2017 Hot List Recipient
2020 Hot List Recipient
2021 CEO of the Year
Accolades
Media
Middlefield has been operating for over 40 years and began as an integrated real estate management company
1979
Middlefield is an asset management company founded in 1979 with the goal of creating innovative investment solutions. We are independently owned, answering only to our clients. Our team is not burdened by the distractions faced by public companies, allowing us to focus on what matters most — the satisfaction of financial advisors and investors.
Company Profile
40+
years in asset management
6 – real estate,
health care, innovation, infrastructure, energy and diversified income
Core Equity Income Mandates
43%
PROPORTION OF WOMEN AMONG FUNDSERV EMPLOYEES
3 – Toronto,
San Francisco, and London, UK
global offices
63,514,128
NUMBER OF ORDERS PROCESSED IN 2019
Bio
Spotlight
Milestones
Media
Accolades
Company Profile
years in the industry
24
6 equity income mandates
real estate, health care, innovation, infrastructure, energy and diversified income
Favourite quote
“Our team is passionate about creating value for clients through a dividend investing lens. Consensus views often prove incorrect; we frequently explore the road less travelled and think independently to uncover our best ideas”
Rob Lauzon
CIO at Middlefield
Rob Lauzon, CIO at Middlefield, explains how he has honed his equity income philosophy over the past two decades
Read on
“I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it.”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
“When we talk about dividends, we focus on the long-term kind; slow and steady wins the race, that kind of that all-weather portfolio”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
Share
2017 Hot List Recipient
2020 Hot List Recipient
2021 CEO of the Year
Accolades
Media
Milestones
2011
2012
2015
2016
2019
2021
Curabitur feugiat eget leo id tempus. Maecenas commodo, nibh at ultricies pulvinar, ipsum erat porta metus, et tempus justo tellus euismod dolor.
2012
Curabitur feugiat eget leo id tempus. Maecenas commodo, nibh at ultricies pulvinar, ipsum erat porta metus, et tempus justo tellus euismod dolor.
2015
Curabitur feugiat eget leo id tempus. Maecenas commodo, nibh at ultricies pulvinar, ipsum erat porta metus, et tempus justo tellus euismod dolor.
2016
Curabitur feugiat eget leo id tempus. Maecenas commodo, nibh at ultricies pulvinar, ipsum erat porta metus, et tempus justo tellus euismod dolor.
2019
Curabitur feugiat eget leo id tempus. Maecenas commodo, nibh at ultricies pulvinar, ipsum erat porta metus, et tempus justo tellus euismod dolor.
2021
Actively picking diamonds from the dust
Karen Adams has had a remarkable journey to her current role as CEO of Fundserv. Originally from Toronto, Adams earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics at Queens University, followed by an MBA in international finance at the University of British Columbia. After graduating, she set off across the globe, holding various positions with HSBC that took her to London, Dubai, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul and Mumbai.
That global experience gave Adams a unique perspective, prompting her to develop a leadership style that’s based on developing relationships with each individual, listening and understanding to help them reach their potential. That approach goes well beyond her own team, allowing Fundserv to succeed in creating solutions for its members.
“Having worked in many different countries, people ask if I am an expert in multicultural leadership,” Adams says. “I always say there is no such thing because that assumes you manage people based on their background. I have learned that people all want the same things: to develop our careers, give our kids a good future, etc. When she returned to Canada learned that people all
“I look for undervalued stories,” Lauzon explains. “I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it.”
These were lessons he would take into his career at Middlefield, where his love affair with dividends developed. But that was still to come. When he left university, he first started working as an investment advisor at Scotia McLeod. He was 23 and had to build his own business – he was salaried for one year, and then on commission.
That was where he learned a lot lot about the industry in addition to its products and solutions for his clients. It was also where he learned about his future employer, Middlefield. He might even have bought a Middlefield product.
