As growth rates came to a standstill in 2015, we took stock of expectations for the future. Surveying firms worldwide, we discovered them to be optimistic about long-term prospects, and found the pursuit of future profits gathering pace.

1. 1
UNLOCKING
GROWTH THROUGH
INNOVATION
HOW A NEW GROWTH PARADIGM AMONG
ASSET MANAGERS CHALLENGES THEM
TO RETHINK THEIR OPERATING
MODEL AND TECHNOLOGY
INFRASTRUCTURE

2. ACHIEVING
GROWTH IN
TURBULENT
TIMES
CHAPTER ONE
Bad companies are destroyed by crisis.
Good companies survive them. Great
companies are improved by them
“
ANDY GROVE
Former CEO of Intel

3. 3Chapter one | Achieving growth in turbulent times
AS THE GOING
GETS TOUGH,
THE TOUGH GET
GROWING
In the spring of 2016, we asked the question “why
are we talking about growth?” given that there was
a general state of turmoil in the markets. Since then,
this turmoil has only been exacerbated by assorted
terrorist attacks, an attempted military coup in
Turkey, and most notably, the UK electorate’s unex-
pected decision to secede from the European Union.
So how can buy-side investment managers expect to achieve growth
in such a volatile, uncertain environment? Our previous white paper,
Pursuing Growth in Uncertain Times, collected and reviewed the
opinions and projections of analysts, consultants and other industry
pundits and the consensus was clear: while short-term growth will be
challenging, medium- to long-term growth (3+ years) is inevitable.
While the experts predict that there will be growth, there is no clear
means identified as to how this growth will be achieved.
In order to gauge the pulse of the buy-side investment management
community, we ran a global survey seeking
answers to some key questions:
• What are your growth plans?
• What is the state of your “growth readiness”?
• What are the key barriers to growth you are experiencing?
The most surprising feedback is that two long-held core growth
strategies, globalization and M&A, have fallen by the wayside. In
their place is product and service innovation – that is, supporting a
new type of product or service that the company has not offered to
its clients before.

4. 4Chapter one | Achieving growth in turbulent times
WHITE PAPER
Despite recent market turmoil, growth is back on
the agenda. Learn about the key drivers of and
inhibitors to growth and examine how best to take
advantage from an infrastructure perspective.
ARE YOU PURSUING GROWTH IN
UNCERTAIN TIMES?
LEARN MORE
In order to support provision of new products and services (or
whatever growth strategies you intend to pursue), it is imperative
that you have the infrastructure in place to support this. Significant
advances in digital technology, data management and so on, make
it possible for you to enhance the offerings made to your clients.
However, this is a “deeds not words” situation. In this white paper,
we have surveyed more than 80 senior executives from the asset
management industry and asked them how they intend to grow and
how ready they are to capture growth.
The situation regarding “Brexit” is unclear and
will likely remain so for the foreseeable future.
It would appear at the moment that any
departure from the European Union will be
taken over a reasonably long period of time.
We will not know what the likely outcome of
any new arrangements is for some time.
From an asset management point of view it is
hard to see how this impacts long-term growth
factors. Many global firms are looking at the
shape and organization of their operating
models and considering mitigating any risks
presented by Brexit by having a more diverse
geographical model with more functional
capability in multiple European locations. As
a result, the question Brexit has raised is likely
to be more about where people are located
rather than reducing headcount.
In terms of the study, the long-term effects of
Brexit are limited. We do expect to see a short-
term slowdown in projects. This is particularly
likely in the UK as firms decide on the possible
impact of Brexit on their business model, and
for international firms, if the UK remains the
best place to base these projects.
Whilst the long-term impact for the UK
industry is unclear, the long-term indicators
are unchanged. As supported by the survey
findings, firms need to evolve and invest
for the future. Perhaps the key difference
is, those with a significant UK presence will
need to consider increasing their European
operations. Conversely there will be a small
number of European firms who will view
the UK as a strategic market and these will
want to consider ensuring an appropriate UK
presence.
BRIEF OVERVIEW OF BREXIT (AND ITS IMPACT) FROM CITISOFT

