SOURCES AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Any history depends on the teller, as we learned with Roshomon, and every storyteller has his or her own perspective. Determined to tell the story of Vanguard accurately, I’ve been blessed with many perspectives: nearly 60 years of deep engagement in the profession and the business of investment management as a practitioner, as a consultant to many of the world’s major players, as a writer and teacher, and as a friend of many of the best thinkers and leaders of the best firms.
This fortunate range and depth of sources to understand the wonderful world of investing has been replicated by my good fortune to have known and worked closely with many of the important participants in this remarkable story. At least as important, it has been my privilege to have known these important participants over many years.
Jack Bogle and John Neff, first met in 1966, were both major contributors. Jack and I agreed on many issues, particularly low fees and indexing and the importance of client service and integrity. We celebrated each other’s books and enjoyed a long friendship. For this book, Jack devoted two full days to sharing his recollections. John invited me to write the introduction to his book, John Neff on Investing,1 participated regularly in the seminars I led for leading investment managers, and served as a director of Greenwich Associates. We discussed his rigorous investment disciplines many times.
Burt Malkiel, longtime director of Vanguard and expert observer-participant-overseer of investment management firms, has been a special friend for over 40 years. His A Random Walk Down Wall Street2 is everyone’s favorite. Together, we wrote a primer for new investors, The Elements of Investing.3 As dean of the Yale School of Management, Burt invited me to teach the school’s investment course. We served together as directors of Vanguard, and, with great patience and kind persistence, Burt gave generously of his broad, deep understanding of the many dimensions of the Vanguard story.
Bob Doran, a friend of over 50 years, provided insights and understanding of the difficult years of confrontation between Vanguard and Wellington and, importantly, the reconnection of the two organizations which has become so important to their great and continuing success. Modest to a fault, Bob has been one of the investment profession’s great servant leaders, to the benefit of his colleagues and millions of investors.
Jack Brennan invited me to join the Vanguard board 20 years ago and we have, since its founding, served together on the investment committee for King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia. Its endowment is now over $40 billion, the second largest in the world of education. In my years as a director, I had the privilege of observing Brennan’s leadership as various challenges and opportunities presented themselves and he led the transformation of Vanguard on multiple dimensions.
Bill McNabb and I got to know each other over the several years I represented Greenwich Associates as a strategy consultant to Vanguard while Bill was building up the company’s 401(k) business.
Jim Riepe, long a good friend, generously shared the details of his experiences and the core documents of the early years of Vanguard.
Jerry Kenney, one of Wall Street’s great business strategists, gave me vital insights into the bidding for BGI. Philip Augar, author of the story of Barclays Bank, helped me understand the various bidders for BGI.
Dean LeBaron has been my friend for over 60 years.
Most of the key contributors to the surging growth and steady development of Vanguard over the past few decades are identified in the text. They gave generously of their time and understanding in a long, long series of in-depth interviews. Each reviewed and confirmed my writeup of our interview.
A surprising number of coincidental connections enabled me to gain insights into specific aspects of the history. Larry Wilson and Bill Crozier were my classmates at Harvard Business School, and Sam Hayes was a new member of the faculty with whom I shared interesting experiences.
Bob Diamond participated in my Yale seminar on business ethics.
Peter Vermilye, Harold Newman, and I were colleagues at DLJ, and before that Peter was my client at both Morgan Guaranty Trust and at State Street Management.
Dick Smith was an SEC commissioner when we met, and he then came to one of the three-day seminars on investing that I led for DLJ.
Paul Miller, Jay Sherrerd, Hazel Sanger, and I were “friends in the profession,” and Bill Hicks and I were family friends from Greenwood, Mississippi.
Erin Passen of Vanguard was helpful in many ways, and her steady hand guided the process skillfully. We developed a strong professional bond as well as a friendship. Judith Newlin of McGraw Hill Education added insights and a sharp editorial eye. The book design and copy editing reflect the expertise of Steve Straus and Richard Camp of THINK Book Works.
William S. Rukeyser, as editor extraordinaire, has been my partner, mentor, and friend in the multidimensional challenge of converting draft chapters into a finished book. Sometimes admonishing, always genial, and superbly skillful, he has worked his magic on many levels—therapist, teacher, coach, trainer, cheerleader, and chaplain. We met and worked together when he was establishing Money as the best consumer magazine in personal finance and investing. We worked assiduously together on Inside Vanguard, as we have on several books over a dozen years, beginning with The Partnership,4 the story of Goldman Sachs’s rise to leadership in the global securities industry. All readers have many reasons to be grateful to Bill for making the inspiring story of Vanguard crisper, clearer, and even more compelling. Bill was a genial professional perfectionist and would have taken professional satisfaction in completing his editing, before a celebratory dinner in Manhattan a month before his early death. He was a great friend.
A few books were particularly helpful: Robert Slater’s John Bogle and the Vanguard Experiment,5 which tells Bogle’s story of the early years of Vanguard; John Neff on Investing; and the several books Bogle wrote about investing and Vanguard.
Of course, it was helpful to have written books about Goldman Sachs and Capital Group,6 to have taught the investment management courses at Harvard and Yale, and to have devoted 30 years to consulting with investment firms and securities firms in North America, Europe, and Asia. These experiences immersed me in the world of Vanguard.
Confession: Vanguard is the investment manager for my beloved wife, my two sons, my four grandchildren, our church, and the Whitehead Institute, where I chaired the investment committee for many years. I know of no other investment management organization so capable and so devoted to delivering, at low cost, such high value.