Ships ahoy, matey! A
NY Times reporter notes that Vanguard brought on 900 "crew members" (what the fund giant calls employees) in 2004 alone, apparently in response to asset swells from investors fleeing scandal-tainted firms.
According to the article, the Malvern, Pennsylvania-based fund giant hadn't battened down the hatches for the massive inflows: "When the volumes hit us, we weren't ready. We have a service standard that we'll answer every phone call within three rings. It's seconds we're talking about. We weren't doing seconds early in the first quarter. We were sometimes stretched into minutes, sometimes many minutes,"
Michael Miller, managing director of planning and development at Vanguard told the
NY Times.
Meanwhile, the article provides yet another difference between Vanguard CEO
John Bogle and founder
Jack Brennan. Apparently, the two have different fashion tastes: while the outspoken Bogle dons wide-waled corduroys and "rose" (does that mean pink?) sweaters, Brennan prefers Gucci loafers. 
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