Nonprofits Still Gripped By Recession
The nation's longest recession since World War II may have eased, but it's hard to tell by looking at sectors like America's nonprofits, which are expecting 2011 to be another rough year both for their organizations and the people they serve.
"In this economic environment, it's imperative to do what you can to help nonprofits keep the lights on," said Kerry Sullivan, president of the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. It's no simple task. As a recent report made clear, 85% of organizations expect an increase in demand this year for even the most essential basic services-and only 46% expect to be able to fully meet it.
The survey was conducted by the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF)-which provides loan financing, access to capital and direct advisory services to their 75-plus nonprofit clients-with help from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. (Through funding by BofA, the foundation gave more than $200 million in 2010.) For the cash- and resource-strapped nonprofits, the bleak prognosis for 2011 comes on top of several years of rising service demand: In 2009, 71% of organizations witnessed an increase; in 2010, 77%. More alarming, according to the report, 60% of these organizations have three months or less of cash on hand-and 10% have none. Of all 1,900 nonprofits nationwide that participated in the survey, only 9% expect 2011 to be "financially easier" for the people they serve.
The survey notes that the situation is even more dire for so-called "lifeline" organizations-those that provide critical services-87% of whom saw an increase in demand for services in 2010, compared with 68% of non-lifeline organizations. About 60% of lifeline organizations upped the number of clients they served in 2010, yet only 43% were able to fully meet the demand for their services. And only 37% of lifeline organizations expect be able to fully meet demand in 2011.
The types of funding support are critical for nonprofits to consider as well. As Ann King, executive director of Tri-Valley Haven, a community resource center in Livermore, Calif., noted, her organization last year received more restricted money and "less of the important general funds that help us manage the organization. We've said 'no' to funding opportunities that didn't cover their own cost-which on the one hand, we're proud of-but on the other, makes us hope for the unrestricted money that is most helpful to our organization and the people we serve." It is this unrestricted support that "ties you to the overall success of the organization and supports the overall mission," Sullivan said.
While years of economic uncertainty have forced nonprofits to adjust to what Rebecca Thomas, vice president of consulting services at NFF termed the "new normal" of scarce resources and increased demand, there are signs of hope. According to the report, 44% of nonprofits reported ending 2010 with a surplus, compared to 35% who had a surplus in 2009. And in the past year 55% of nonprofits added or expanded programs or services; 49% increased the number of clients served; 47% partnered with another organization to improve or increase services offered; 39% reduced annual expenses; and 36% relied more on volunteers.
For complete survey results click here.
In other news ...
Windward Advisory Group LLC, a technology and operations consultant to single-family and multifamily offices and wealth advisors serving ultra-high-net-worth clients, has released its new Loan Manager software package. According to the Princeton, N.J.-based firm (www.WindwardAdvisory.com), the product automates the accounting, processing and reporting for inter-company and inter-entity loans, supporting basic functions such as fixed and variable rate loans, multiple compounding periods, principal additions/paydowns and interest payments, as well as more advanced features such as loan rollovers, loan transfers and interest look-ahead.
The Exit Planning Institute has opened a chapter covering Australia and New Zealand, a market with over three million privately owned businesses. The EPI USA Australia and New Zealand Chapter, headed by its founder Craig West, CEO of Succession Plus, an advisory practice that focuses on exit planning, will offer two certified exit planning advisor programs per year beginning with its first CEPA program this July, and will begin accepting membership applications in April. Go to www.exit-planning-institute.org for further information.
The spring issue of aiCIO, which published online this week, asks if a heavy dose of skepticism might benefit endowments, foundations, pension plans and other institutional investors that continue to pour money into emerging markets. Though emerging market investments are predicted to reach $186 billion this year-more than double the annual average seen between 2005 and 2009-a number of institutional investors and consultants are worried that these relatively small markets will be unable to handle accelerated inflows, according to aiCIO, which is published by Asset International. Go to www.ai-cio.com for further information.
A vast majority of financial advisors are expecting their businesses to grow in 2011, according to Financial Professional Outlook (FPO), a quarterly survey of U.S. advisors from Russell Investments. Of advisors surveyed, 31% predict revenue growth of 10-14% in 2011 and 44% indicated that they expect to see revenue growth of 15% or more. While 72% of survey respondents considered new client acquisition to be a key contributing factor to growth, the report noted that the best advisors obtain new clients from inbound referrals, not marketing or prospecting efforts. A video and a full report of FPO's findings can be found at www.russell.com/Helping-Advisors/YourBusiness/FinancialProfessionalOutlook.asp.
