2021 Virtual Chief Investment Officer Symposium

Opening Remarks and Investing in China

One of our most requested topics by CIOs, we’ll fill this hour with all things China: How China’s “Belt and Road” initiative might have gone silent, but how the country might be expanding its global soft and hard power; how the rise of populism and nationalism in other parts of the world might have afforded China opportunities to fill newly created voids; how tariffs, American depositary receipts (ADRs), and government initiatives correlate with investment opportunities; how to invest in venture cap, private equity and public markets; and how to take a single-country-focused equity approach to China.

Moderator
Janet Li, Wealth Business Leader, Asia, Mercer

Panelists
Ash Williams, Executive Director and CIO, Florida State Board of Administration
Sophia Tsai, Managing Director, Investments at Trinity Church Wall Street
Brian O’Neil, Chief Investment Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation 

Refreshment Break

The Mildest USD Bear Market in History – Don’t Get Too Comfortable

Join Aaron Hurd, Managing Director of US Currency, as he discusses how managing foreign currency can serve institutional investors well. The wind is at investors’ back with a weak USD, yet it won’t last forever. We believe this to be the mildest USD bear market in history, meaning investors shouldn’t be lulled into delaying or avoiding the implementation of a long-term currency management framework based on the short term benefits of a cyclical USD downturn. Mr. Hurd will discuss the differences between passive hedging, active hedging and currency alpha as an absolute return strategy, all within the context of the current market outlook.

Presenter
Aaron P. Hurd, Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, State Street Global Advisors

Sponsored by State Street Global Advisors

Refreshment Break

Fixed Income, Interest Rates, and the Fed in a Post-Vaccine World

This rapid discussion will take the pulse of where we are, navigating the current interest rate environment and vet the questions on the minds of CIOs, such as: Will inflation be transitory or structural, and what will the impact be on bond yields and equity valuations? How long will Fed policy be accommodative, and how will equality issues impact policy going forward? We’ll also discuss lessons CIOs have learned along the way.

Moderator
Sean Bill, Chief Investment Officer at the VTA

Panelists
Paul Colonna, President and CIO, Lockheed Martin Investment Management Company
Matt Clark, Chief Investment Officer, South Dakota Investment Council
Bill Armstrong, Portfolio Manager, Principal Global Investors
Russ Ivinjack, Senior Partner, Chief Investment Officer, AON

Opening Remarks and Bitcoin, Blockchain and the Expanding Alternative Universe

Institutional investors are reaching for yield, and this year has brought more alternatives, blockchain, and Bitcoin opportunities to institutions and portfolios. This discussion will vet the new terrain of alts, the pros and cons, and why some are seizing some opportunities but not others. Much remains unknown about the new investment frontier, but what should investors understand about these new assets, and how much should they allocate or not allocate to them now?

Moderator
Christine Giordano, Managing Editor, Chief Investment Officer

Panelists
Andy Spellar, Chief Investment Officer of Fairfax County Employees’ Retirement System
Katherine Molnar, Chief Investment Officer, Fairfax County Police Officers Retirement System

Refreshment Break

Building Sustainable Portfolios

Now more than ever, investors are turning to ETFs and index funds to build more sustainable portfolios. Hear from industry experts as they discuss the state of the sustainable investing market today, key trends to look for in the future and the different ways to build sustainable portfolios that target a variety of investment goals. 

Key topics:

• Why a sustainable strategy is critical to your success
• Integrating sustainable approaches with your investment outlook
• How to construct sustainable portfolios
• Taking climate into consideration

Moderator
Del Stafford, Head of U.S. iShares Portfolio Consulting, BlackRock

Speakers
Linda-Eling Lee, Head of ESG Research, MSCI
Eric Van Nostrand, Head of Research for Sustainable Investments and Multi-Asset Strategies, BlackRock
Christopher Ailman, Chief Investment Officer, CalSTRS

Sponsored by iShares and MSCI

Refreshment Break

SPACs, VC, PIPEs and Pre-IPO Investing:

There’s much to discuss from this past year as special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), Private investment in public equity mechanisms (PIPEs) and pre-initial public offerings (IPOs) continue to demand attention. We’ll discuss such questions as:

• When should I invest in a SPAC, before or after an acquisition?
• What is the best way to vet an investment in a venture capital (VC) limited partnership that is seeding high-tech outfits I don’t understand?
• What is the best way to create alignment on pre-and-post-public shares of a company and lock-up periods?