5. 5
THE GOOD, THE
BAD AND THE
UGLY
CHAPTER TWO

6. GROWTH? WHAT
GROWTH?
Through 2020, PwC predicts asset under management (AuM) growth to average
6% per year.1
This is in line with the 5% AuM compound annual growth rates
(CAGR) observed by Boston Consulting Group from 2008 to 2014 (note that in
2015 global AuM rose by only 1% versus 2014 levels).2
This finding is corroborated by an assessment from
Deloitte subsidiary Casey Quirk, which indicated that
2015 AuM was 2.4% less than in 2014.3
While not strictly
pertinent to the institutional buy-side, a 2016 study by
UK-based Scorpio Partners found that private wealth
AuM dropped by 1% in 2015 versus 2014 levels.4
One
year’s data is not yet a trend but the warning signs of
slower growth are there.
With net flows at constant levels, the continuous
appreciation of existing assets seen since the global
financial crisis is no longer enough to sustain even
modest growth rates. This indicates that the recent
volatility in the market has now manifested itself with
sharp negative impacts on not only AuM but revenues
and profits as well.
For the institutional asset management segment, the
situation is even more dire. BCG reports that net flow
in 2015 for retail AuM (40% of all AuM) were 3.3% of
2014 AuM while the institutional segment only grew
net flows by 0.3%.5
In summary, most new flows are
going to private wealth and the retail segment while the
institutional segment is struggling.
There are a number of reasons for the difficulties faced
by the institutional segment, many of which were
documented in our previous white paper. A changing
demographic (more pensioners), rising affluence in
emerging markets, and the digital-minded millennials
entering the market all play a role. With institutional
asset managers estimated to manage less than 40%
of investable AuM, there are trillions of dollars/euros/
pounds and so on up for grabs, but the competition to
manage these assets is fierce.
Institutional asset managers must find better ways of
attracting and keeping client mandates or their market
share will continue to be usurped by the retail and
private wealth management segments.
1
Asset Management 2020 - A Brave New World, PwC, 2014
2
Global Asset Management 2016: Doubling Down on Data, Boston
Consulting Group (BCG), July 2016
3
Global Investment Management Assets, Revenue, and Operating
Margins Slump in 2015, Press Release, Casey Quirk, January 20, 2016
4
New Normal?: The Global Private Banking Industry Buffetted by
Tough Market Conditions with Many Seeing AuM and Margin Dips,
Press Release, Scorpio Partnership
5
Global Asset Management 2016: Doubling Down on Data, Boston
Consulting Group (BCG), July 2016.

7. 7
100
80
60
40
20
0
4
2
0
-1
2002
2003-2007 2009
2011 2013 2015
2007 2008 2014 2015 2008 2010
2012 2014
Global AuM ($trillions)
Global AuM growth paused at $71.4 trillion…
Net flows were the primary source of asset growth as markets,
currencies, or both declined in many regions
…while net flows were flat at 1.5%
Average net flows as a share of AuM at the beginnig
of each year (%)
29
52
43
70.5 71.4
12%
5%
1%
4.0
1.0 0.1
-0.2
-0.5
1.2
1.6 1.7
1.5
Figure 1: Global AuM growth stalled in 2015 owing to limited market
appreciation and currency impact
Source: BCG Global Asset Management Market-Sizing Database 2016; BCG Global
Asset Management Benchmarking Database 2016.
Note: Sizing corresponds to AuM professionally managed in exchange for
management fees; includes captive AuM of insurance groups or pension funds if
those AuM are delegated to asset management entitles with fees paid. Forty-three
markets were covered globally, including offshore AuM. For all countries whose
currency is not the US dollar, we applied the average 2015 US dollar exchange rate
to all past years to synchronize current and historic data. AuM decreases shown for
past years reflect the 2015 appreciation of the US dollar.