The alternative investment management firm Man Group plc on Tuesday agreed to sell its 25% interest in BlueCrest to BlueCrest for $633 million, according to Man (mangroupplc.com). Man's investment in BlueCrest dates from 2003, and will generate a pre-tax profit on disposal of around $250 million (including profit on disposal from Man's equity stake and the redemption of existing loan notes). The proceeds of the transaction will add over $500 million to Man's regulatory capital surplus, previously reported to be around $300 million on December 31, according to the company, which expects the disposal to complete shortly.
With the good performance of convertible bonds compensating its negative exposure to the stock market, the Convertible Arbitrage strategy managed another month of solid profits in February, up 1.66%, according to a recent report from the EDHEC-RISK Institute. The uptrend of the commodities market and the declining dollar sustained the CTA Global strategy (+1.72%), despite the poor performance of regular bonds. The Equity Market Neutral strategy registered another moderate gain whereas both Long/Short Equity (+1.44%) and Event Driven (+1.34%) strategies scored well above their respective averages. Overall, the Funds of Funds strategy managed an above average return-0.87% in February-according to the report. Go to www.edhec-risk.com for more information.
Generational Equity, a Dallas-based advisor to privately held and family owned businesses for mergers and acquisitions, has announced the sale of its client, Kussmaul Electronics Co. to Mission Critical Electronics Inc., a holding of Evolve Capital, a private investment firm in Dallas specializing in leveraged recapitalizations of entrepreneurial businesses. Go to www.genequityco.com for further information.
National Advisors Trust, based in Overland Park, Kan., has been selected by Wescott Financial Advisory Group, headquartered in Miami, to provide comprehensive trust services through National Advisors' Trust Representative Office (TRO) program. As part of TRO, National Advisors (www.nationaladvisorstrust.com) established the private-label trust company Wescott Trust Services, through which Wescott (www.wescott.com) will market and implement trust services for clients that include high-net-worth individuals and families, trusts, foundations, pension plans and institutions. Wescott has hired Cynthia Bucher as manager of trust and client services to run Wescott Trust Services and the TRO program.
Events
The World Series of ETFs & Indexing Conference, sponsored by Information Management Network and designed for foundations, endowments and others, will be held March 29 at Seaport World Trade Center in Boston. Go to www.imn.org for further information.
EDHEC-Risk Alternative Investment Days, an alternative investment conference for institutional investors, single managers, and funds of funds, will be held April 5 & 6 at the Tower Hotel in London. For information go to www.edhec-risk.com.
Family Office Exchange, a provider of research, education, and networking support to private wealth owners, family office executives, and wealth advisors, on April 13 will be holding a Web conference, "Family Reputation Management: Crises and Beyond." For information contact Jennifer Muntz at 312-327-1211 or go to www.foxexchange.com.
National Advisors Trust's 10th Anniversary Celebration Conference will be held April 26-28 in San Francisco at the Hyatt Regency on the Embarcadero. Go to www.nationaladvisorstrust.com for sponsorship and general information.
IMPACT 2011: The Business of Talent, sponsored by the research and consulting firm Bersin & Associates, will be held April 27 & 28 at The Vinoy Renaissance Resort in St. Petersburg, Fla. Go to impact.bersin.com/Agenda.aspx for further information.
On The Move
Barclays Wealth has hired 14 financial advisers, from eight U.S. and European rival banks that managed $4 billion in assets, to help attract wealthy investors to Barclays in New York, Miami, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Boston, according to the company. Joining the San Francisco office are Alex Witherill and Matt Hodus, formerly at Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers; and fixed-income manager Christopher Bender and advisors John Shaw and Peter Kong, all previously at Thomas Weisel Partners, a San Francisco boutique acquired by Stifel Financial last year. Joining as advisors in New York are Steven Sweetwood from JPMorgan Chase & Co. (previously at Bear Stearns), and Robert Meenan and Shlomi Yedid from Bank of America's Merrill Lynch. In Miami, Barclays added Louis Tinoco from UBS, and Ruben Lesmes from HSBC Holdings. Joining in Los Angeles are Ron Jacoby from JPMorgan (previously at Bear Stearns), and two advisors from Northern Trust: Larry Roth and Gerald Gallagher. Barclays hired another Merrill broker, Joel Beeders, in Boston.