Moderator
Tim Recker, Chief Investment Officer and Treasurer, The James Irvine Foundation

Panelists
Jonathan Glidden,Chief Investment Officer, Delta Airlines
Jason Klein, Senior Vice President & Chief Investment Officer, Investments Office, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Ronald Temple, Managing Director, Co-Head of Multi-Asset and Head of US Equity, Lazard Asset Management LLC

Opening Remarks and What Headhunters Are Seeing:

Last fall, they anticipated and prepared us for lots of churn. Now, back by popular demand, some of the industry’s top recruiters will weigh in on what trends they are seeing, as well as career risks and opportunities in the new environment. We’ll also get updates on the family office space, endowments and foundations, the contracting asset management space, and how to prepare for the increasing demand for allocators on boards. Watch the discussion as moderator and CIO Walter Kress (who has never been placed to a financial services position by a recruiter) gets to the heart of what CIOs need to know.

Moderator
Walter Kress, Chief Investment Officer, EY

Panelists
Renee Neri, Head of Asset Management, Americas, Heidrick & Struggles
Elizabeth Havens, Partner, David Barrett Partners
Jeff  Warren, Co-heads the Private Equity Practice, Russell Reynolds Associates

Refreshment Break

China’s 2020-2025 Strategic Policy Plan and Emerging Investment Opportunities: A Fireside Chat

Join us for a very special conversation with E Fund Management, China’s largest fund manager with over 2.3 trillion RMB ($350 billion USD) AUM. More than 60% of E Fund’s AUM are from institutional investors including China’s National Social Security Fund, central banks, pensions and endowments & foundations.

This interview will include questions gathered from our chief investment officers ranging from insights on the aftermath of COVID-19 to the changes in today’s Chinese investment management industry. We’ll also discuss the latest five-year strategic policy plan issued this year and what investments will matter the most for mid to long term investors.

Moderator
Christine Giordano, Managing Editor, Chief Investment Officer

Speaker
Sau Kwan, President, E Fund Management

Sponsored by E Fund Management

Refreshment Break

Supporting DE&I in Internal and External Asset Management

A year of unrest and racial reckoning in the United States has emboldened investors to reflect on the financial sector’s shortcomings. While cautiously navigating Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) requirements with performance and alpha in mind, investors are leading the way and breaking new ground when it comes to investing in new areas. This discussion between three leading CIOs will cover evolving best practices within their own teams, with diverse manager selection, and what they’re doing about non-diverse managers.

Moderator
Doug Brown, Chief Investment Officer of Exelon Corp

Panelists
Robin Diamonte, Chief Investment Officer, Raytheon Technologies
Bryan Lewis, Chief Investment Officer, United States Steel Corporation

Opening Remarks and Soaring with Science

Artificial intelligence (AI). Pandemic research. Physics. Technology. Learn how top investors are applying these tools for soaring returns. You’ll hear about burgeoning tech innovations for portfolios, as well as stories from the field on how one investor applied pandemic research early on and saved his portfolio millions of dollars, and how a physicist became a CIO and shapes her portfolio using hard and fast logic. Learn how these investors used science to transform portfolios, convince boards, and reap powerful rewards.

Moderator
Harshal Chaudhari, Chief Investment Officer, General Electric

Panelists
Nick Moakes, Chief Investment Officer, the Wellcome Trust
Elena Manola-Bonthond, PhD, MBA, Chief Investment Officer of the Pension Fund of CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research
Nick Mazing, Head of Research, Sentieo

Lunch Break

Undervalued, ‘Unloved’ Prospects and Long-term Opportunities Created by the Pandemic

The pandemic has reaped rewards on value investors. Are there more opportunities, currently, as one investor put it, “unloved,” on the rebound? Energy stocks are soaring now due to OPEC’s production restrictions, which have buoyed oil prices. At the same time, the oil majors like Exxon are cutting back on their capital spending (capex), and focusing on returning cash to shareholders (via dividends and stock buybacks). But will the lack of robust capex hurt future earnings and thus limit energy stocks ability to perform well in the future? On the other end of the spectrum: Will stocks that benefitted from COVID-19 stay-at-home-restrictions  like DoorDash continue to do well once the pandemic is over? Will the office market really shrink, and will corporate landlords actually reduce their space? How fast will leisure stocks such as cruises and casinos recover?
Moderator
Spencer Hunter, Senior Consultant, RVK, Inc.

Panelists
Jack Rich, President, CIO, ACIMCO (Investment Management Company for Abilene Christian University)
Mauricio Guzmán, CFA, CAIA, Chief Investment Officer, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana 
John F. Tsui, Managing Principal, Peninsula House, LLC

Closing Remarks