8. 8Chapter two | The good, the bad and the ugly
Note: Those answering “don’t know” have been removed from the above results.
The annual revenue increase correlates linearly with the annual increase in assets
under management. Meaning that respondents expect to see very similar growth
rate for both of these areas.
The vast majority of respondents have a positive revenue and AuM growth outlook
with a large cluster of respondents expecting modest annual growth rates in the
range of 1-5%.
There is a cluster of “high growers” who expect significant growth exceeding 10%
in both annual revenue and assests under management.
Q: Over the next three years, how much of an increase/decrease in annual revenue
are you expecting?
Q: For the same time period, how much of an annual increase/decrease in AuM are
you expecting? (n=83)
Figure 2: The correlation between AuM growth
and revenue growth rates
Annual increase in Revenue
AnnualincreaseinAssetsunderManagement
29%
Negative
growth
0%
0-5%6-9%10-20%>20%
1-5% 6-9% >10%
10%
10% 19%
13%
3%
3%
3%2%
2%
6%

9. Chapter two | The good, the bad and the ugly
Respondents were asked to project their own annual
growth rates for both AuM and revenue over the next
three years. As shown in Figure 2, there is a high degree
of correlation between AuM growth and revenue growth
rates.
Just under half of the respondents are expecting
modest (less than 5%) growth in both AuM and revenue
while a quarter of the respondents are very optimistic,
anticipating double-digit annual growth rates for both
AuM and revenue.
In general, European and Asia-Pacific respondents were
more optimistic than their North American counterparts
when it comes to AuM growth (revenue growth expec-
tations were similar across regions). Roughly half of the
European (48%) and Asia-Pacific (55%) respondents
expect AuM growth of 10%+ per year as compared to
only 17% for North American respondents.
Larger companies (200+ investment management
employees) are clearly more optimistic than their
smaller counterparts. To illustrate, 84% of large asset
managers expect annual revenue growth of 6% or more;
only 36% of the small asset managers indicate the same.
For annual AuM growth, the “6%+ or more” numbers are
73% for large firms and 56% for the smaller ones.
In summary, it appears that the larger respondents
expect to significantly exceed the 6% AuM growth
projection for the market as a whole. If this prediction
holds true, then it is simply a continuation of the “big
getting bigger” pattern that has been in place since
the global financial crisis. In terms of revenue growth,
the respondents seem to be wildly optimistic when
their expectations are compared with the pressure on
institutional revenues observed in recent years. Only
time will tell whether or not the rosy outlook on revenue
growth is warranted.
Key takeaways
• After years of consistent mid-single digit growth, AuM and revenue growth has come to a
standstill in 2015 (particularly for the institutional segment).
• Despite this, buy-side investment managers continue to be optimistic about growth prospects
for both AuM and revenue going forward.
• The larger asset managers continue to grow at the expense of the smaller ones.
• It remains to be seen whether or not the optimistic growth forecasts have a basis in reality.

10. 10
A NEW GROWTH
PARADIGM
CHAPTER THREE
We will be focusing on high quality service
and promoting our existing products into
these markets. We will also be looking to
add new products to our portfolio and the
ability to innovate and be agile will be
fundamental to our growth aspirations
“
HEAD OF IT
US$300B AUM Global Asset Manager

11. 11Chapter three | A new growth paradigm
INNOVATION = GROWTH
CREATION
In order to outperform your peers, it is imperative that all elements are in place
to accelerate growth and take advantage of new investment opportunities as
they arise. As outlined below, growth through increased product innovation
and better levels of client service are moving to the forefront relative to other
growth alternatives.
PRIORITIES AND
STRATEGIC FOCUS
On the topic of regulation/compliance, it is worth noting
that only half (50%) of the respondents citing it as a top
three priority also cited regulatory compliance as a top
three barrier to growth going forward. This implies that
Growth through more diversified offerings starts with a
prudent investment strategy supported by elite talent
capable of executing on the strategy and capturing
alpha. However, realizing growth through an expanded
portfolio of investment options is not done with
foresight and ability alone. You need reliable data to
ensure that you have the information and intelligence to
support any investment decisions made. You also need
suitable infrastructure capable of assimilating the data
and executing your investment strategies, regardless of
asset class, venue or transaction volumes.
The following sections outline business decision makers’
thoughts with respect to strategic priorities, focus areas
and key challenges, as well as how they intend to grow
their businesses.
There are three key focus areas when it comes to what respondents will be
prioritizing in the next 12-18 months. These include acquiring new clients
(securing new net inflows), regulatory compliance, and profit growth. The latter
is deemed as more important than cost control or top line revenue growth. The
survey findings confirm that despite current market volatility and a climate of
uncertainty, growth is high on the agenda.