Four Morgan Stanley Smith Barney branch managers recently left the company, part of an exodus that started when Morgan Stanley gained control of Citigroup's Smith Barney brokerage arm in 2009 and began consolidating branches, according to a Reuters report (March 16). Edward Samson left as a branch head in Garden City, N.Y. Stamford, Conn.-based complex manager James "Shamus" O'Rourke left last week to rejoin Merrill Lynch in New Haven, Conn. John Simmons, a district manager in San Diego, also has departed. Reuters reported earlier this month that Dean Cottle, who managed a branch complex for Morgan Stanley in Utah, joined Robert W. Baird & Co's wealth management unit and is opening a Salt Lake City office for Baird.
Jim Tyree, chief executive of Chicago-based Mesirow Financial and a prominent member of the Midwest business community, died on March 16 at age 53 from complications during his treatment for cancer, according to the company. Tyree, a native Chicagoan, spent his entire professional career with Mesirow, joining the firm in 1980 as a research associate and serving as chairman and CEO from 1994 to 2011.
Virginia Commerce Bank, based in Arlington with a wealth management services department and over $2.7 billion in assets, has promoted John McManus and Charles Kapur to senior vice presidents, community banking; Kimberly Bradford to branch manager; and Libby Fike to vice president, project management. Promoted to assistant vice president, compliance, are Caroline Foster and Laura Jones. Barry Huitema will join the bank's consumer lending group as vice president, retail consumer operations, and Kimberly Clay has been promoted to manager of loan administration.
Alternatives investment manager 361° Capital has hired Blaine Rollins, former executive vice president and portfolio manager with Janus Capital, as managing director, senior portfolio manager, and member of the Denver-based firm's investment committee.
HighTower, a Chicago-based financial services company serving high-net-worth and institutional clients, has expanded with a new advisor team, Masterson, Emma & Associates of Naples, Fla. Mark Masterson and David Emma, both previously at Merrill Lynch, have joined Hightower as managing directors and partners.
Adviser Investments of Newton, Mass., and Kobren Insight Management of Wellesley, Mass., have joined forces to create a single wealth firm with more than $2 billion in assets managed on behalf of over 2,000 clients. Kobren CIO Rusty Vanneman and fixed-income strategist Chris Keith will join Dan Wiener, founder and chairman of Adviser Investments, and Jim Lowell, the company's CIO. The combined firm will retain the Adviser Investments name.
KBS Capital Markets Group, based in Newport Beach, Calif., and an affiliate of KBS Capital Advisors and KBS Realty Advisors, has recruited Kendall Best as vice president of national accounts to oversee tier-one firms in the broker-dealer community in the western part of the country. Previously, Best worked as director of national sales for Ridgewood Securities Corporation in Montvale, N.J.
Rogerscasey, a global investment solutions firm based in Darien, Conn., that serves institutional asset owners and financial services firms, has hired John C. Ferrara as chief operating officer, a new role at the firm. Ferrara, former CFO of EDGAR Online, Inc., and a director and officer of GAMCO Investors, Inc., will also serve as the chief compliance officer.
Arabella Advisors, a philanthropy services firm that supports family, corporate and institutional foundations, as well as high-net-worth donors, has appointed Samantha L. Beinhacker as managing director of its New York City office. Beinhacker, a writer and speaker, previously helped lead the Skoll World Forum at Oxford University, and directed a multimillion-dollar fund that seeded startup nonprofit enterprises and educated nonprofits about income generation.
The asset management firm JHS Capital Advisors of Tampa, Fla., has hired Amy Whittington as director of business development, responsible for recruiting financial advisors. Previously, Whittington was with a securities clearing firm, and at Pacific Life. She will be based at JHS' office in Omaha, Neb.
Washington Wealth Management LLC of Middleburg, Va., has hired E. Lee Pinney Jr., former senior managing director for Scott & Stringfellow, to serve as managing director of the firm's new Richmond branch.
U.S. Bank Wealth Management has appointed Scott Winget, previously senior vice president and managing director of the Wells Fargo Wealth Planning Center at Wells Fargo, as senior managing director of wealth planning for U.S. Bank's ultra-high-net-worth group.
-Cort Smith