But the active manager in him was emerging, and he wanted to dig into stocks more, so he did an MBA – and then, 20 years ago, got the job with Middlefield. It was a natural fit, and other than those initial three years as a stockbroker, he’s been with the Toronto-based firm his whole career. Lauzon manages the firm’s flagship Income Plus fund, which was recently awarded the Fundata FundGrade A+® rating for 2022 in the Global Equity Balanced Category out of 735 peer funds.
His industry education was vital to what is now one of the best income strategies in the market, and his time at Scotia was significant in shaping that investment philosophy.
He says, “With that product knowledge from those three years, I understood our end client and Middlefield well, because I was the end client for three years. So it helped me build Middlefield because I [already] had some good ideas. I hit the ground running.”
While she’s proud of the strides Fundserv made in 2020, Adams acknowledges that it was a challenging time as a leader. Not only did she have to ensure Fundserv kept running efficiently as her team transitioned to working from home, but she was also filled with concern for her team members.
“I just worried about our employees, their mental health and if they would be OK,” Adams says. “I like to see people, so I set up one-on-ones just to connect with them.
Moving forward, Adams says Fundserv’s goals remain aligned with those of its members, and her team will continue listening and understanding what members need so the organization can evolve accordingly. She adds that she wants Fundserv to be so good at providing a secure and reliable service that members forget it’s there – and she wants the company to continue to inspire change in the industry.
“It is sad that it took a pandemic to recog-nize the cheque issue and solve it,” Adams says. “What we will do in the future is root out those things in the industry and not wait for a pandemic to ignite change. There is no reason we can’t change. Change, like auto-mation, will accelerate from now, and we’ll do our part to keep it going.”
Spotlight
Fundserv is the indispensable connectivity hub for the Canadian investment industry. Headquartered in Toronto, we electronically connect Manufacturers, Distributors, and Intermediaries, enabling them to buy, sell, and transfer investment funds. With more than 100 employees, Fundserv serves hundreds of members—executing up to 63 million yearly network transactions—and provides online access to more than 70,000 investment fund products.
Established in 1993, Fundserv is a private corporation that is owned by the industry we serve. Our 10 shareholders are a cross-section of Manufacturers, Distributors, and Service Providers who represent our members.
We operate using a cost-recovery model, meaning any unused profit may be rebated back to our members. In addition to our network and applications, we lead and facilitate industry committees and working groups that promote automation initiatives and establish the industry’s electronic standards.
By ensuring every trade is processed timely, accurately, and securely, Fundserv has rightfully earned a reputation for service excellence—a hallmark of more than 25 years in the investment industry.
Company Profile
1983
years in asset management
6 – real estate, health care, innovation, infrastructure, energy and diversified income
Core Equity Income Mandates
3 – Toronto,
San Francisco, and London, UK
PROPORTION OF WOMEN AMONG FUNDSERV EMPLOYEES
“I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
“When we talk about dividends, we focus on the long-term kind; slow and steady wins the race, that kind of that all-weather portfolio”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
years in the industry
24
Favourite quote
“Our team is passionate about creating value for clients through a dividend investing lens. Consensus views often prove incorrect; we frequently explore the road less travelled and think independently to uncover our best ideas”
Karen Adams
President and CEO at Fundserv
Before becoming CEO of Fundserv, Karen Adams held a variety of leadership roles around the world – and she learned that listening and understanding are key to both providing service and developing talent
Read on
Share
Share
2017 Hot List Recipient
2020 Hot List Recipient
2021 CEO of the Year
Accolades
Media
Actively picking diamonds from the dust
Karen Adams has had a remarkable journey to her current role as CEO of Fundserv. Originally from Toronto, Adams earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics at Queens University, followed by an MBA in international finance at the University of British Columbia. After graduating, she set off across the globe, holding various positions with HSBC that took her to London, Dubai, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul and Mumbai.
That global experience gave Adams a unique perspective, prompting her to develop a leadership style that’s based on developing relationships with each individual, listening and understanding to help them reach their potential. That approach goes well beyond her own team, allowing Fundserv to succeed in creating solutions for its members.
