Deals & People January 16, 2024

Crossmark’s Doll Named CEO, Keeping CIO Role

Bob Doll, known for his annual market predictions, is adding the CEO and president roles to his position as Mike Kern steps down.

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Crossmark Global Investments Inc. has appointed Bob Doll to the role of CEO and president, in addition to his current CIO role, as Mike Kern steps down from the head positions, effective Tuesday.

The Houston-based investment management firm announced that the 44-year veteran and asset management CIO known for his annual 10 market predictions will lead the firm as Kern leaves to “pursue other opportunities.” Doll has been CIO since June 2021, along with managing the firm’s U.S. large-cap equity strategies; Kern has been CEO and president since 2015, having joined the firm from advisory firm Stout Risius Ross, where he was president.

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Bob Doll

“Crossmark’s clients have benefitted from Bob’s exceptional investment expertise, market perspective, and institutional leadership ever since he joined our firm, and we are excited about the vision and direction that he will bring to the organization in his expanded role as President & CEO,” the Crossmark Board of Directors wrote in a statement. “Bob will also continue to serve as CIO, and his investment market acumen, including his perspective as the manager of our U.S. Large Cap Equity strategies, will be valuable elements of his overall vision for our firm.”

Doll joined Crossmark in 2021 from Nuveen Asset Management, a TIAA-owned firm, where he had been a chief equity strategist and senior portfolio manager. His market forecasts are known in the industry for their accuracy, though last year’s confounding markets threw him, as he gave himself a 50/50 score for his 10 predictions.

This year, Doll is forecasting a shallow recession, as the lagging effects of the Federal Reserve’s monetary tightening take hold.

Doll had also served as chief equity strategst at BlackRock, president and CIO of Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, and CIO of Oppenheimer Funds Inc.

The board also thanked former CEO and president Kern for “his efforts to guide Crossmark’s progress as a leading faith-based investment advisory firm. Under Mike’s leadership over the past eight years, Crossmark has made strides in transforming our culture, deepening our bench across all departments, and positioning the firm to build on its investment expertise going forward.”

Crossmark had $6.2 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2023.

In Practice January 12, 2024

CFP Board Approaches 100,000 Certified Professionals

The number of CFP professionals reached an all-time high of 98,875, with 2023 marking the most diverse class to date.

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The CFP Board reported a record number of new Certified Financial Planner certificate recipients in 2023, according to its annual count issued Thursday.

As of December 31, 2023, the number of CFP professionals reached an all-time high of 98,875, an increase of 3.9% from 2022 numbers.

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When it came to the calendar year, the class of 2023 welcomed 6,089 new CFP professionals. Of these new certificate receivers, 56% were younger than 35, and 1,692 were women, who made up 27.8% of the class. The CFP reported 853 racially and ethnically diverse professionals, 14.0% of the new class.

While the percentages of female and diverse professionals remain low, the 2023 class still had the most women and most racially and ethnically diverse CFP professionals in a single year. The professional certification body saw the addition of 173 more women CFP professionals than the year before, representing an 11.5% increase. There were also 90 more racially and ethnically diverse candidates who became CFP professionals this year, a 12.6% increase.

The number of CFP professionals increased across various racial and ethnic groups, including:

  • The number of Hispanic CFP professionals grew by 11.3% to 3,016 people, 3.1% of all professionals;
  • The number of Black CFP professionals grew by 7.5% to 1,899 people, 1.9% of all professionals;
  • The number of Asian or Pacific Islander CFP professionals increased by 5.5% to 4,096 people, 4.1% of all professionals;
  • American Indian or Alaskan Native CFP professionals increased their numbers by 6.6% to 241 people, 0.2% of all professionals; and
  • Multi-ethnic CFP professionals grew by 20% to 156 people, 0.2% of all professionals.

“As we enter the 51st year of CFP certification, the value of the CFP mark is only growing,” Kevin Keller, the CFP Board’s CEO, said in a statement. “CFP Board is dedicated to building a sustainable, diverse financial planning profession that reflects the communities we serve—it’s one of our strategic priorities. We aim to attract talent and insights from all backgrounds to meet the growing demand for competent and ethical financial planners.”

The CFP Board was one of PLANADVISER’s Vision Award winners in 2023 in part for its decision to restructure the organization to have one division focused on certification and training and another working toward “competent and ethical financial planning and expand[ing] CFP professional diversity for the benefit of the public.”

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