All That Jazz: Putnam president invests time in Springfield broker

I would venture to say that it took more than a great Kansas City strip steak to bring the president of Boston-based Putnam Investments to Springfield.

I even wonder if Lawrence J. Lasser was able to enjoy that steak as good as it was knowing that 1,200 investors were waiting to hear his advice.

Nadia Cavner held her fourth annual customer appreciation dinner May 2 at the University Plaza. It not only reeled in an all-time high of more than 1,200 clients, but also featured Mr. Lasser, the president and CEO of Putnam Invest-ments, as keynote speaker. In fact, Lasser whose company manages $305 billion for more than 14 million people sought her out for the speaking engagement.

"As her customer base is national, so is her reputation," Lasser said of Cavner, Putnam's leading broker out of approximately 200,000 worldwide. She manages more than $400 million in assets.

Although the reception does not make front-page headlines locally, Lasser said Cavner's appreciation dinner is well known in the national investment industry. Other financial associates flew in from Milwaukee and Cincinnati for the event.

The premise to Lasser's speech was a warning that the decade of the 90s will never happen again nor should it. While it was enjoyable and turned many a profit, the decade was a devil in disguise for the economy because it was too excessive.

"Every time there is a boom, it is followed by a downturn," he said. "The better the 90s got, the more it was setting up a reversal to follow."

That reversal was a collapse, he said, and now the investment world is different than it's been in the past due to the economy shaken by the events of Sept. 11 and changing politics.

Lasser offered some advice to cope:

Have a good adviser. Because in shaky economic times like these it will pay off in the long run which is what investing is all about. "It is important to have a long-term perspective," because, he said, "investing is a long-term process."

Diversification is essential. Conserv-ative stocks are doing better compared to the overall market, which is suffering from the collapse of high-tech stocks. "That is why you have an adviser to work out a diversification plan," Lasser said.

Stick with the plan. "You would be shocked how many people don't." He warned against following trends because it is usually too late. "Have a plan stick with the plan."

Stay at it. If this sounds like repetition that's because it is sort of. With such turmoil in the world today (Enron, Arthur Andersen, oil prices, the Middle East, the federal budget/deficit, fraud allegations), it leaves the market as unsteady as it has ever been, Lasser said. Therefore, once in it, stay in it: "Do not jump in and out of the market," he warned, "but continuously review it. Think of it as an annual check-up with Dr. Nadia," he said.

More than 3,500 people across the U.S. call on Dr. Nadia.'

"We don't know anyone exactly like Nadia," Lasser told her clients in his conclusion. "I don't think there is another dinner like this across the U.S. It is an experience I have never had in my 30 years in business. Nadia, her clients and colleagues are an inspiration to Putnam."

Springfield should be proud to have such a dominant woman in the investments industry.