“Having worked in many different countries, people ask if I am an expert in multicultural leadership,” Adams says. “I always say there is no such thing because that assumes you manage people based on their background. I have learned that people all want the same things: to develop our careers, give our kids a good future, etc. When she returned to Canada learned that people all
“I look for undervalued stories,” Lauzon explains. “I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it.”
These were lessons he would take into his career at Middlefield, where his love affair with dividends developed. But that was still to come. When he left university, he first started working as an investment advisor at Scotia McLeod. He was 23 and had to build his own business – he was salaried for one year, and then on commission.
That was where he learned a lot lot about the industry in addition to its products and solutions for his clients. It was also where he learned about his future employer, Middlefield. He might even have bought a Middlefield product.
But the active manager in him was emerging, and he wanted to dig into stocks more, so he did an MBA – and then, 20 years ago, got the job with Middlefield. It was a natural fit, and other than those initial three years as a stockbroker, he’s been with the Toronto-based firm his whole career. Lauzon manages the firm’s flagship Income Plus fund, which was recently awarded the Fundata FundGrade A+® rating for 2022 in the Global Equity Balanced Category out of 735 peer funds.
His industry education was vital to what is now one of the best income strategies in the market, and his time at Scotia was significant in shaping that investment philosophy.
From those forums, a common theme arose that has plagued the industry for years: the amount of paper required in transactions.
“We have a motto to ‘axe the fax,’ and we saw this opportunity where members didn’t want their staff going into the office, but there are still physical cheques going back and forth,” Adams explains. “We put in place, in just six months, Ad-Hoc Money Movement [A$M]. We responded to the industry and are in the process of replacing cheques, which I think is awesome. We launched in January and have seen so much volume. We think ultimately we are keeping people healthier by not having to travel into the office.”
In the current economic climate, with rates and inflation high – “for our style of investing, back into the sweet spot of 2000 to 2010” – and the markets prone to sudden downturns, protection is a key consideration, and Lauzon has factored that into his investment style. He notes, “You do need some inflation protection with a dividend payment that is actually growing. So, if you can get a dividend grower, this is the right time when that style will attract capital.”
Casting his eyes ahead, Lauzon, who has now been CIO for a year, having already served as deputy CIO, thinks value and cyclical stocks will outperform growth over six or seven out of the next 10 years. Real estate is also something Middlefield loves because it spits out cash flow, with REITs in particular being good payers of dividends.
There is also the geopolitical situation to add into the mix. Lauzon thinks the markets will be in a continued state of volatility for some time to come, thanks to headline risks in Ukraine, as well as inflation uncertainties, debt-ceiling headlines, and the new regime of high-level rates. More volatility, he says, is best handled through active management.
He elaborates, “Typically, active management outperforms in volatile times, because you’ve got that cash cushion that you can use. And now when I go to cash, I can park it and make some interest on it. Four years ago, when I went to cash, the risk was I'm earning zero on that cash. So we can adapt to changing market environments to leverage our bread and butter, which is security selection, stock selection. So it's going to be a stock-pickers market because we can pivot quicker than passive managers.”
It’s a scenario that plays exactly to the strengths Lauzon has honed in a career spanning 20 years of active management.
Spotlight
Fundserv is the indispensable connectivity hub for the Canadian investment industry. Headquartered in Toronto, we electronically connect Manufacturers, Distributors, and Intermediaries, enabling them to buy, sell, and transfer investment funds. With more than 100 employees, Fundserv serves hundreds of members—executing up to 63 million yearly network transactions—and provides online access to more than 70,000 investment fund products.
Established in 1993, Fundserv is a private corporation that is owned by the industry we serve. Our 10 shareholders are a cross-section of Manufacturers, Distributors, and Service Providers who represent our members.
We operate using a cost-recovery model, meaning any unused profit may be rebated back to our members. In addition to our network and applications, we lead and facilitate industry committees and working groups that promote automation initiatives and establish the industry’s electronic standards.
