Today, MFT spotlights Tim McClure, assistant chief investment officer and director of cash management for the Tennessee Treasury Department. Tim began his career with the Tennessee Treasury Department in 1987 as an Internal Auditor. He also worked in the Investments Accounting division for several years and gained a knowledge and appreciation for public finance. He assumed the role of cash manager in 1996, and is now the Assistant CIO / Director of Cash Management and oversees the State Pooled Investment Fund, the Local Government Investment Pool, the Tennessee Bank Collateral Pool Program, equity trading for the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System. In addition, he oversees the daily operations for settlement and clearing. Prior to his tenure with the Tennessee Treasury Department, he was a store manager for a major jewelry retailer.
Getting to know Tim McClure
Present Position/Job: Assistant CIO / Director of Cash Management for the Treasury Department, State of Tennessee
Years in Public Finance: 26
Education: B.A. in Accounting, Tennessee State University
Current Residence: Nashville, Tenn.
Family: Wife Connie and two children
QUESTIONS:
How did you choose a career in public finance?
When I graduated college, there were very few positions in accounting available. I received two job offers; one offer was from a small CPA firm with long hours and little opportunity for advancement. The other offer was from the Tennessee Treasury Department as an entry level auditor. I had a desire for a position that would be challenging and rewarding and the reputation that public service has in the minds of most is just the opposite of that. So, I decided to stay until I can find a better position somewhere else. Twenty-six years later, I am still here. I quickly realized that public service, especially public finance, is very challenging and rewarding. I have held several positions within the Treasury Department during my career, and my current position has offered me the opportunity to expand my knowledge of the financial markets and grow professionally in a way that I could have never imagined when I left college. I am a competitive person and the challenge of safely managing the taxpayers’ funds and earning a competitive rate of return is very satisfying.
What part of the job do you like the best?
My favorite part of the job is portfolio management. The challenge of competing with peers and benchmark funds, while at the same time keeping in mind that the funds involved belong to the taxpayers and there is no tolerance for risk. I have heard that managing a money market fund is the easiest fund to manage because the fund has zero risk. I would have to say that there is a tremendous challenge to managing a portfolio that has a zero tolerance for risk because every decision has to be meticulously scrutinized to make sure that there is no risk for loss. We only have to look back a few years to see what happens when funds are exposed to unnecessary risk to simply achieve an above market rate of return.
What would an outsider find most surprising about your job?
The typical outsider is surprised to learn about the volume of dollars that are under management at any given time and the challenges associated with making sure that there is sufficient liquidity every single day to cover the demands of an organization the size of an entire state without exposing the fund to unnecessary market risks.
What was the biggest challenge in building your career?
To me, the biggest challenge to building a career in public finance is the ability to learn as much as possible about the different components of the entity. State governments are very complex organizations with many moving parts. It is easy to get caught up in the day-to-day responsibilities of any job, but in order to be successful, a person must be willing to learn as much as possible about the entire organization. There are many people and just as many personalities that keep the organization functional, and that has been the biggest challenge for me.
How has the field of public finance changed in the course of your career?
The biggest changes have been the amount of regulation that controls the money market industry and managing funds in a near zero rate environment for so many years. One of the challenges to managing money market funds for most of the history of money funds has been the ability to forecast rates and manage the portfolio accordingly. Successful navigation of the yield curve was always the key to outperformance. There are now many people in the industry that have never had an opportunity to experience the rewards of successfully navigating a rapidly changing rate environment.
What advice would you give to someone starting a public finance career?
Be patient. Public finance can be a challenging and rewarding career and give a person an opportunity to develop professionally in a way that they may have never imagined. However, there are a lot of complexities and sometimes career growth may not be at a pace as fast as in the corporate world. The satisfaction of knowing that you made a difference for your family and all the other taxpayers makes the effort worthwhile.
