam Pekarsky is the Founding Partner of Pekarsky & Co. and has been recruiting executives, advising Boards, and offering thought leadership in Western Canada for over 20 years. A frequent writer, teacher, and speaker on topics of interest to the legal and business communities, Adam has achieved success as a member of the management team of a national law firm, a Partner in a global executive search firm and, once upon a time, a practicing lawyer. An active member in good standing of the Law Society of Alberta, Adam has also earned a reputation for honesty, integrity, and discretion in all that he does.

This episode features a discussion on the wide-ranging world of infrastructure investing with Jared Waldron.  Jared leads Northleaf’s infrastructure investing activities in North America, with a primary focus on transaction origination, market research, due diligence, execution and asset management. Jared acts as the Asset Manager for a number of Northleaf’s infrastructure investments and serves as a director on several asset-level boards. Prior to joining Northleaf in 2012, Jared was at ONCAP, the middle-market private equity platform of Onex Corporation, where he was involved in sourcing and evaluating principal investment opportunities and managing existing portfolio companies. Previously, he worked with the Macquarie Group as part of the Public-Private Partnerships and Industrials teams where he was primarily involved in principal acquisitions and M&A advisory assignments.

This episode features a discussion on investing in India with Sunil Singhania, CFA, Founder of Abakkus Asset Manager LLP. Abakkus is an independent, Mumbai-based equities specialist founded in 2018. Today, Abakkus manages equity AUM of $1.6 billion USD broadly under two diversified strategies by following a fundamental, research-driven, bottom-up investment process. Sunil was previously CIO Equities of Reliance Nippon Life Asset Management overseeing $11 billion USD in equity assets and consistently rated among the top fund managers in India.   Sunil joins Matthew to highlight the investment opportunities in the fast-growing market of India. Sunil shares how democracy, demographics, the digital dividend, and the domestic market make India a unique market on the global stage.

Welcome back to Calgary Connects! Today's episode features Dov Baron, founder and CEO of Dov Baron International. Dov is a preeminent expert in helping leaders create life-and-work meaning. His models and strategies of the Emotional Source Code and the Anatomy of Meaning are used by leaders in business and government worldwide. Dov has been named a Top 30 Global Leadership Guru five times and an Inc. Magazine Top Leadership Speaker twice.He has written for or been interviewed by many media outlets, including CEO World, CNN, Elle Italia, Entrepreneur, and FOX. Dov is an author, podcaster, speaker, and international consultant.  In this episode, Dov joins Matthew to discuss everything involved in "Full Monty Leadership" from dignity and humanity to reciprocal vulnerability and our post-pandemic workplace realities. Dov provides valuable insights on how meaningful and authentic leadership relates to the creation of a highly effective company culture. 

Welcome back to Calgary Connects! Today's episode features Peter Routledge, former Bay Street analyst, head of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation and current Superintendent for Financial Institutions. Peter joins us to discuss all things banking related in Canada's current economic climate. Peter Routledge was appointed Superintendent of Financial Institutions in June 2021, for a seven-year term. He previously served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) beginning in November 2018. While at CDIC, Mr. Routledge led a successful transformation of CDIC’s culture, strategy, and technology vision. Mr. Routledge has extensive experience in Canada’s financial sector. Prior to joining CDIC, he was a Senior Advisor at the Department of Finance where he provided advice on a range of policy issues including financial stability, housing finance, and competition in Canadian financial services. Mr. Routledge has held a variety of leadership roles in the financial services industry, both in Canada and abroad. He served as managing director of research at National Bank Financial, where he led a team responsible for producing equity, fixed income, and derivatives research on Canadian financial institutions. Prior to that, Mr. Routledge led the Canadian Financial Institutions Group at Moody’s Canada, with responsibilities for covering issuers in the banking, life insurance, personal and commercial insurance and reinsurance industries in Canada and the United States. Mr. Routledge holds an MBA from INSEAD in France, and a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Simon Fraser University.

Welcome back to Calgary Connects!  This month we have a special episode in honour of International Women's Day. This month's episode features Jennifer Tory, one of Canada's leading businesswomen and corporate directors. Jennifer joins the podcast to discuss her 42 year long career and her continued work related to the advancement of women and marginalized communities.  Jennifer retired in December 2019 as RBC’s Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), reporting to the CEO, where she held responsibility for Brand, Marketing, Citizenship, Communications, Procurement and Real Estate functions globally. Additionally, she provided leadership and oversight of transformational initiatives, with a particular focus on driving cross-enterprise efficiency and effectiveness. Along with other members of Group Executive, Jennifer was responsible for setting the overall strategic direction of RBC. Prior to her CAO role, she was Group Head, Personal & Commercial Banking leading RBC’s banking businesses in Canada and the Caribbean, including personal and financial services, credit cards and payments, digital solutions, as well as RBC’s sales and branch distribution, operations and advice centres. She currently sits on the boards of BCE Inc. and the Sunnybrook Hospital Foundation. She recently completed 10 years on the board of the Toronto International Film Festival, the past five years as Chair. A champion of diversity, Ms. Tory is the recipient of numerous awards recognizing her work related to the advancement of women and advocacy for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. In December of 2019, Jennifer was appointed as a member of the Order of Canada. 

