UNews - financial analyst

Real-world experience

trevor.kenney — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 20:15:16 +0000

The Faculty of Management is preparing to launch an exciting initiative connected to the Centre for Financial Market Research and Teaching (CFMRT).

On Tuesday, Nov. 15, representatives from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, the community and various stakeholder groups will gather for the official launch of the Student-Managed Investment Fund (SMIF) – $100,000 of real-money to be traded by finance students.

"The fund has been established so that participating students can gain invaluable practice managing a real-life investment portfolio," says Dr. Robert Ellis, dean of the Faculty of Management. "This will give them the opportunity to interact and network with industry experts and other business students interested in finance."

The Student-Managed Investment Fund allows students to trade stocks with a real-money account.

The Faculty has provided the initial $100,000 seed capital for the SMIF, which will be invested under the direction of CFMRT academic director, Dr. Pei Shao. Students will conduct the actual trading of funds as part of a new course designed specifically for the program.

"Students participating in the course are selected based on their academic performance and an interview," says Shao. "Eight students have formed our inaugural group and will play the role of either portfolio manager or financial analyst and work within various research teams focusing on different industry sectors."

One of the portfolio managers is finance and marketing major Taylor Nanton.

"Being part of the SMIF fund will allow us to gain hands-on industry experience in our chosen career path," says Nanton, who will graduate in spring 2012. "Having this opportunity provides us with experience we'll use every day in our future positions. It might also help us invest our own money more wisely."

In addition to supervision by Shao, guidance on trading activities will come from an advisory board comprised of external investment professionals, internal faculty members and legal experts. This will ensure compliance with laws, regulations and ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ policies/guidelines.

Kevin Sassa (BMgt '93), an investment advisor with CIBC Wood Gundy, is one member of the advisory board. He believes the opportunities the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ affords through the fund is invaluable.

"From an industry perspective, the fund provides experience that may not be available at other institutions. When I was in university, students didn't have a fund and courses like this, so we had to acquire our expertise once we were out in the professional environment," says Sassa.

"Anytime you can get experience hands on, it bridges that gap between theory and real-world practice."

The SMIF has generated a very positive buzz in the financial community. Potential employers see it as an excellent training exercise, possibly reducing their own training expenses, as new recruits would be better prepared for the full responsibilities of their position coming out of school.

The SMIF advisory board is also a huge advantage for students, allowing them to begin establishing a business network before even entering the workforce.

Beyond the initial capital invested by the Faculty, it is expected that the SMIF will continue to grow through prudent investment by the students and continued fundraising efforts.

"Our goal is to increase the SMIF to $400,000 in the next three years," says Shao. "To achieve this goal, we've launched a fundraising campaign and expect that future funds will come from individual and corporate donors, professional organizations and a portion of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ endowment assets. Our long-term vision is that the SMIF will become self-sustaining."

Ellis is enthusiastic about what the SMIF can do for the Faculty's students.

"These students will be exceptionally well prepared for careers in finance," says Ellis.

This story first appeared in the November issue of the Legend. For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Profiting from a U of L friendship

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:53:13 +0000

Sometimes the best-laid plans never see the light of day. Sometimes, they just need a little more time on the shelf.

Russ MacKay (BMgt '90) and Anil Tahiliani (BMgt '90), graduates of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's Bachelor of Management program, are now senior partners at McLean & Partners, one of Canada's most respected, high net worth private-client wealth management firms. But it was back in 1990 where a friendship and future working relationship was cemented while writing a business plan to open a convenience store in the yet-to-be-built Students Union Building at the U of L.

"The project-based group work in the Bachelor of Management program is what cemented the relationship, both personal and professional, between Anil and myself, and this is what brought us back together 10 years after grad," says MacKay, noting the plan they developed was never enacted. "Now look at us: we work 10 feet apart from one another."

The route the two took after graduating from the U of L was divergent at first but with their degrees intact, it provided each with a wealth of opportunity.

MacKay initially pursued a career in media, working his way to sales manager at two Lethbridge radios station while Tahiliani moved on to the Alberta Treasury Finance Department.

After four years in media, MacKay moved to Calgary, launching a new career with the investment firm Burns Fry. His career in the high net worth investment industry continued to the point where he became a founding partner of McLean & Partners Wealth Management.

Tahiliani took a decidedly different path. One year into his career with the provincial government, he took a brief eight-month leave of absence to complete an MBA, returning to the Alberta Treasury Investment Management Department.

When Tahiliani left in 1994, he was recognized as the youngest manager in their history. From there, he moved on to an analyst position with Bissett and Associates, before moving to Phoenix in 1997 as CFO for a nutritional health-care provider. After completing both a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and CIM (Canadian Investment Manager) designation, Tahiliani moved on to build his own company, a two-year old start-up ISP, which became a highly successful business before it was purchased by NetZero.

In 2000, Tahiliani returned to Canada and reunited with his former study partner, this time creating a business plan with real dollars at stake. Starting with $275 million in assets, he, MacKay and the firm put the plan to the test. It passed, as over the next eight years, McLean & Partners would grow into one of Calgary's most recognized investment practices, with over $1 billion in assets. It all started at the U of L.

"I liked the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge for the ability to make lifelong friends, such as Russ," Tahiliani says. "The liberal arts environment gave me a much more rounded education not typically found in the finance world. I now feel I have a more complete view of the world, and this greatly helps me working for a firm that specializes in global investing."

GET THE FACTS

• Both MacKay and Tahiliani met their future wives on the U of L campus. MacKay married Karen McCune (BEd '87), while Tahiliani married Terry Bourassa (BEd '89)

• While in the media business, MacKay worked as sales manager at Monarch Broadcasting and Shaw Communications

• Tahiliani was brought into McLean & Partners in 2000 when the firm created a research department, and he was recruited as the Head of Research

UNews - financial analyst

Real-world experience

Related Topics

Profiting from a U of L friendship

Related Topics