12. 12
many companies are looking to be at the forefront
(proactive) in terms of compliance rather than wait for
edicts to come out and then react on an ad hoc basis.
When it comes to respondents’ primary means of
attracting or retaining clients, the responses vary. Having
said that, there are as many choosing “superior service”
versus the other options put together (not including
“don’t know” or “other”). Under the “other” category,
7% cited “higher performance”; otherwise there were
no more than two percent (2%) of responses for a
given item. Note that for the top five strategic priorities,
“superior service” was listed as the top strategic focus
for all of them.
The next highest item in terms of focus is product
innovation. Combined with superior service (which
in this context might include increasing the level of
transparency, timeliness, and accuracy of reporting,
and improving control over risk exposure), roughly half
of the respondents see improved products and services
as the primary focus going forward. In a somewhat
surprising development, only one respondent was
focused on globalization while only 6% are focusing on
M&A as a means of growth.
There are various reasons for this phenomenon; one
likely cause is the proliferation of digital technologies
that have disrupted the private wealth space and will
eventually find their way into the institutional buy-side
sector. Increased levels of automation allow for faster
investment processing and support of esoteric financial
instruments or previously uncommon asset classes that
for the most part were managed through spreadsheets
and similar workarounds. This digital encroachment
facilitates support of more products and services but
also places demands on the infrastructure to keep up,
particularly with the ever-expanding volumes of data
and information.
Of course, the realization of any growth strategy is
inevitably fraught with challenges. While the specter
of regulation has hovered over the industry for almost
ten years, regulatory compliance continues to be
the biggest barrier to growth. Other notable barriers
include competitive pressures and the ability to attract
top talent. In terms of the “other” category, 12% cited
“market conditions” or similar, otherwise no more than
2% of responses were given for a particular item.
Note that company size has a material impact on top
priorities. The smaller investment managers (less than
200 employees) are twice as likely to have regulation
as a top priority and eight times as likely to prioritize
operating model than their larger counterparts. The
larger investment managers see competitive pressure
(26%) and regulation (22%) as the two biggest
challenges while the smaller firms see regulation (46%)
and operating model (31%) as their biggest concerns.

13. 13
Strategic priorities Strategy focus Strategic challenges
Other
Client retention
Risk mitigation
Revenue growth
Cost control
Profit growth
Regulatory
compliance
New client
aquisition
Don’t know Other Don’t know
Other
Getting an adequate
overview of current
positions
Too long to support
a new asset class
Data
management
Too long to introduce a
new product
Meeting reporting
requirements
Undue reliance on
manual processes
Current operating
model
Talent acquisition/
retention
Competetive
pressure
Complying with
regulation
Don’t know
Globalization
Acquire new
clients - M&A
Low cost
Product
innovation
Superior
service
0 10 20 30 40 50 % 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 %0 10 20 30 %
First general priority First greater barrier
Second general priority Second greatest barrier
Third general priority Third greatest barrier
Key takeaways
• Growth dominates the agenda of priorities, along with regulatory compliance. Growth in profit is
seen as more important than growth in revenue.
• In terms of differentiation - what investment managers intend to focus on to support their priorities
- provision of superior service is the clear winner, followed by product innovation.
• As has been the case for almost ten years, regulation remains the biggest barrier to growth. The
issue of regulation is more acute for smaller asset managers than it is for the larger ones. Dealing
with well-equipped competitors and retaining elite talent are also identified as issues.
Figure 3: The key strategic priorities, focus areas and challenges

