INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT: OVERVIEW
“You’re selling a career
Shanghai, to access the global markets. Candidates who are willing to
be fl exible about their location will have greater opportunities.
GE SOURCE
Another important trend is the convergence between the long only
to a candidate, but you
world and the long/short, or hedge fund world. “A lot of fi rms have
© IMA
rushed in without the necessary skills to launch a trendy product, but
also have to make sure
shorting stocks is a completely diff erent mind set than going long,”
explains Steve Wiltshire, chief investment offi cer, multi-strategy
you’re buying what
solutions at Russell. He believes that long only managers will continue
to build up their hedge fund capabilities. Hedge fund managers
meanwhile, are facing critical times also. September was the worst
will fulfi l your future
month for hedge fund performance in a decade, leading many
observers to suggest that the dominance of the hedge fund industry in
needs”
investment management might soon be over.
As the lines between diff erent business functions continue to blur
across the industry, hedge funds will also become recruiting grounds
Timon Clock, Russell
for long only managers. “In the past, we may have overlooked hedge
funds, but now we won’t,” explains Timon Clock, responsible for
Kim Yates, director of the asset human resources at Russell. “You’re selling a career to a candidate,
management practise at Principal Search, but you also have to make sure you’re buying what will fulfi l your
the recruitment company, believes that asset future needs.”
management fi rms have learnt lessons from
previous downturns. “People are SPECIALIST FOCUS
maintaining their commitment to graduate Investment management is also becoming a more specialised,
recruitment. Th ey are recognising new increasingly complex business. Th e last decade has seen the creation of a
entrants as a cheap source of labour. In the multitude of specialist boutique fi rms, managing assets ranging from a
past, they have cut graduates and that hundred million dollars to several billion. Boutiques are usually set up
creates a generational gap in the future. In by portfolio managers who have left larger fi rms and want to go it
the last downturn, fund managers also alone. Often, they have a shared ownership model. Jupiter Asset
allowed themselves to lose key people, and Management and New Star Asset Management most famously
when the recovery came they were badly employed secretaries who were paper millionaires, for example, because
positioned. Th is isn’t happening now.” of their equity in the company. “Th e fact that principal investors have a
signifi cant equity stake in the business is a huge attraction for talented
TRENDS investors,” explains Wiltshire. “Boutiques tend to be much more
Th ere are several trends within the asset performance focused, and they have a narrow product set, which is
management business which will aff ect the helpful because you get the focus of expertise on smaller products,”
future of those entering the industry now. he adds.
One important trend is globalisation. For people entering the industry now therefore, things will look very
Investment managers are investing more diff erent than they did a decade ago. For the most part, new entrants
globally, and the direction of money fl ows will need to develop specialist knowledge very quickly, and they will
has become more global as well. have to succeed in a global marketplace with competition from all
“Sovereign wealth funds are investing in fronts. Cost-cutting amidst the downturn will mean that candidates
companies in the West, and you’ve got will have to work harder to prove their worth. At the same time
money fl owing out of China in to Hong however, some observers believe that now is the best time to enter the
Kong which then gets invested into asset management industry. “Markets will recover, and investment
UCITS type vehicles. People with local managers will do well because the world is still awash liquidity. Th e
knowledge for certain types of asset classes current situation, however unpalatable it may be, is not going to last
and strategies have an advantage,” explains forever. Th ose who begin their careers now are going to have a very clear
Jim Connor, an investment management idea about what life was like in today’s harsh environment. Investor
and systems specialist with Morse, the behaviour is going to change, and it’s important to be here at the dawn
consulting and technology fi rm. of this change,” says Amin Rajan, chief executive of CREATE, the
It means that there are more Centre for Research in Employment and Technology in Europe.
opportunities for talented individuals Wrestling with the bear now, therefore, may be as much of an
living in Mumbai, Doha, Dubai, or opportunity as it will be a challenge.
Cg
WWW.CFAUK.ORG CAREERS GUIDE 2009 13
12-29 investment management.indd 13 22/11/08 13:28:33
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