Client Organization: New Investor Protection Fund (New IPF)

Position Title: Chief Executive Officer

Location: Toronto, ON

THE COMPANY

On August 3, 2021, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) announced that it intends to consolidate the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA) into a new single enhanced Self-Regulatory Organization (New SRO). The CSA will also consolidate the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) and the MFDA Investor Protection Corporation (IPC) into an integrated fund (New IPF), independent of the New SRO. With these amalgamations, the CSA’s main objective is to support the development of a regulatory framework and an approach to investor protection that has a clear public interest mandate and fosters fair and efficient capital markets. The New IPF will be a public interest-focused investor protection fund recognized by and overseen by the CSA, working in collaboration with New SRO to minimize risk and regulatory duplication while delivering on its investor protection mandate.

CIPF and MFDA IPC determined that a special joint committee (SJC) of their Boards should be established for the purpose of recommending to the CIPF Board and MFDA IPC Board a candidate for the position of Chief Executive Officer of the New IPF.

This new CEO, along with fellow members of the New Board, will bring together the two existing funds into a New IPF and define the purpose, vision and mission of this purpose-driven, lean and highly knowledgeable organization. The CEO and the combined Board will help shape the future of the investor protection landscape for the investment industry in Canada.

This merger presents an opportunity for the New IPF Board and its chosen CEO to develop a Strategic Plan for the combined protection fund that maps out the future direction within an investment environment that, is itself, experiencing dramatic change. Recent geopolitical unrest is expected to impact risk profiles while increased competition for consumer investment dollars is leading to the creation and marketing of new innovative products. New IPF will, in turn, need to follow the regulatory path of these new offerings and assess the risks they bear. Understanding the implications to the New IPC by these and other market developments will need to be done in the context of the integration of two talented organizations into one, member-focused and public interest-driven entity.

With governments committed to clear and transparent communication on how investing Canadians are protected, a refreshed and more streamlined protection fund will enhance the confidence investors have in the system and elevate the fund’s ability to act on the behalf of investors in a ‘fire station ready’ manner. While remaining a trusted, respected and valued partner to regulators and other Canadian and global consumer protection organizations, the New IPF will also be well positioned to further build consumer awareness as a valued safety net within this country’s complex financial services sector.

THE ROLE

Serving as a member of the Board and working with the rest of the Board, the CEO of the New IPF will be responsible for the effective integration of the two existing entities (i.e., CIPF and MFDA IPC) under a common leadership and shared culture, while also defining and communicating the New IPF’s purpose, vision, and mission throughout the organization, to member firms, and with all key stakeholders. This CEO will oversee all aspects of the organization’s business operations including the development of the strategic and business plans and the annual budgeting process, ensuring accountability and compliance with statutory directives.

In addition to the traditional operational, people management and Board relations aspects of the CEO role, this new CEO will need to provide strong, thoughtful, and sensitive leadership and change management skills to the organization through the transition to the New IPF framework and beyond, effectively managing all aspects of the integration during a time of disruption – including the complexity associated with the creation of a newly combined SRO. This will also entail the need to provide expert stakeholder management of a diverse set of complex stakeholders.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Refreshing the Organization’s Purpose, Vision and Mission

• Working with the Board to (re)set the purpose of the New IPF
• Aligning strategic and business objectives with the organization’s stated vision and mission
• Establishing key objectives

Delivering on core mission

• Ensuring constant readiness for a member insolvency
• Aligning the funds and their investment strategies with coverage policies
• Gaining Board approval for and effectively managing the New IPF’s annual budget
• Ensuring new IPF’s ongoing relevance and adaptability by understanding the regulatory environment, industry trends, developments, disruptors, etc.
• Being ‘at the table’ as a well-informed and value adding partner
• Leveraging this merger as an opportunity for a shared vision of investment dealers and mutual fund dealers and influencing the CSA and the SRO to ensure New IPF gets what it needs to succeed
• Continually assessing new product risks
• Providing strong, proactive and agile support for innovation
• Creating an environment that invests in the development of others; sponsoring continuity planning and succession planning

Engaging senior team

• Providing leadership to the senior management team through effective oversight and performance management
• Ensuring there exists a strong and cohesive leadership group that is committed to the organization’s stated goals and objectives. This will include putting in place an effective succession planning program for key leadership positions.
• Retaining and developing key talent
• Establishing strong, constructive relationships with direct reports – ensuring they feel valued and engaged

Continuing to advance to a high-performance culture

• Igniting passion for the mission
• Demonstrating professional leadership presence
• Fostering a learning and development environment
• Creating an environment that supports diversity, equity and inclusion
• Promoting excellence