14. 14Chapter three | A new growth paradigm
Consistent with the findings concerning strategic
focus, it seems that firms wishing to grow through
globalization (entering new geographies) or M&A
have already done so as the appetite for these
strategies is minimal going forward. Similarly, it
seems that cost control initiatives have become
less prevalent as the focus shifts from cost control
and risk mitigation toward growth.
It is one thing to state that you expect to grow by a certain percentage or
amount with a given strategic approach; it is another thing to articulate how
exactly the strategy is to be executed in practice. As shown in Figure 4, the
introduction of new products and services is clearly the preferred strategy
when it comes to realizing growth aspirations. This goes hand-in-hand with the
findings from the previous section, where superior service is seen as the most
important focus area/differentiator, followed by product innovation.
HOW DO ASSET
MANAGERS INTEND TO
REALIZE GROWTH?
5
4
3
2
1
Introduce new
products/services
Support a new
asset class
Low-cost
leadership
Enter a new
geography/market
Merger/
acquisition
VerylikelyVeryunlikely
Figure 4: Likelihood of pursuing one of the following growth strategies within 24 months
3.8
3.2 3.2
2.3 2.2
3.7
3.5
2.8
2.2 2.0
4.4
3.3
2.5
2.7
2.4
Europe North America Asia-Pacific
New paradigm:
Growth through innovation
Old paradigm:
Growth through cost leadership and expansion

15. Chapter three | A new growth paradigm
This is somewhat surprising as much of the
recent expert opinion espousest new frontiers
(globalization) or simply buying the competencies/
expertise/assets you do not already have (M&A)
among the primary means of growing. It seems that
the buy-side investment managers interviewed
have a differing view. The question then becomes
why or how this paradigm shift came about?
The simple explanation is that those investment
managers who want to grow through entering
new geographical markets either have already
done so or have established a comprehensive
global presence. While the pundits continue to
predict an inevitable wave of consolidation among
investment managers, the reality is that M&As are
a resource-consuming, arduous process that may
take months or even years to bear fruit.
At the same time, the allure of more esoteric
asset classes such as alternatives, derivatives and
solutions has only become stronger over time.
Commensurate with the rise in popularity of these
asset classes is digitalization and the advances in
investment management technology that facilitate
quick, efficient and transparent trading of any
number of financial instruments.
Investment managers have seen higher returns
(and in some cases, higher fees) from, for example,
passives and alternatives, and are adding these to
their offerings to secure growth. This movement
has gathered momentum to the point where
new products and services have become the
predominant means of differentiation and growth.
• Growth dominates the agenda of priorities, along with regulatory compliance.
Growth in profit is seen as more important than growth in revenue.
• In terms of differentiation/what investment managers intend to focus on to support
their priorities, provision of superior service is the clear winner, followed by product
innovation.
• As has been the case for almost ten years, regulation remains the biggest barrier to growth.
The issue of regulation is more acute for smaller asset managers than it is for the larger ones.
Dealing with well-equipped competitors and retaining elite talent are also identified as issues.
Key takeaways
• The introduction of new products and services is viewed as the prevalent means of achieving
growth
• There is only a lukewarm appetite for supporting new asset classes or through leveraging
operational efficiency to serve as a low cost provider
• There is limited sentiment for M&A or new geographical market entry

16. CONCLUSION
CHAPTER FOUR
Firms will need to compete on either scale/
costs or by providing specialised products
and services. Either way having the right
technology is key. However, the technology
must fit the strategy, with the cost play
leaning towards simpler centralized IT
infrastructures
“
HEAD OF OPERATIONS
US$60B AuM UK Asset Manager

17. 17Chapter four | Conclusion
These points were reflected in the feedback from
practitioners interviewed as part of the qualitative
interview process. The prevailing sentiment was
quite clear; if you do not have a complete, trans-
parent overview of your investment data, as
well as the infrastructure to seamlessly support
whatever asset classes, products, and markets you
want to trade in, growth is improbable at best and
impossible at worst.
The qualitative interviews revealed that regardless
of your target operating model or growth stra-
tegies, certain factors must be in place in order to
execute. These include:
• Accurate, timely and complete investment
data, covering all assets and markets the
company trades in. Data is the foundation
for any investment strategy; without the
right data everything else is moot.
• Complete transparency and ability to track
past, present and future positions across asset
classes, including cash. Industry pundits and
solution providers often refer to this capability
as the investment book of record (IBOR).
• The ability to access any investment
data regardless of what “office” it came from.
For instance, back office accountants can view
position data from the front office, while front
office personnel can access performance, risk,
accounting, collateral or related data without
having to go to the middle/back office first,
and so on.
• Full compliance with regulation and/or man-
dates, whether driven by clients, governments
or regulatory/standardization bodies.
The preceding findings make it clear that growth is high on the agenda, and that
provision of new products and services is the primary means by which growth
will be achieved. While superior investment performance is the most obvious
path to prosperity, provision of superior service and product innovation is a
critical focus area. All of these elements – new offerings, better performance,
enhanced service levels – are underpinned by timely and effective investment
decisions and the infrastructure that supports this.
THE SMART FOUNDATION
FOR GROWTH
WHITE PAPER
Learn how an investment book of record (IBOR)
helps you on a daily basis to improve focus on
your core business and provides the foundation for
innovation as well as the ability to tap into new growth
opportunities.
CAN YOU COMPETE WITHOUT ONE?
LEARN MORE