By ensuring every trade is processed timely, accurately, and securely, Fundserv has rightfully earned a reputation for service excellence—a hallmark of more than 25 years in the investment industry.
Company Profile
1983
years in asset management
6 – real estate, health care, innovation, infrastructure, energy and diversified income
Core Equity Income Mandates
3 – Toronto,
San Francisco, and London, UK
PROPORTION OF WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP
years in the industry
24
Favourite quote
“Our team is passionate about creating value for clients through a dividend investing lens. Consensus views often prove incorrect; we frequently explore the road less travelled and think independently to uncover our best ideas”
Karen Adams
President and CEO at Fundserv
Career highlight
Before becoming CEO of Fundserv, Karen Adams held a variety of leadership roles around the world – and she learned that listening and understanding are key to both providing service and developing talent
Read on
“I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
“When we talk about dividends, we focus on the long-term kind; slow and steady wins the race, that kind of that all-weather portfolio”
Rob Lauzon,
Middlefield
IN Partnership with
In Partnership with
In Partnership with
1979
1997
2006
2017
2018
2022
Middlefield has been operating for over 40 years and began as an integrated real estate management company
1979
MINT Income Fund launched – Currently managed by Robert Lauzon, Middlefield MINT Income Fund is the company's first diversified equity income strategy
1997
Middlefield Canadian Income Trust launched – Middlefield's diversified equity income strategy for UK investors on the London Stock Exchange
2006
Winner of Multiple Lipper Fund Awards – Managed by Robert Lauzon, Middlefield Income Plus won the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award in 2012, 2013, and 2017
2017
E Split Corp. launched – Managed by Robert Lauzon, E Split Corporation was Middlefield's first split-share fund
2018
Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award winner – Middlefield Real Estate Dividend Class Series F won the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award for the second consecutive year
2022
Milestones
the markets will be in a continued state of volatility for some time to come, thanks to headline risks in Ukraine, as well as inflation uncertainties, debt-ceiling headlines, and the new regime of high-level rates. More volatility, he says, is best handled through active management.
He elaborates, “Typically, active management outperforms in volatile times, because you’ve got that cash cushion that you can use. And now when I go to cash, I can park it and make some interest on it. Four years ago, when I went to cash, the risk was I'm earning zero on that cash. So we can adapt to changing market environments to leverage our bread and butter, which is security selection, stock selection. So it's going to be a stock-pickers market because we can pivot quicker than passive managers.”
It’s a scenario that plays exactly to the strengths Lauzon has honed in a career spanning 20 years of active management.
In the current economic climate, with rates and inflation high – “for our style of investing, back into the sweet spot of 2000 to 2010” – and the markets prone to sudden downturns, protection is a key consideration, and Lauzon has factored that into his investment style. He notes, “You do need some inflation protection with a dividend payment that is actually growing. So, if you can get a dividend grower, this is the right time when that style will attract capital.”
Casting his eyes ahead, Lauzon, who has now been CIO for a year, having already served as deputy CIO, thinks value and cyclical stocks will outperform growth over six or seven out of the next 10 years. Real estate is also something Middlefield loves because it spits out cash flow, with REITs in particular being good payers of dividends.
There is also the geopolitical situation to add into the mix. Lauzon thinks
they do best: focus on sectors that pay high levels of income, such as energy, REITs, pipelines, utilities, telcos, and banks. When they like the look of a sector, inherently they’re not concerned about taking an overweight position in it. Instead, the question for Lauzon is whether he has conviction regarding the sector.
He explains, “That’s the sector, or companies in which I just met with the CEO, and I really dug into the industry and see 18 months of tailwinds. I'm going to overweight these names. And if my thesis is right, they're going to be able to bump their dividend.”