Building brand eminence and nurturing stakeholder relations

• Cultivating investor and industry relationships, connections and confidence in order to deliver on the organization’s vision, mission, and strategic direction
• Acting as the face and voice of the organization
• Fostering strong working relationships with key counterparts (IIROC/MFDA, CSA, CDIC, key partners and international peer organizations)
• Promoting and projecting New IPF’s values
• Participating in conferences or forums for other regulatory bodies and the public.
• Working deliberately to enhance the brand of New IPF as the national provider of investor protection

Leading a successful merger integration

• Developing a vision for the future including addressing industry challenges and, where appropriate, identifying opportunity for more innovative and more effective approaches
• Ensuring New IPF has appropriate rights and authorities
• Ensuring New IPF’s continued visibility and independence

Supporting the New Board’s effectiveness

• Contributing to a positive, collaborative, transparent dynamic with the Board
• Putting into effect the changes that are currently being made with respect to board structures and workplans; achieving streamlined management workloads
• Ensuring the Board has the concise, strategic information and relationship with management it needs to add value
• Supporting the development of Board agendas

IDEAL CANDIDATE PROFILE

The successful candidate will bring 15+ years of distinguished senior leadership experience in the investment industry, the broader financial services sector or regulatory ecosystem; additionally, they will bring extensive knowledge of the investment industry, an understanding of the variety of products available, and insight into the impact of regulatory and legal issues and evolving professional standards.

They are known for their strategic vision/thinking skills, operational excellence, and the communication skills to clearly articulate both to internal and external audiences.

They possess a high level of expertise regarding securities industry regulation and regulatory best practices, complementing a broad understanding of the operations of investment firms.

The successful candidate will bring strong change management skills and change leadership experience

– ideally including experience integrating two (or more) groups into a cohesive and inclusive new entity that levers the skills and talents of the combined teams and brings out the best of both cultures.

They will bring a global perspective of trends and developments in capital markets with a very good understanding of how markets function domestically and internationally.

The successful candidate will appreciate, understand and commit to the importance of the public interest mandate of the organization, and be able to balance a wide variety of perspectives from a broad range of stakeholders.

They will be an accomplished leader of people and known for developing a performance-driven culture and a leadership team that takes ownership for results.

They will be experienced in shaping policy and will understand how to develop and implement policies, programs and procedures in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.

The new CEO will be digitally savvy and ideally, offer experience in leveraging technology to enhance workflows, data gathering and sharing, and overall communication across an organization and with external bodies.

They will ensure that the New IPF will have the capacity to communicate in both of Canada’s official languages.

The following specific performance and personal leadership competencies are required for the position:

Business Leadership

• Has a strong operational orientation, can set dynamic and compelling goals; is decisive in their actions and work towards developing a culture of business excellence.
• Resilient and quality-focused; a problem solver with the ability to innovate within a traditional industry.
• Known for rigorous analysis; able and willing to dive deeply into a broad range of business, investment, product, distribution, custodial, operational and regulatory issues.
• Takes ownership and accountability for results, managing effectively in ambiguous situations.

Leading Teams and Building Culture

• A motivational and collaborative leader with a high degree of emotional intelligence; effectively attracts, retains, manages and develops top-performing talent.
• Can create a ‘One New IPF’; is able to unite disparate groups into a single new team under a shared vision and culture.
• Fosters an environment in which leadership team members constructively challenge each other to achieve success for the New IPF; provides leadership that encourages accountability in the team while maintaining a grasp on critical issues and progress on initiatives.
• Promotes an organizational culture based on trust, collaboration, and engagement.

Communication and Relationship Management

• Builds and maintains trusted internal relationships at multiple levels and uses them strategically to accomplish objectives.
• Works effectively in collaboration with the new Board of Directors.
• Motivates others to pursue common objectives with excitement about the future and conveys belief in the organization’s ability to achieve its purpose in serving the public interest.
• Maintains an external profile in advancing the New IPF’s relationships across the industry.

Transformational Leadership Qualities

• Imagines the future; keeps abreast of industry developments and makes appropriate adjustments as needed.
• Demonstrates advanced levels of agility, empathy, and inclusivity.
• Embraces change and can work with incomplete information.
• Exudes confidence and positivity.
• Possesses a bias for action and constructive tough mindedness.

Education/Professional Accreditations

• An undergraduate degree in a related field (Commerce, Economics, etc.) would be well complemented by additional financial services industry training and/or other postgraduate level education.

Language Skills

• Bilingualism in both official languages in Canada is an asset.

CONTACT INFORMATION

If you are interested in being considered for this exciting and challenging CEO opportunity, please submit your confidential expression of interest (cover letter and current resume) by email to Melanie Barbieri, Senior Consultant, at Melanie.Barbieri@lhhknightsbridge.com with “ NEW IPF CEO” in the subject line. Should you have any questions regarding this opportunity, please contact a member of the Project Team:

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