18. 18Chapter four | Conclusion
• Having a small number of IT solutions increases the likelihood of leveraging the
same data, regardless of whether you are working in the front office, middle office,
or back office. There can be only “one version of the truth” and this is much more
likely when there are fewer solutions/data formats to deal with.
-- In contrast, legacy systems were designed to meet the needs of the markets
10-20 years ago – and did this quite well – but cannot keep up with the post
financial crisis world of unabated regulation and the rising popularity of asset
classes such as derivatives and alternatives.
-- Having a large number of function or sub-process specific (best-of-breed)
solutions is not always the answer (even if the technology is modern), as
these solutions are meant to optimize a certain niche of the investment
management value chain. They are not designed to work with a series of other,
disparate applications with different database types, technology platforms,
asynchronous upgrade schedules and so on.
-- A smaller number of IT solutions reduces the chance of running into issues
brought about by different data formats, the need to consolidate, clean and
validate data from any number of sources, and the time and resources needed
to undertake these steps before the data can be used for decision-making
purposes (as well as meet client and regulatory reporting requirements).
Latency and the potential for errors manifest themselves in any workflow
reliant on a series of different systems/technologies/data structures.
STREAMLINE YOUR
GROWTH STRATEGY
WITH FEWER
SYSTEMS
There is no cure-all solution for deficient or incomplete infra-
structure support for your investment strategies. Having said that,
regardless of deployment method, it is essential that you have a
modern, consolidated IT infrastructure to support your investment
decisions. This was borne out by the qualitative feedback from
the practitioners interviewed. The reasons for this are manifold:

19. 19Chapter four | Conclusion
• Regardless of what asset classes or markets you trade in, you need effective position
and transaction lifecycle monitoring (a.k.a. IBOR) in order to provide transparency
to your stakeholders, deal with various reporting requirements, and make informed
investment decisions. Having to extract position data from an inordinate number of
disparate systems makes these tasks rather onerous.
• You also need a compliance solution (covering both regulatory compliance and
client mandates) that is able to leverage data from any part of the application
(e.g. performance metrics, risk ratios, accounting figures) in compliance rules and
validations. This is much easier and faster to do with fewer systems.
In brief, how you optimize your infrastructure to meet your strategic objectives is up to
you, but sometimes less is more. This is particularly true when it comes to the number
of solutions needed to support your investment management activities.

20. 20Chapter four | Conclusion
• Are you able to get a view of your positions across all asset classes on demand and
in real-time? If not, what is preventing this and what impact does it have on your
investment decision-making as well as your ability to support the introduction of
new products and services?
• Can you quickly and efficiently get accurate and up-to-date data, representing a
single, unassailable source of the truth?
• Are you capable of incorporating information from one part of the system into
any other part of the system (e.g. risk and accounting figures in the front office,
position data in the back office) without undue reliance on IT or other non-business
resources?
• Is your infrastructure capable of meeting reporting needs across stakeholders
(clients, regulators, other authorities, auditors) in a timely manner? If not, where is
the bottleneck and how can it be fixed?
• Do you find yourself in a situation where you are heavily reliant on manual processes
to cover for deficiencies in your infrastructure?
• Given the paradigm shift revealed earlier, how prepared are you to create and
launch new products and services? Are you able to do this in a timely and highly
automated manner or will it take an inordinate amount of time and resources to
support new offerings?
While operational efficiency is the subject of an upcoming white
paper, the survey showed that when it comes to supporting their
growth strategies, almost half of the respondents (47%) were
not confident in either their IT infrastructure or current data
management, or both. In other words, they know what they want
to do but do not have the means to do it. Based on the paradigms
exposed in this paper, coupled with the sentiments expressed in
the qualitative interviews, the key questions to consider are these:
THE KEY QUESTIONS
TO CONSIDER

