The book describes a valuation approach tailored to brokers and analyses insurance intermediary M&A revealing positive abnormal returns for acquirers. It provides a comprehensive analysis of insurance intermediaries including an up-to-date market perspective, pointing out performance drivers for tied agents.

Insurance companies, as well as banks and thrift institutions, have traditionally reported assets and liabilities on the basis of their amortized cost, or book value. But following the turmoil in securities markets due to highly volatile interest rate fluctuations in the 1980s and the early 1990s, and problems caused by inadequate liquidity, in the mid-1990s the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued a new ruling calling for financial intermediaries to report the fair, or market, value of most assets. Called FAS 115, this new standard is the first step in the eventual change to valuing all the assets and liabilities belonging to financial intermediaries under the fair value accounting method. Thus, these changes will pose tremendous future implications for three key business measures of a financial intermediary: Solvency: if the fair values of assets and liabilities are out-of-step, then healthy companies may report negative net worth and insolvent companies may appear to be in sound financial condition. Reported Earnings: if the fair values of assets and liabilities are out of step, then reported earnings will not accurately represent the financial operations of the company. Risk Management: FASB recently postponed the implementation of its new rules on accounting for the use of derivatives instruments. However, if the final set of rules for figuring the fair value of derivatives is not carefully crafted, it may be possible that companies prudently hedging their risks are subject to penalties in their financial reports, while companies taking greater risks appear to have less volatile financial performance. Compared to banks and other financial intermediaries, life insurance companies have the longest term and most complex liabilities, and hence the new FASB requirement poses the most severe challenges to the life insurance industry. The lessons learned from the debate among life insurance academics and professionals about how respond to the fair value reporting rule will be instructive to their counterparts in other sectors of the insurance industry, as well as those involved with other financial institutions. Of particular note are the two papers which comprise Part III. The first provides examples of the fair valuing of annuity contracts, while the second offers examples of the fair valuing of term insurance products. As the papers collected in The Fair Value of Insurance Business extend and update some of the issues treated in a previous Salomon Center conference volume, The Fair Value of Insurance Liabilities, this new volume may be viewed as a companion to the earlier book.

A guide for mining the imagination to find powerful new ways to succeed. We need imagination now more than ever—to find new opportunities, rethink our businesses, and discover paths to growth. Yet too many companies have lost their ability to imagine. What is this mysterious capacity? How does imagination work? And how can organizations keep it alive and harness it in a systematic way? The Imagination Machine answers these questions and more. Drawing on the experience and insights of CEOs across several industries, as well as lessons from neuroscience, computer science, psychology, and philosophy, Martin Reeves of Boston Consulting Group's Henderson Institute and Jack Fuller, an expert in neuroscience, provide a fascinating look into the mechanics of imagination and lay out a process for creating ideas and bringing them to life: The Seduction: How to open yourself up to surprises The Idea: How to generate new ideas The Collision: How to rethink your idea based on real-world feedback The Epidemic: How to spread an evolving idea to others The New Ordinary: How to turn your novel idea into an accepted reality The Encore: How to repeat the process—again and again. Imagination is one of the least understood but most crucial ingredients of success. It's what makes the difference between an incremental change and the kinds of pivots and paradigm shifts that are essential to transformation—especially during a crisis. The Imagination Machine is the guide you need to demystify and operationalize this powerful human capacity, to inject new life into your company, and to head into unknown territory with the right tools at your disposal.

Valuation: Theories and Concepts provides an understanding on how to value companies that employ non-standard accounting procedures, particularly companies in emerging markets and those that require a wider variety of options than standard texts provide. The book offers a broader, more holistic perspective that is perfectly suited to companies and worldwide markets. By emphasizing cases on valuation, including mergers and acquisition valuation, it responds to the growing expectation that students and professionals must generate comprehensive perspectives based on thorough investigations and a library of valuation theories. Readers will gain a better understanding of the development of complete analyses, including trend analysis of financial parameters, ratio analysis, and differing perspectives on valuation and strategic initiatives. Case studies include stock market performance and synergies and the intrinsic value of the firm are compared with offer price. In addition, full data sets for each chapter are available online. - Provides an understanding on how to value companies that employ non-standard accounting procedures, particularly companies in emerging markets - Gives readers the ability to compare the intrinsic value of the firm with the offer price - Showcases a variety of valuation techniques and provides details about handling each part of the valuation process - Each case has data in excel spreadsheets for all companies, and data sets for each chapter are available online

Praise for VALUE MAPS "Equivocator, Explorer, Experimenter, Exploiter, Extender—Chapter 12 might be well served as mandatory reading for all subject matter experts! SPARC is not a valuation, per se, but rather a separate consulting engagement that might interest a client—especially if that client is preparing for a sale or planning an exit strategy. Miller has taken the good ideas from five disciplines and married them with value enhancement, creating what could become a very good 'add-on' consulting engagement. NACVA recommends, and looks forward to, further dialogue related to this new approach. This book will open your eyes to new opportunities." —Parnell Black, MBA, CPA, CVA, Chief Executive Officer, National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts (NACVA) "No one illuminates the murky intersection where business strategy and private company value creation meet better than Warren Miller. Now he's focused his extensive professional training and real-world experience to produce this intellectually rich, yet down-to-earth and fun-to-read road map we can all use. Business owners and leaders, financial analysts, management consultants, wealth managers, CPAs, business brokers, private equity investors, business appraisers—no one should plan to increase the value of an enterprise without Value Maps in their passenger seat." —David Foster, CEO, Business Valuation Resources "Private-equity analysts do not often come across scholarly and technical professional reading laced with laugh-out-loud moments! Yet this is exactly what one finds in Value Maps. Warren Miller's advice stems from his career as a finance executive, a CPA, a valuation analyst, and a 'recovering academic.' With pitch-perfect balance, Warren has created both a must-have professional reference guide and a best-practices road map designed to enhance the profitability of your client's business and your own—all in a very readable style with just a 'spoon-full of sugar.' Enjoy the read!" —Gary M. Karlitz, ASA, CPA, Partner-in-Charge, Valuation Services, Forensic Services, and Forensic Accounting, Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP "Extremely readable, with numerous real-world examples—valuation specialists who don't read this book will soon be looking for a new profession. Miller takes the term 'valuation' to new levels, suggesting that appraisers can indeed add real value to their clients' businesses. Clients should demand that a valuation professional read this book before he or she will be hired." —Alfred M. King, Vice Chairman, Marshall & Stevens, Inc.