Letter to the Firm - Andrew Hall, Newly Promoted President of Narwhal Capital Management

Andrew Hall was announced promoted to the role of President at Narwhal’s annual firm-wide meeting in June. Below is a condensed version of his letter to the firm’s employees after the announcement.

Dear Narwhal Team,

In conjunction with Matt Burton’s further involvement with his family’s company and his desire to focus more exclusively on portfolio management, I am assuming the role of President of Narwhal Capital Management. This move was announced on Narwhal Day and has now been made “official” through our regulatory filings. We will be communicating with clients and updating the website, etc. in the weeks to come, but I wanted to take some time to address you all before moving forward.

At the risk of stating the obvious, such correspondence would be incomplete without a few words of gratitude to Matt. You all know my story – some in more detail than others – but I’m incredibly grateful for Matt’s friendship, leadership and the various opportunities he has made available to me.

I interned here in 2008 and 2009, which was certainly an odd time to gain a passion for investing (given the market conditions of those days). Candidly, it was the culture and the desire to serve clients that was most appealing to me. As such, it was an honor to be the first hire made after Matt bought the firm out from its predecessor in 2011.

I started with Narwhal as an Account Executive (which was a very different role from our current position with that title) and then moved to Director of Marketing as we pursued institutional business. In 2014, I was promoted to Vice President as we made the shift to becoming a five-person firm. As you might imagine, in those early days everyone’s job was to do everything. I am incredibly thankful for such broad exposure to so many aspects of the business so early in my career. There are few places where a 27-year-old V.P. would be able to influence portfolios, hiring decisions and development strategies.

Narwhal, at surface level, is quite different now than the last time I had a title change. Client head count, assets under management, our processes and our services have experienced tremendous growth. We’ve increased staffing size and capability, we’ve added office space (three times). By virtually every metric, we’ve gotten a lot bigger.

Despite these apparent changes, however, the firm remains the same in so many ways and that is a testament to Matt’s leadership. Although the five-year strategic plan presented at last year’s Narwhal Day prominently featured the firm’s purpose, values and vision, that was merely a formal institutionalizing of what he has always wanted the firm to be. It was not a new creation and it is not something that is going to change.

We will continue to strive to be stewards by providing an individualized approach to relationships, education and investment management. This has been the standard since 2005. Our growth is proof of concept.

We will continue to value stewardship, transparency and integrity above all else. I believe any growth metric is bolstered by those values.

You are probably sensing a pattern here, but it is still our vision to be a top firm in Atlanta without compromising our firm’s culture or character.

Although my title is changing and you will now be asked to come to me and hear from me on a few more things, there is no change to who we are, why we are this way or what we aim to achieve. I am thankful to Matt that we have never had to reinvent ourselves and that this transition does not require any deep soul searching or comprehensive review.

On a subjective level, I want every employee to have the same opportunities I was afforded – specifically to work in a role that offers an equal balance of personal development and contribution to the firm. We will continue to be a firm that takes a collaborative approach to serving clients with an emphasis on being experts in our own respective roles. We will not stop improving what we do and how we do it. Wherever possible, we will promote from within and you all will shape the future of the firm much more than I will.

Much of what Matt shared about stewardship on Narwhal Day is applicable to how I view this transition. I’m both honored and humbled to serve him, the firm, each of you and our clients. I’m incredibly grateful for the team at Narwhal and will do everything possible to ensure your personal and collective growth.

Thank you all for your continued effort and diligence. My door is always open. Do not hesitate to come chat.

Good things ahead,

Andrew Hall

President

Narwhal Capital Management