21. 21Chapter four | Conclusion
The respondents, all at buy-side investment
management firms with assets under management
(AuM) of USD 10 billion or more, consisted of 83
strategic respondents (responsible for investment
strategies and related business functions). Some of
the findings in this paper are supplemented by input
from an additional 72 IT/operations respondents
(responsible for technical infrastructure and ope-
rations).
The 155 total respondents were spread across
Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. A break-
down of respondents by title and industry is given
in Figure 5.
To ascertain and assess the growth aspirations of buy-side investment managers,
in May/June 2016 market research firm Lindberg International talked to 150+
respondents worldwide with respect to their growth aspirations, challenges
and suitability of their IT infrastructure. All interviews were conducted by
telephone, ensuring that any additional input/clarifications concerning any
numerical data were also incorporated into the results.
SURVEY METHODOLOGY
As stated earlier, there is no easy answer when it comes to the optimal solution or operating model in
support of your growth strategy. Nevertheless, without adequate infrastructure and data support for
your strategies, your probability of success is greatly reduced. If you struggle with the above questions,
then perhaps it is time to revisit your infrastructure and institute appropriate remedies.
LEARN MORE
REPORT
Improve data quality, boost automation and support
speciality asset classes.
GET READY TO UNLEASH YOUR
FRONT OFFICE
LEARN MORE

22. 22Chapter four | Conclusion
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Title within company - strategy
Title within company - IT
28%
18%
8%
6%
33%
12%
6% 6%
4%
2% 2% 2% 1%
1%1%1%
3%
Respondents discussing
the strategy perspectives
Respondents discussing
the IT perspective
Directors of operations, Manager
asset management, Manager
wealth management, Head of group
finance, Sales director, Customer
data manager, CIO, Managing
partner, Fund administration,
Directors of administration. Business
development management,
Treasure manager, Senior financial
risk manager, Portfolio manager,
Director and founder, General
manager, Assistant manager, Head
of security processes, Department
director
Project management and
controlling, Head of application
engineering, Head of IT, Investment
manager, Head of operations,
Employee back office, IT-manager,
Head of back office, Network
security manager, Head of operation
and valuation, System owner, System
administrator, Head client service
& reporting, Fund administration,
IT-coordinator, Business analyst,
Business expert, Head of treasury,
Head of middle office, Portfolio
manager information management
83
72
CEO/MD/GM
Headof
Department
Headof
DepartmentCIO/CTO
COOOperations
Manager
CIO/CTO
SeniorManager
CFO
CSO
EVP/SVP/CVP
Operations
Manager
VicePresidentVicePresident
CEO/MDI/GM
CFO
CSO
OtherOther
33%
31%
Figure 5: A breakdown of respondents by job title

23. In terms of size, half of the respondents had global
investment management operations with less
than 200 staff while the other half ranged from
200 to several thousand employees. At the local
level (respondent location), 77% had less than 200
investment management staff.
The respondents are somewhat internationally
focused, with 40% having operations outside
of their own geographical region (Europe,
North America or Asia-Pacific) and 30% having
operations in three or more continents.
As a supplement to the quantitative survey run
by Lindberg International, Citisoft, an investment
management consulting firm, conducted a series
of qualitative interviews with C-level executives
at buy-side investment managers throughout
Europe and North America. The purpose of these
interviews was to corroborate and discuss the
findings from the quantitative survey as well as to
cover how the eventual secession of the UK from
the European Union (Brexit) will impact medium-
to long-term growth prospects (note that the
quantitative survey was completed shortly before
the Brexit vote was held).

24. 24Chapter three | A new growth paradigm
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