Today’s episode of Calgary Connects brings Tyler Mordy, CFA, from Forstrong Global Asset Management to discuss the exchange-traded fund (ETF) space. Tyler leads the firm’s business strategy and oversees a multi-disciplinary investment team deeply committed to macro research and analysis. Encouraging a global perspective enables the team to identify investment themes and trends that lead to distinctive investment strategies.   Prior to joining Forstrong in 2003, Tyler gained international experience at Deutsche Asset Management in London, UK. A graduate of the University of British Columbia (Mathematics and English Literature), Tyler is a CFA charterholder.  

Welcome back to Calgary Connects! This episode features Hugo Ste-Marie, Director, Portfolio and Quantitative Strategy for Scotiabank Global Banking and Markets, to recap 2022 and discuss what is in store for 2023.  Hugo leads the Scotiabank GBM portfolio strategy team, which uses macroeconomic trends, equity market fundamentals, and quantitative models to determine optimal asset-mix, global-equity, and sector-allocation strategies, complementing the top-down perspectives offered by Scotiabank Economics, as well as the bottom-up research of sector-specific analysts.

Welcome back to Calgary Connects. This episode features a discussion with William Hess, Founder & Co-Head of Research at PRC Marco Ltd. William joins Matthew to provide his unique perspective on the political and economic climate in China and how it impacts the global marketplace.  PRC Macro was established to develop economic information and forecasting services to fill the large analytical gaps that exist with respect to China’s economy. William and his team have over 50 years of on-the-ground experience in China. PRC Marco believes China is a key economic story of the 21st century and recognizes the need to navigate the opaque landscape.

Welcome back to Calgary Connects. Today's episode features John Ewing, CFA, Co-President & Chief Investment Officer at Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners.  John joins Matthew to talk about small cap investing, how it differs from large cap investing, how insights from credit analysis can help evaluate equity investments, how the space looks on a global basis, and what activist investing in this arena looks like. John co-founded Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners in June 2011 with Darcy Morris. Prior to Ewing Morris, John was Director of Research at Burgundy Asset Management where he also served as lead analyst for Burgundy’s Canadian Small Cap Fund. John graduated with distinction from the University of Guelph in 2005 and has also completed the Investment Management Workshop at Harvard Business School. John’s community involvement includes the University of Guelph (Chair of the Investment Committee), Beat The Streets Toronto, and Scouts Canada.

Welcome back to Calgary Connects. Today's episode features Rob Carrick, personal finance columnist with the Globe and Mail.  Rob joins Matthew to speak about enduring themes in personal finance, housing, inflation, retirement planning, and what’s changed in personal financial planning as a result of the pandemic. Rob has been writing about personal finance, business, and economics for close to 30 years. He joined The Globe and Mail in late 1996 and quickly recognized the paper's need for more coverage of personal finance. He’s been writing about investing and personal finance ever since.

On this episode of Calgary Connects, we are pleased to welcome Dr. James Doran to speak about behavioural finance. Dr. Doran and Matthew discuss behavioural biases in investing, meme stocks and their impact on the investing psyche as well as what investors can do to both capitalize on and protect themselves from various biases. Dr. Doran is a Senior Fellow at the University of New South Wales where he teaches derivatives and financial risk management. He has over 20 years of experience in finance as both an academic and as a practitioner. He is also the author of “The Profit Dilemma.”

On this episode of Calgary Connects, we are thrilled to welcome Mike Quinn back to the podcast. Mike Quinn is co-founder of RP Investment Advisors LP. On June 1, 2022, Mike transitions out of his role as Principal, Chief Investment Officer, and moves into an advisory capacity while still maintaining his ownership and investments at the firm.  Mike and Matthew discuss how the industry and fixed rate environment have changed since Mike's first appearance on the podcast in November 2020. They discuss everything from risk and risk comfort levels, the changes in rates, central banks' strategies and responses, and what the implications of these changes are for investors.

On the latest episode of Calgary Connects we are joined by Tim Pickering, Founder, CIO and Lead Portfolio Manager at Auspice Capital, for a conversation that dives into commodities and commodity investing. Matthew and Tim discuss what commodities are and how they fit into a portfolio, convergent vs. divergent return streams,  how risk plays into decision making, and much more.

On this episode we are joined by Margaret Franklin, CFA, President and CEO of CFA Institute for a discussion on how the finance industry has evolved in recent years, and how those changes are impacting the future of finance. Marg and Matthew discuss the changes brought about by the COVID-19 Pandemic and whether they are here to stay, how the increased focus on DEI is shaping the industry, and ultimately, where we go from here.   Marg leads CFA Institute and its more than 175,000 members worldwide in promoting the highest standards of education, ethics, and professional excellence in the investment profession. She has built her career over the course of more than 30 years in the investment and wealth management industries and she is the first female CEO of CFA Institute in its 75 year history.   Since the recording of this episode CFA Institute has released its DEI Code for the US and Canada, explore the DEI Code here.

On this episode of Calgary Connects we are joined by Joel Litman of Valens Research to speak about Uniform Account Adjustments, why the as-reported earnings should never be relied upon, and why he thinks the S&P 500 could see a 30% rally through 2022. Joel Litman is CEO of Valens Research and Chief Investment Strategist of Altimetry Financial Research. Joel’s publications and research are read by tens of thousands every week. For thirty years, he has been a trusted advisor to management teams and institutional, family, and individual investors.  As Chairman of the UAFRS Council, Litman has spearheaded the global use of Uniform Accounting and financial analysis. He has patented and holds intellectual property in macroeconomic analysis, equity and credit research, and deep forensic financial analysis, utilized by more than 220 of the 300 world's largest investment managers.