Alumni Profile: Kenneth Wormser

Mr. Kenneth Wormser ('78) wholeheartedly believes that students at the School of Business Administration should never underestimate the quality of the education that they receive. "It is one of the best," states Mr. Wormser, "and I never felt as a UVM grad that I was any less equipped than others from bigger, more prestigious schools." Mr. Wormser graduated from UVM in 1978 with a degree in Engineering, Math, and Business Administration and is currently the Business Head and Managing Director of the Structured Credit Products Group for CDC-IXIS Capital Markets.

Mr. Wormser was originally drawn to the campus both because of its aesthetic qualities and because of the people that he met when he first visited the school. The four years that he spent here were some of his most memorable: he enjoyed his education, the college and social atmosphere, and the skiing opportunities. While his overall experience helped him "to mature as a man," his experience with the School of Business helped him to focus and to learn the accounting profession. Wormser credits Dr. Laber, Dr. Gatti, and Mr. Battelle with making learning enjoyable. His favorite classes were Dr. Laber's finance courses and Mr. Battelle's intermediate accounting course (even though it was his toughest class!). He is grateful for the camaraderie and for the friendships that he developed here and has sustained over the years.

Following graduation, Mr. Wormser began a career in public accounting at Coopers & Lybrand, where he spent 3 ½ years. He then returned to school at NYU to pursue his MBA. He next spent 15 years at Citigroup, where he began his financial career and eventually focused on securitization. After Citigroup, he spent 7 years at CIBC and then joined CDC-IXIS in May, 2003.

CDC-IXIS offers services on fixed-income and foreign exchange and equity markets and is a core player in European capital markets. The company also provides economic and financial research. As the Managing Director of the Structured Credit Products Group, Mr. Wormser is responsible for asset securitization in the U.S. and for collateralized debt obligations for the firm in the U.S. and Europe. He loves his job and enjoys meeting with and providing customized solutions for his clients. He also finds it to be extremely rewarding because he is helping companies solve their problems and increase their assets under management.

The downside, states Wormser, is that his job "is very time consuming and requires a lot of global travel, which is tough when trying to be a good father and husband." He especially enjoys spending time with his family, including his two daughters, Samantha and Lindsay. He also enjoys skiing and golfing in his spare time.