The 20 Rising Stars of Mutual Funds 2008 - (Page 19) forming or a fund is underperforming, the challenge is to really understand why,” he said, adding that a manager needs to know when selling out of a position is the best option. He described his biggest accomplishment as becoming a portfolio manager and said, in 10 years time, he still wants to be managing money because he gets “excited on the way to work each morning.” Lannen, who is a certified financial analyst, is reluctant to say he admires any one company most, but he pointed to one investment in the firm’s portfolio that he likes, which is global software company Cintra. “I’m always very wary of admiring a company because that means I’m emotionally involved,” he said. However, he noted that Cintra has a growing portfolio of assets, which is what he seeks as a portfolio manager. 13. ZACH LIGGETT Portfolio Manager Financial & Investment Management Group, Traverse City, Mich. Age: 33 Education: Eckerd College (B.A. in Economics/East Asian Studies); University of South Carolina (Masters of International Business Studies) Mentors: Fiachra Mac Cana, Head of Research, VinaCapital; Paul Sutherland, Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Financial & Investment Management Group; Martin Whitman, Founder and CoChief Investment Officer, Third Avenue Funds 13 . ZACH LIGGETT equities analyst. In 1998, while a competitor analyst for Colonial Group Strategic Development in Melbourne, he assisted in the project management aspect of the firm’s AUD$892 million acquisition of Legal and General. Lannen, who began his career as a chemical engineer working at Orica, an adhesives and resins company, said the biggest challenge in money management is the managing aspect. “In my experience, when a stock is underper- Liggett co-manages the Utopia Growth Fund, Utopia Core Fund, Utopia Core Conservative Fund and Utopia Yield Income Fund at Financial & Investment Management (FIM) Group, which has $755 million in assets under management. “I have spent significant time and effort at FIM Group to address the industry challenge of insufficient attrac- JANUARY 2008 MUTUAL FUND RISING STARS 19
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