Now, of course, the economic climate is a vastly different one – a higher-rate environment that is more ideal for dividend stocks, Lauzon’s specialty. He eschews those companies he feels are flashes in the pan that will burn out. He remarks, “When we talk about dividends, we focus on the long-term kind; slow and steady wins the race. [We focus on] that kind of all-weather portfolio.”
His industry education was vital to what is now one of the best income strategies in the market, and his time at Scotia was significant in shaping that investment philosophy.
He says, “With that product knowledge from those three years, I understood our end client and Middlefield well, because I was the end client for three years. So it helped me build Middlefield because I [already] had some good ideas. I hit the ground running.”
In the first years of the new millennium, while others in the industry were bedazzled by the new economy in a climate of ultra-low interest rates, Middlefield did what
Subhead text here
business degree and devoured the works of Warren Buffett, learning the principles of dividend payers, cash flow, and how to focus on areas others ignored.
A lot of people are lazy, will just buy consensus names, don't dig into mid-caps, or don't look at sectors that have had a couple of rough years, he realized. He resolved to understand why that is, and what opportunities that revelation created in neglected corners of the market.
“I look for undervalued stories,” Lauzon explains. “I was never interested, with my own personal money, in just dumping it into the S&P 500 ETF and forgetting about it.”
These were lessons he would take into his career at Middlefield, where his love affair with dividends developed. But that was still to come. When he left university, he first started working as an investment advisor at Scotia McLeod. He was 23 and had to build his own business – he was salaried for one year, and then on commission.
That was where he learned a lot lot about the industry in addition to its products and solutions for his clients. It was also where he learned about his future employer, Middlefield. He might even have bought a Middlefield product.
But the active manager in him was emerging, and he wanted to dig into stocks more, so he did an MBA – and then, 20 years ago, got the job with Middlefield. It was a natural fit, and other than those initial three years as a stockbroker, he’s been with the Toronto-based firm his whole career. Lauzon manages the firm’s flagship Income Plus fund, which was recently awarded the Fundata FundGrade A+® rating for 2022 in the Global Equity Balanced Category out of 735 peer funds.
“We’re stock-pickers, not index-huggers.” That’s why current market volatility is music to the ears of Rob Lauzon, who relishes the opportunity to uncover enduring winners in areas others have ignored. But then, the CIO at Middlefield has always had a natural interest in business, how it works, and how money is made.
As a young boy in Windsor, Ontario, he helped at the market, getting up at 3 am when his friends were still asleep and helping to load the truck. He took pleasure in tearing open a $4 bulk bag of onions or green peppers and selling the individual vegetables for 25 cents each to make a cool $12 profit.
His interest continued at Wilfrid Laurier University, where he completed a
Actively picking diamonds from the dust
Spotlight
Companies
About us
Privacy
Terms of Use
RSS
People
Newsletter
Authors
External contributors
Copyright © 1996-2023 KM Business Information Canada Ltd.
Contact us
News
Your Practice
iNVESTMENTS
bEST IN WEALTH
Resources
Subscribe
From those forums, a common theme arose that has plagued the industry for years: the amount of paper required in transactions.
“We have a motto to ‘axe the fax,’ and we saw this opportunity where members didn’t want their staff going into the office, but there are still physical cheques going back and forth,” Adams explains. “We put in place, in just six months, Ad-Hoc Money Movement [A$M]. We responded to the industry and are in the process of replacing cheques, which I think is awesome. We launched in January and have seen so much volume. We think ultimately we are keeping people healthier by not having to travel into the office.”
Companies
About us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Use
RSS
People
Newsletter
Authors
External contributors
Copyright © 1996-2023 KM Business Information Canada Ltd.
Contact us
News
Your Practice
Investments
Resources
Best in Wealth
Subscribe
Middlefield has been operating for over 40 years and began as an integrated real estate management company
1979
News
Your Practice
Investments
Resources
Best in Wealth
Subscribe
Companies
About us
Privacy
Terms of Use
RSS
People
Newsletter
Authors
Contact us
External contributors
Copyright © 1996-2023 KM Business Information Canada Ltd.