The bestselling author of Pioneering Portfolio Management, the
definitive template for institutional fund management, returns with a
book that shows individual investors how to manage their financial
assets.
In Unconventional Success, investment legend David F. Swensen offers
incontrovertible evidence that the for-profit mutual fund industry
consistently fails the average investor. From excessive management fees
to the frequent "churning" of portfolios, the relentless pursuit of
profits by mutual fund management companies harms individual clients.
Perhaps most destructive of all are the hidden schemes that limit
investor choice and reduce returns, including "pay-to-play"
product-placement fees, stale-price trading scams, soft-dollar
kickbacks, and 12b-1 distribution charges.
Even if investors manage to emerge unscathed from an encounter with the
profit-seeking mutual fund industry, individuals face the likelihood of
self-inflicted pain. The common practice of selling losers and buying
winners (and doing both too often) damages portfolio returns and
increases tax liabilities, delivering a one-two punch to investor
aspirations.
In short: Nearly insurmountable hurdles confront ordinary investors.
Swensen's solution? A contrarian investment alternative that promotes
well-diversified, equity-oriented, "market-mimicking" portfolios that
reward investors who exhibit the courage to stay the course. Swensen
suggests implementing his nonconformist proposal with investor-friendly,
not-for-profit investment companies such as Vanguard and TIAA-CREF. By
avoiding actively managed funds and employing client-oriented mutual
fund managers, investors create the preconditions for investment
success.
Bottom line? Unconventional Success provides the guidance and
financial know-how for improving the personal investor's financial
future.