aabalone[red]

Trust busting

alec — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 15:52:13 +0000

No one seems to be talking about the economic concept of moral hazard any more. At the time of the Lehman collapse, concerns were widespread that if the risks inherent in managing a financial firm were removed by underwriting its losses with public funds, we would be removing the economic counterweight of insolvency that serves to constrain risky behavior. Now, with hundreds of billions of dollars flowing from the national government to shore up private enterprise companies, we are empirically testing the theory.

While economic theory and public policy are important, for stewards of wealth the real crucible of moral hazard is much closer to home. Fiduciaries know that insulating themselves from the very risks they advise their clients to bear is unconscionable– no matter how lucrative it might be in the short run. Reassuring your clients that your moral compass will not be a hazard of this financial turbulence is the most important message you can convey to your clients. And now more than ever, this message needs to be backstopped by behavior. Ethical fiber demonstrated throughout good times and bad times provides the only platform on which trust can stand.

Rockefeller & Co.

admin — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 13:40:58 +0000

Based on findings from family and staff interviews, a contemporized logotype and integrated marketing communications campaign, including the firm’s first website, repositioned the firm and signaled this change to the external high-net-worth market.

Roundtable Investment Partners

admin — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 18:42:59 +0000

aabalone[red] created a story, a name, and a crest that evoked the boldness, honor and brotherhood of King Arthur’s knights that was then used as a motif for custom-designed investor invitations, corporate stationery, PPT presentations and a website.

Pentegra Retirement Services

admin — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 22:03:28 +0000

Resulting from firm-wide interviews, we initiated a complete repositioning of the company built on demonstrative but ignored differentiators. This positioning prompted a new corporate identity, a branding line, new sales presentations, new corporate literature, design standards for internal staff, and the complete overhaul of the website on both the public and private sides.

Zephyr Management, L.P.

admin — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:45:02 +0000

Based on interviews, consensus building and a positioning brief, a fresh brand image and branding line were adopted, which were integrated into a corporate brochure, sales collateral for each fund, and a media-rich website with an updatable custom content management system.

Spruce Private Investors, LLC

holly — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:30:37 +0000

Originally, aabalone[red]’s creativity was tapped for Spruce’s annual meetings and a new fund’s pitch book. As the competitive space became more crowded, Spruce commissioned aared to conduct extensive research to uncover why clients preferred Spruce to the competition. With a marketing strategy developed based on interviews with clients, prospects, and intermediaries, aabalone[red] created a new branding line, corporate identity, print materials, PowerPoint and email formats, and a new website.

AlphaSimplex

gail — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 19:52:52 +0000

Getting behind the faceless feel of quantitative modeling, aabalone[red] brought to the internet the personality of the firm, its founder, and the highly adaptive market hypothesis espoused by the company. Through a series of illustrations, short callouts, clear text, color and videos, the full dimensions of AlphaSimplex were showcased in a comprehensible way on their corporate website.

SSJR

holly — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 14:49:55 +0000

A fresh design and an architecture that provides pertinent information for all visitors to the public site continue to evolve. The site offers a library of information, news, mobile apps, patent and trademark calculators, an art gallery, and a secure app for clients. Once logged in, clients are able to get a snapshot of their account, run portfolio reports, order patents, build agreements, and exchange files with attorneys.

Hamilton Robinson Capital Partners

admin — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 12:41:09 +0000

To uncover the particular strengths that would resonate with limited partners and portfolio companies alike, aabalone[red] interviewed the management team, prospects and clients. A new corporate identity, positioning line, capabilities brochure and key presentation points were developed to highlight the differences.

Alec Wiggin

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:00:47 +0000

Alec is the strategic thinker at aared; he has a natural ability to see both the forest and the trees. A problem solver, Alec finds thoughtful and rational ways for clients to more effectively communicate their differences (to the delight of their clients and the expense of their competitors). Somehow Alec finds time to stay abreast of trends in the asset management industry and to educate the rest of us on the intricacies of market neutral strategies or the taxation of carried interest. Alec oversees the consulting, positioning, editorial, client management and new business services of the firm.

Formerly a vice president at Bessemer Trust Company and an assistant manager at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., he has a deep background in finance and marketing. As long as twelve years ago, Alec was speaking before audiences like AIMSE about the future of the web in asset management. Some of Alec’s commentary has been published in Pensions & Investments and Plan Sponsor.