Reforming the SEC: A Conclusion of Sorts

The SEC is a proud agency and will likely regain its footing.  Nonetheless, the toughest piece of the ressurection may not be the shift in enforcement or the institution of policies designed to look around the corner.  The most difficult task may be reinstalling within the Agency a greater sense of mission and a greater pride in the historic role and purpose of the Agency.

This is, after all, an agency with a separate historical society and virtual museum, an alumni society, and awards named after the scions of the Agency's history, including William O Douglas.  It is possible to have a conversation today with alumni who wonder out loud what Stanley Sporkin would have done.  But in conversations with people at the Commission who have been there the longest, there seems to be concern that the newest generation of staff has less of a sense of history, of mission.  Instead, a position at the SEC is just another job, with salaries lower than the private sector but with fewer hours. 

Somehow this needs to change.  Maybe there should be mandatory lectures during orientation, with new staff assigned readings from The Transformation of Wall Street, the Joel Seligman classic.  But in fact its also about hiring the right people, taking risks with those who may not have the perfect credentials but have motivation and belief in the mission of the Agency.