F. William McNabb III is chairman and chief executive officer of Vanguard. He joined Vanguard in 1986, took on the role of chief executive officer in 2008, and became chairman of the board of directors and the boards of trustees in 2010. Before becoming CEO, he led each of Vanguard's business divisions that directly serve clients, most recently as managing director of our institutional and international businesses. Mr. McNabb is active elsewhere in the investment management industry and serves on the executive committee of the Investment Company Institute's board of governors. He is also on the boards of the Zoological Society of Philadelphia and the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey.

Sometimes exploration is worth it. Sometimes you just spent a week of the team’s attention answering a question the founder could have tested in an afternoon. That is the part I think leaders underestimate. Ideas do not only cost money. They cost time, focus, and brainpower long before anyone approves a budget. The question I’d want answered is: how much of the organization does this idea deserve yet?