This month’s Executive Update forecasts information about the Society Operating Model and launches our first ever Society Partnership Effectiveness Survey.
I’m pleased to extend a warm welcome to all the new society leaders across many of our societies whose new board terms started on 1 July—thank you for your commitments and service. And thanks to all who attended the recent Exam Administration and CBT virtual events. If you were unable to attend, please watch the recordings and access the questions asked during the sessions on Connexions and visit Society Center for the latest CBT guide (Society Center >Candidates >CFA Program). As a reminder, the CBT Bootcamps are happening this week, and we look forward to seeing many of you there.
Preparing for Next Year
As we enter the final months of FY21, planning efforts for the coming fiscal year are well underway. In June, we kicked off the annual Business Planning and Operating Standards (BPOS) process. Like all of you, CFA Institute is currently undergoing budgeting and business planning for FY22. Part of that process is of course about the role societies can play in various parts of our strategy and how each part of the business can best leverage the strengths of our global network.
One important way we’ll amplify how CFA Institute and societies work together in the future is through a modernized Society Operating Model and a few key themes to guide our work. For one, we acknowledge that impact matters and we need to better define what that means and how we measure it in the context of our new strategy, the member, and our mission. We recognize resources are limited and relative impact should guide our decisions and focus going forward. We recognize that markets and societies vary in opportunities, stakeholders, economic environments, capacity, footprint, and more. For that reason, we must thoughtfully differentiate goals and efforts across markets—we are a diverse group, and we ought to acknowledge and embrace it. We must work together to grow and connect our global community to expand our collective impact to serve the mission and increase our influence.
Enhancing How We Partner Together
This has been a challenging year in many ways, including in our ability to work as closely together as we normally would given the virtual environment. Yet, looking ahead, the strength of our partnership, as always, will remain key to our mutual success, and we must make every effort to preserve and strengthen it. With that in mind, we are launching a refreshed annual Society Survey and reframing it to assess the effectiveness of our partnership rather than satisfaction with CFA Institute support. The latter matters to us, of course, but it is what we do together with that support that determines our impact. We know we are both more successful when we work together to achieve our goals, and this annual survey approach going forward will help to monitor and reinforce the partnership between us.
We are also expanding our survey audience. In the past, we collected one response per society. Going forward, we will be more inclusive and expansive, giving all society leaders and staff the opportunity to share their individual perspectives. While we don’t expect 100 percent participation from 2,000+ society leaders and staff, we ask all society Executive Directors/CEOs and Board Presidents, as senior leadership, to please participate.
As you reflect on this past year and complete the planning process for next year, please take a moment before 5 August to complete the Society Partnership Effectiveness Survey emailed to you the week of 12 July. Shortly after we close the survey, we’ll share a summary of the Society community’s sentiment with Leadership, the Board of Governors, and all of you.
Reminders for July
Thank you in advance for your participation in the Business Planning & Operating Standards process and for sharing your thoughts and insights around how we can strengthen our partnership. Your efforts will provide critical information needed to inform our Society Operating Model and the key decisions that affect our work together. Next week, we’ll also share details about how CFA Institute is preparing to Return to Travel in many of our locations, and provide information about what this means for societies.
I look forward to being back in touch in August to share a reflection of the progress and accomplishments we’ve achieved over this past fiscal-year and to forecast what’s on the horizon as we turn the calendar to FY22.
Best,
Randi
ETHICS AND STANDARDS
The Latest in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Efforts
On 7 July 2021, CFA Institute published an exposure draft of its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Code for the investment profession in the United States and Canada.
The DEI Code represents collaboration between CFA Institute and a working group of industry leaders to foster a commitment that will lead to greater inclusion of wider viewpoints from diverse talent, which should result in better investment outcomes and help create better working environments. The exposure draft is intended to elicit feedback on the proposed Principles outlined within the DEI Code from industry participants, regulators, and other stakeholders. Find out more about the code here on Connexions.
To learn more about global organizational efforts to promote inclusion and diversity, we invite you to revisit this article on Connexions, updated with the results of April’s Society Leader I&D Survey.
ADVOCACY
Report Released for COVID-19, One Year Later
Thank you for supporting participation in our follow-up survey about the effects of the pandemic on capital markets. We are excited to release the final report based on the survey's findings. See our story on Connexions that outlines key findings and next steps societies can take to engage with the report.
SOCIETY MANAGEMENT
Register for This Week's CBT Bootcamps for Societies
There is still time to register for the EMEA and AMER sessions of CBT Bootcamps for Societies! We look forward to applying the learnings from our 2021 exam administrations and providing society leaders and staff with the resources and basic understanding of the exam process as we head into the July and August administrations.
Reminder: Bookmark the New Society Center URL
To support a broader single sign-on project being implemented by our IT team, the new Society Center URL changed in June. Make sure you bookmark the up-to-date URL, or follow the links on our enterprise site or Connexions, so you can access society-exclusive resources and information.
Updated MSLA: Open Comment Period Through 31 July
Over the last few months, CFA Institute has reviewed and drafted updates to the language of the Member Society License Agreement (MSLA). You will recall that the MSLA was last updated prior to FY18 for a three-year period and then extended for 2021. Please find both redlined and clean versions of the DRAFT agreement along with a supplemental document that provides a brief explanation of each of the changes on the Standards page within the Standards and Funding tile on Society Center. Notable updates within this modified MSLA include language that ensures compliance with data privacy laws and regulations and updated language related to the use of CFA Institute marks as it relates to new products.
We welcome your feedback on this updated MSLA through 31 July 2021. Please provide your feedback to Macy Yan by either emailing comments or questions or downloading a copy of the agreement and making comments directly within. A final version will be deployed for signature in August.
MEMBER VALUE
Proxy Voting and the Annual Meeting of Members
Voting for the 2021 proxy closes tomorrow! We ask that you encourage eligible members to vote using the link provided via email or by following the instructions on the voting site. Remember to register to attend the Annual Meeting of Members on 15 July at 9 am ET. Find more information about the voting matters and campaign on Connexions.
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