Life as a TARP wife

The wife of a big time financier whose firm has accepted billions in TARP funds has penned an article for Portfolio. “Confessions of a TARP wife” is all about her new “financial abstinence,” which no longer includes “multi-star Michelin hotspots.” The essay reads like a parody (as if cribbed from The Onion), but I think it was meant to be taken seriously.

“Choosing Versailles to host World War I peace negotiations could not have been more complicated than my attempt to select the perfect spot for our annual dinner.” Really? She’s now “shopping in her closet” because “God forbid someone catches me out in something new.” When she buys presents, she “has the package sent to their home. I don’t want to be spotted climbing into a taxi, laden with Bergdorf Goodman shopping bags.” So who is the mystery scribe? The New York Post has fingered her as Liz Peek, the 60-ish wife of Jeffrey Peek, whose CIT Group took $2.33 billion from the Troubled Assets Relief Program last fall. She declined to comment to the paper.  Source: FierceFinance’s Jim Kim.

Joel Kurtzman writes:  “I hope you find the attached annual update of the Opacity Index useful in your endeavors.” 

It is no surprise that risks have increased worldwide over the last year, as the latest release of the Opacity Index shows. The United States, in particular, has continued its fall from 4^th  place, when we began our analysis, to 13^th, place, in 2009, with continued downward momentum. This unprecedented decline is accounted for by regulatory and enforcement lapses. But equally important, the performance of boards of directors in the United States has failed to improve, despite rules stemming from Sarbanes-Oxley legislation which have now been in effect for quite some time. The demise of several major financial institutions is representative of poor board oversight and regulatory and enforcement laxity, among other things.  

On a positive note, the world in general has made progress with regard to the adoption of international accounting standards and some countries – notably China – have seen declines in corruption levels.  Best Regards,Joel Kurtzman

Kurtzman Group/Milken Institute  http://www.kurtzmangroup.com   

Read: “Global Edge: Using the Opacity Index to Manage the Risks of Cross Border Business,” Harvard Business School Press

SAM, the Zurich based sustainability investing specialist, and Dow Jones Indexes, have announced that Seligson & Co Fund Management has signed a license for the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific Index (DJSI Asia Pacific). This is the first index fund worldwide to track this new benchmark. The DJSI Asia Pacific was introduced earlier this year to track the sustainability leaders within the developed markets in Asia Pacific. The index includes the 20% most sustainable companies out of the largest 600 stocks in the region by free float market capitalization. The underlying SAM assessment covers a variety of issues such as corporate governance, risk management, branding, climate change mitigation, supply chain standards and human capital. The analysis reflects the growing importance investors attribute to sustainability criteria around the globe.“We are delighted to expand our existing relationship with Seligson and to see them add our new DJSI Asia Pacific to their offering. SAM and Dow Jones Indexes launched this benchmark earlier this year as the complementary piece in our joint index range to cover all three major investment regions. Finland is an exciting market for sustainability investing and we are delighted to provide Seligson with the benchmarks to tap into this opportunity.” said Alexander Barkawi, managing director, SAM Indexes. Further information:
SAM:
Alexander Barkawi, Managing Director, SAM Indexes
Phone +41 44 653 1801, E-mail: alex.barkawi@sam-group.com

Seligson & Co:
Ari Kaaro, Managing Director, Seligson & Co Fund Management Plc
Phone +358 9 6817 8217, E-mail: ari.kaaro@seligson.fi

By deploying corporate philanthropy dollars to tackle pressing social issues directly though customized programs at UCLA, Wharton, INSEAD and others, Johnson & Johnson’s initiatives go well beyond your father’s executive education.  

One of these customized programs at UCLA gives leaders of community-based organizations specialized management training to manage more effectively and strategically. The tools and skills these leaders acquire are more critical than ever as they wrestle with today’s unprecedented challenges, which could threaten not just the organizations’ abilities to serve communities but their very existence. From HIV/AIDS leaders in Africa to directors of Head Start agencies across the United States, UCLA has partnered with Johnson & Johnson for nearly two decades to give community leaders, health workers and others a big dose of entrepreneurial skills to enhance their organizations’ operations and impact. This proven model could herald a new era at the intersection of business, B-schools and society.   “True philanthropy must go beyond writing a check to make sustainable impact,” says Conrad Person, Director, Corporate Contributions at Johnson & Johnson.  “The sophisticated management tools this partnership offers benefit the organization longer than any grant could.” This novel idea is one manifestation of Johnson & Johnson’s overarching approach, which could be called “corporate philanthropic nurturer,” thanks to its deep and broad involvement in the many programs it designs or supports. It identified UCLA early on as the right partner, given its renowned expertise in social enterprise, particularly via its Price Center for Entrepreneurial Studies.  “The people we train through these partnerships have had no formal management education previously, but each oversees the equivalent of a small business – complete with the frustrations that come with operating an entrepreneurial venture, such as how to expand, get resources, and professionalize staff,” says Al Osborne, Senior Associate Dean at UCLA Anderson. Partnerships currently underway include:   Founded in 1991, the Head Start-Johnson & Johnson Management Fellows Program – the only such program of its kind – provides intensive training annually for Head Start directors and now boasts more than 1,100 graduates. An outgrowth of the Management Fellows Program, the UCLA/Johnson & Johnson Health Care Institute, was created in 2001 to train Head Start directors to educate and empower parents to treat everyday childhood ailments like fevers, colds and earaches at home. To date, the program has reached nearly 27,000 families nationwide, saving Medicaid millions of dollars annually in decreased ER/clinic visits, and continues to expand.       

The UCLA/Johnson & Johnson Health Care Executive Program trains leaders of community-based health care organizations, such as clinics providing care to the uninsured. The program has graduated more than 400 health care leaders since its founding in 2002.        Since its 2006 inception, the Johnson & Johnson/UCLA Management Development Institute for HIV/AIDS has worked with African universities to provide rigorous in-country management training to more than 250 leaders from organizations in Kenya and Ghana devoted to the care, treatment and support of those living with HIV/AIDS. “As a result of their experience, participants reshape their organizations and improve the quality of the services they provide, translating to real, tangible benefits to peoples’ lives around the world,” says Osborne.