Face to Face: Orie L. Dudley Jr., Chief Investment Officer of Northern Trust

Title: Chief Investment Officer, Northern Trust

In this position since: October 2000

Early indications: I was raised in Idaho. The only stock I thought about was the kind people raised on their ranches.

Education: B.S., government, Harvard College

First foray: I got involved in finance after school, when I joined a management-trainee program at New England Merchants Bank. After I made a presentation to the investment division, the director invited me to join the department. Once I entered the business, I started reading the literature and found that I enjoyed it very much.

CIO in the making: I've been in most of the key roles of an asset management company: I've been an analyst, a portfolio manager, director of research, director of marketing, chief executive officer and chief investment officer. And I've worked in most of the types of investment companies there are: a bank, a consulting firm, a boutique money-management firm and a mutual fund company. I've also been dean of a business school and a rancher.

Global guru: I worked for the Barclays Group in Toronto, then ran its active business in Munich, Paris and Madrid from London. I also oversaw the asset-management operation of the Scottish Widows investment management company in Edinburgh. My experience in Canada and Europe introduced me to different markets, client perspectives and strategies for attracting and motivating the best talent.

Northern way: I joined Northern Trust because of its clear commitment to asset management and its mission to be a world-class global investment company.

Current outlook: We've been talking about a recovery, but the business cycle is now clearly in an expansion phase. We expect business performance to improve, probably even beyond what's expected. And that will translate into higher equity prices.

Off to the races: My avocation is breeding and racing thoroughbred horses. My horses have raced on several tracks in the West, including Emerald Downs in Seattle and Bay Meadows in San Francisco. I'm looking forward to going national.

 
On track: I'm struck by the parallels between investing and horse racing. In racing, you see probability, capability, emotion and expectation — a lot of terms we use in the investment business — play out in similar ways. The track certainly gives you a keen insight into the nature of risk, how crowd behavior can influence prices and the opportunity created by inefficiencies in the market.

What makes a winner: My filly, Lil, is a great example of the kind of competitive spirit that distinguishes successful investment professionals. She recently won the Idaho Cup, the top race in the state. In a race, when she'd get the lead, she wouldn't let another horse pass her. During her career, she lost only two races. Once, she broke her foot but kept running.

You can see that same kind of motivation and drive in the best investment professionals. That's the culture we strive for here at Northern Trust.