COO Magazine Q1 2023

Special Edition

Foreword

AWA

WCOOC

AWI

Events

Industry Papers

I am delighted to be writing this foreword following the successful 2023 COO Summit we ran in London in early February.

The COO Summit will become an integral part of what we provide our members through the International COO Community (iCOOC). Our aim is to give our members the opportunity to convene once a year in New York, London, and Singapore.

iCOOC focuses on areas of common challenge for the COO: leadership, performance, productivity, conduct, culture and controls, non-financial risk, and regulation. Additionally, through our diversity initiative, Women in the COO Community (WCOOC), we aim for equity in the finance community, leveraging talent from all groups and communities.

Each summit we will focus on one or more of these subjects. The February summit was spent on debating non-financial risk, following our 2022 Q4 annual COO survey which had 100% of respondents placing non-financial risk or a component part of it in their top 3 considerations for the year ahead.

We were delighted to welcome panellists and keynote speakers from among our members and those that have worked with us for many years, with the quality of debate and discussion setting a very high standard for the future.

I am particularly grateful to Emily Shepperd (COO, FCA) for opening the summit on day 1, for having been a banking COO, Emily’s insights and observations were highly relevant to the 150+ COOs and delegates in the audience.

Day 2 my thanks go to Irene Dorner, the former president, CEO HSBC North America Holdings Inc., and HSBC USA, now Chairperson of Control Risks, for her inspiring talk on leadership through crisis and the role of diversity in strengthening leadership.

We were particularly conscious of not saturating the 2 days with well-meaning sponsors, instead focusing on bringing into the debate where applicable our long-term alliance partners, Galaxy Sciences, Control Risks, Sutherland, and Amicus Consulting.

Each has an established long-term relationship with Armstrong Wolfe and our community, and are known as trusted voices and partners in what we do.

The 2 days was concluded with a formal debate, that encompassed the spirit of what we seek to do for our members, in raising key and common challenges and issues in an interactive and progressive format. The debate was so successful we will be establishing the COO Debating Society to be run twice yearly.

Maurice Evlyn-Bufton
CEO, Armstrong Wolfe

“Honestly, this was a great 2 days. I’d have changed nothing. Thank you for pulling this together.” 

Derek Pattison, Global Head, GBM Business Risk Controls, Scotiabank

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NFR Summit 2023 Panel Session Summaries

Armstrong Wolfe’s COO 2023 Summit is the coming together of The International COO Community (iCOOC) and Women in the COO Community (WCOOC).

We are the world’s leading authority on the role of the COO within Financial Markets, Investment Banking and Asset Management, and with offices in New York, London and Singapore, we support the COOs, CAOs and business managers of over 80 banks and asset managers…

“Being part of the Armstrong Wolfe COO Summit helped raise issues of importance to the financial services sector and gave great insights into what matters to its professionals. AW and FMSB share common goals in the promotion of fair and effective markets.”

Myles McGuiness, CEO, FMSB

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Profiling the Global COO, Asset Management

In recent years, the asset management industry has endured a significant amount of change, accelerated by the pandemic. At the centre of this trajectory is the COO. However, while there is more familiarity with the role of the COO Markets, the COO Asset Management remains an enigma to most. This research sets out to uncover the profile of the COO Asset Management…

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Armstrong Wolfe announces a collaboration with Control Risks

Armstrong Wolfe is delighted to announce that the global risk consultancy firm Control Risks [www.controlrisks.com] has become a Strategic Alliance Partner of Armstrong Wolfe with effect from January 1st 2023.

Control Risks focuses on helping its clients assess and then mitigate geopolitical, reputational, security, cyber and operational risks. Founded in 1975 and now with 36 offices and over 3,500 personnel…

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Managing strategic surprise on the anniversary of the conflict in Ukraine

After a year of brutal fighting, the conflict in Ukraine is once again escalating. Armed with Iranian drones, Russia is massing its forces for a renewed offensive in the east. The US and Europe, meanwhile, are shipping tanks and other armored vehicles to help Ukrainian forces defend and retake territory. Nonetheless, decisive military action is unlikely in the coming months and there is no real prospect of negotiations – only adaptation to a fractured battlefield and fragmenting world order…

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Armstrong Wolfe Advisory

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3rd Party Risk Management - Why is it so important?

Wade Younger
Managing Partner, Armstrong Wolfe Advisory

In the 1930s there was a gentleman by the name of Benjamin Klingler. He was a superintendent for an apartment complex and a former toolmaker in Germany. He had a plan to build a boat for him and his wife, an 18-foot tub of luxury. It took him four years to build and he christened it by naming the vessel Lillian, after his wife…

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Women in the COO Community:
An interview with…

Michael Paleos

Chief of Staff, Investment Bank at Deutsche Bank

Interview by Peter Zorn
Industry Advisor, Armstrong Wolfe & Director, Business Transformation, Mercer

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Why 2023 is the Perfect Storm against Women in Finance

Norma Gillespie Chief Executive Officer at Resource Solutions

The unprecedented blend of macroeconomic and geopolitical factors surrounding the global pandemic has resulted in the rolling back of much of the progress made towards gender parity in Finance. Here, Norma Gillespie, Chief Executive Officer at Resource Solutions, explains the impact of the ‘Perfect Storm’ on the glass ceiling.

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Armstrong Wolfe Institute

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Armstrong Wolfe Mentoring

Our Mentoring programme provides an opportunity to support your personal and professional development, through the input of perspectives based outside your organisation.

Our mentors experienced Senior Executives from the C Suite Community, located in the United States, Singapore and the United Kingdom, with a wealth of knowledge and experience that you can leverage for your own benefit. Mentoring sessions can be booked as a series of 3 or 6, at a time that suits you.

“Congratulations on a very successful Summit. Immaculate hospitality and organisation. Much enjoyed by all. Some tremendous talks. A privilege for Amicus to take part. Huge thanks to all your team.” 

General Sir Peter Wall, CEO Amicus

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War in Ukraine: Some lessons for business leaders

Since Russian forces rolled uninvited across the Ukrainian border on 24th February 2022, the eyes of the world have been focussed on that significant area of East European geography.

The history of Ukraine has been a protracted saga of a country constantly in flux, struggling…

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Leadership and Performance: Introductory Event

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (UK) 14th - 15th June 2023

Fundamentally, good leaders result in teams that want to follow them, especially in troubled times – whereas poor leaders precipitate those that want to leave, even when the going is good. Attraction and retention of talent…

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Behavioural Risk Management

David Grosse, Advisor to Galaxy Sciences and Armstrong Wolfe Behavioural Science consultant

Developments in big data analytics and behavioural science are driving new approaches to the understanding of culture and behavioural risk within Financial Services. Three weeks in January 2023 and three different stories…

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The Role of COO Finance

Joe Kauder

Former CFO Wells Fargo Wholesale Banking

Interview by Maurice Evlyn-Bufton
CEO, Armstrong Wolfe

“An excellent and finely balanced debate on ‘Purpose v Controls’ with the audience marginally supporting Purpose over Controls but both debating teams ultimately showing that really you need both, and in equal proportions. A great debating format and a lot of fun.” 

David Shalders, Group COO, London Stock Exchange

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