Submitted by Mark Hanna
Courtesy of MarketMontage. View original post here.
With the demise of Larry Summers, all eyes point to Janet Yellen as the next Federal Reserve head. Frankly it is a bit surprising she was not the leading candidate all along. Earlier this year, we posted a NY Times piece on the woman [Apr 25, 2013: NY Times Does Janet Yellen] from a more personal level and now we have one on the Fed whisperer himself, Jon Hilsenrath – more specific to policy and personality. From the description, Yellen is far more like Greenspan than Bernanke. Some excerpts:
- Janet Yellen, the lead candidate to succeed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, brings a demanding and harder-driving leadership style to the central bank, in contrast to Mr. Bernanke’s low-key and often understated approach.
- Ms. Yellen, the Fed vice chairwoman, is highly regarded by many central bank staff members, who call her an effective leader with a sharp mind. But she has clashed with others and left some hard feelings in the wake of those confrontations, according to interviews with more than a dozen current and former staff members and officials who worked with her directly in recent years.
- Most agree that Ms. Yellen—who has climbed the ranks from Fed researcher to Fed governor and regional Fed bank president, in between stints outside the central bank—is exacting and exceptionally detail-oriented. At Fed policy meetings, Ms. Yellen is courteous, respectful, serious and meticulously prepared, according to officials who have attended meetings with her. She has staked out strong positions in favor of the Fed’s easy-money policies that sometimes put her at odds with opponents of the policies, these people said.
- People differ over Ms. Yellen’s style and its effectiveness. Many senior Fed officials, including those who have opposed her on tough policy questions, say the 67-year-old Brooklyn, N.Y., native would be easy to work with if picked to lead the institution. “She listens to all sides of a debate,” said Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, who wants the Fed to end its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying program, which Ms. Yellen has strongly supported.
- Some others who have worked with her behind the scenes disagree. Dick Anderson, who served a brief stint as the chief operating officer of the Fed’s Washington board, ending in December 2012, said, “Yellen’s abrasive, intimidating style is probably more suited for a ‘Mad Men’ era as opposed to a modern office environment.”
- A harder-driving style by the Fed chief, if Ms. Yellen adopts one, could push the central bank toward more decisive action, but also could make an already fractious institution even more so.
- Both insiders and outsiders would be watching to see if she attempts to impose more discipline on the 18 other policy makers, some of whom publicly air their divergent views. “Speaking with fewer voices is quite desirable,” said Alan Blinder, a Princeton University professor and former Fed vice chairman. “The question is, can anyone accomplish it? I’m not sure anyone can at this point. But Janet Yellen, who has watched the [Fed] from every vantage point, probably has the best shot at it.”
[Aug 29, 2013: The Millionaire’s Club at the Federal Reserve]
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