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FOCUS - summer 2007
Performa News:
Performa Invitation Football 2007
On Friday 6th July 2007, the third Performa Invitation Football competition took place on a fortunately dry evening!
All of the eight teams that took part in the previous year were welcomed back for another closely fought battle in N1, London.
The tighter of the two leagues was League A which saw extremely tough matches between the top 3 finishing teams (Pictet, Performa and Blackrock). The bully boys of Pictet won through holding both Performa and Blackrock to a draw and trouncing AXA Framlington 5-1. Second place was contested by the Performa Vs Blackrock grudge match, with Performa nicking the win after slotting home in the final minutes.
League B was a true clash of youth and experience, with the youthful RLAM taking top spot. Second place was effectively decided by the convincing win of F&C over Northern Trust, with F&C sticking three past the experienced Northern Trust team. F&C held the Schroders squad to a last game draw to seal second place.
Both Semi Finals saw fatigue set in. RLAM beat Performa in the “strictly no subs” battle with two outstanding goals to Performa’s one. Pictet pinched the second Semi Final to ensure top teams met in the final.
The final was like a 12th round heavyweight bout, with both teams slugging it out. The Art of Defence pre-occupied both teams and the inevitable penalties were to be the decider. The RLAM boys showed the necessary composure to overcome Pictet 2-1, completing their title reign to 2 out of 3!
More hot golf!
Performa organised its third Golf Day in June 2007 at Selsdon Park in leafy Surrey. It was always going to be hard to match the excitement, emotion, standards and, of course, the heat that most of those playing had witnessed the previous year but to some extent we managed it (all bar the heat!)
Golf standards were alarmingly high suggesting that today's performance teams have successfully deployed technology and outsourced performance requirements to such an extent in their workplaces that they are able to spend most of their time on the golf course. The longest drive was won by John Dolder of Aberdeen Asset Management, who also got extremely close to the pin. The best individual score was won for a second year in a row by Grant Strang of Hermes who amassed 41 Stableford points.
An Ode to GIPS
Imagine a world where chaos abounds
Marauding savages rampaging towns
Oceans swarming with dark pirate ships
Investment Management – before we had GIPS
So the CFA met (it was called AIMR then)
Drew up some paper and pulled out a pen
They drafted the Standards and all did agree
To full disclosure and transparency
Many years have now passed since those standards were set
Many guidance statements we all should have met
But, what’s this – we hear that they’re changing again!
It’s OK for now, it’s not ‘til 2010
Author: Anon