IFS in the News

“…being an independent fiduciary always requires great care and attention to a great deal of interrelated factors” Read the complete article in Pensions & Investments August 24, 2009 edition…

On July 7, 2009, Steven Harding, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of the Operational Review Practice, and Phyllis Taylor, Vice President in the Operational Review Practice, gave a detailed three hour educational presentation on Governance and Fiduciary Responsibility to the Investment Oversight Committee of the New Mexico State Legislature.

Steven M. Harding, IFS Senior Vice President and Managing Director of the Operational Review Practice, gave an educational presentation entitled “Understanding the Nature of Risk” at the CalPERS Board Retreat held in Folsom, California, July 28, 2009. Mr. Harding related the basic fundamentals of risk to the importance of managing business relationships as a key means of managing risks of all types. Mr.

The following is from the Wyoming Retirement Update Spring/Summer 2009 newsletter:

"Review Brings Changes

Independent Fiduciary Services (IFS) of Washington, DC, did a limited scope operational review of WRS in October 2008.
The WRS Director and Board thoroughly participated in the review and are now working to implement recommendations from the report. For example, the report highlighted WRS' budget and staff resources are significantly below comparable-sized peers.

Demand for independent fiduciaries to oversee employer stock held by retirement plans is increasing as the recession builds steam.  Read the complete article in Pensions & Investments May 4, 2009 edition...

In light of recent capital markets volatility, several non-profit organizations and their ERISA covered employee benefit plans have hired IFS to perform an independent evaluation of various aspects of their investment programs including overall asset allocation, manager and portfolio performance and securities lending.

An existing IFS consulting client has expanded IFS’ mandate to include discretionary portfolio decision-making and implementation.  Rather than making recommendations to the client, IFS is now responsible for determining investment structure, manager selection and overall portfolio rebalancing.

Samuel Halpern (IFS/President) answers back in Letters to the Editor of Global Pensions (January 2009) concerning the roots of the independent fiduciary.  Please see the attachment for the actual response.

This interview with Mr. Samuel (Skip) W. Halpern, President - Independent Fiduciary Services, examines the importance of an operational review or fiduciary audit.

Capital Markets Update for the Month of November 2008