The document summarizes the findings of a State Street survey on pension funds and asset owners. It identifies five key areas pension funds need to focus on: own the outcome, own the strategy, own the risks, own the efficiency, and own the talent. Regarding own the outcome, the survey found 92% of funds plan to upgrade governance over the next year. Many boards lack expertise in alternative assets and risk assessment. Leading funds are improving board education and transparency. Streamlining decision making between boards and management is also a priority.
Opportunities for Optimism? A New Vision for Value in Asset ManagementState Street
Asset managers are playing for high stakes. A rising market creates opportunities on multiple fronts, but the industry's optimism may be tested by new risks, changing client demands and non-traditional competitors. Our research identifies four emerging "value drivers" that may shape the industry's future success.
The Outsourced Chief Investment Officer Model: One Size Does Not Fit AllCallan
As investors reach for returns in a sometimes bruising market, they are adding private equity, hedge funds,
and other alternatives, leading to increasingly sophisticated—and complicated—portfolio monitoring and
management. Heightened regulatory and compliance requirements have further increased the time and
resources required to meet fiduciary responsibilities. This has led some investors to consider delegating
investment oversight, monitoring, and management duties.
The industry press regularly reports on a large and rapidly growing outsourced chief investment officer
(OCIO) market, and some fund sponsors wonder if this model would serve them better than the traditional consulting model. Funds managed through an OCIO are beholden to the same challenging market environment and regulatory atmosphere, but the burden of balancing these challenges can be largely shifted from the investment committee to the OCIO provider. Some funds find this solution meets their needs.
In the outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) model (also known as “implemented consulting,”
“discretionary consulting,” or “delegated consulting”), an institution shifts discretionary authority to an
advisory firm to manage some or all of the investment functions typically performed by the investment committee. The precise definition of this model varies as much as the name, making the size and scope of the marketplace difficult to pin down.
The increasing popularity of this model is in part a response to the frustration investment committees
have felt amid a shifting environment in which portfolio management requires more resources. While an OCIO offers an elegant solution, it is not a panacea for all the issues facing institutional investors, and relinquishing all fiduciary oversight is not an option.
In this paper we describe the OCIO market and Callan’s approach, which acknowledges that each investor faces unique challenges that require custom solutions. We offer two case studies and a series of questions that might assist fund sponsors in weighing the appropriateness of the OCIO model for their fund.
According to results of Callan Associates’ 2013 Risk Management Survey, more than half of fund sponsors (55%) say their risk management tools are effective at mitigating investment risk, but 14% see them as simply a means to improve risk identification and monitoring. One-third of respondents indicated they do not know yet the effectiveness of their risk management tools because they are new and untested in a true market crisis.
The survey found formal risk management processes are most prevalent at large funds. Half of the medium and small funds have adopted a risk management process or are doing so in 2013. Forty-two percent of respondents employ proprietary and/or third-party risk measurement tools, such as software or data services. Usage of third-party tools is most prevalent at public funds, while endowments and foundations more often use in-house (proprietary) tools.
Corporate and public funds are embracing policy-level approaches to risk management more so than endowments and foundations. Public funds have implemented economic regime asset allocations, risk parity, and risk factor-based asset allocations, while corporate funds favor liability-driven investing and funded status-based glide path de-risking.
Strategy-level approaches to mitigate risk are easier to implement than those that alter the fund’s overall investment policy, and Callan observed higher levels of adoption of strategy changes across fund types. Public funds and foundations and endowments are most heavily implementing or considering real assets, opportunistic fixed income, absolute return and long/short equity. Corporate funds are also embracing absolute return, but long duration is the most favored strategy-level approach used to address risk.
Many fund sponsors wrestle with whether or not to tactically manage plan risk. Only 30% of sponsors have made rebalancing decisions based on risk management findings. Of those that have not done so, 82% do not plan to in the future.Public (31%) and large (25%) funds are the most likely to use tactical implementations going forward.
According to the survey, most funds (94%) do not have a formal risk budget, but explicitly address risk management in their plan governance via asset allocation, investment objectives and disciplined rebalancing.
The investment committee is the body most regularly tasked with deciding when to take action based on the findings of risk management tools. The most common actions taken were asset allocation changes (64% of respondents), manager due diligence/search (56%) and increased manager monitoring (52%). Twenty percent of respondents had not yet taken any actions based on risk management findings.
The survey was conducted in November 2012 and includes responses from 53 fund sponsors representing $576 billion in assets.
2013 Callan Cost of Doing Business Survey: U.S. Funds and TrustsCallan
Monitoring and controlling costs is a primary fiduciary responsibility for all funds and trusts. In this survey, Callan compares the costs of administering and operating funds and trusts across all types of tax-exempt and tax-qualified organizations in the U.S.
We identify practices and trends to help institutional investors manage expenses.
We fielded this survey in April and May of 2013. The results incorporate responses from 49 fund sponsors representing $219 billion in assets. In this report, we include comparisons with four similar surveys Callan conducted over the past 15 years to identify enduring, long-term trends in fund/trust management and expenses.
Major long-term trends identified include rising external investment management fees and non-investment management external advisor fees, alongside falling custody costs. Allocations have steadily shifted out of U.S. equity and into non-U.S. and global equities, real estate, hedge funds, and private equity since 1998. Other key findings include:
• In 2012, funds spent an average of 54 basis points of total assets to operate their funds. Average total fund expenses have climbed more than 50% since 1998, when Callan first collected this data.
• External investment management fees represent the lion’s share of total fund expenses at 90%. This figure has grown steadily over time, from 83% in 1998. The increase can largely be attributed to growing allocations to more expensive alternative
asset classes, namely hedge funds and private equity.
• More assets flowed to hedge funds and private equity, as the percentage of funds invested in and the average allocations to these asset classes grew. Hedge fund and private equity fees saw modest declines at the median over the last four years, while averages were fairly static. Real estate fees saw little change and the average allocation remained around 6%.
• Not surprisingly, smaller funds—defined as those with less than $1 billion in total assets—pay a premium (65 basis points, on average) to administer their funds relative to mid-sized and larger funds. Conversely, there is little difference between total expenses for the medium (47 basis points) and large funds (48.5 basis points) that responded to our survey. This can
be attributed to differences in asset allocation, as large funds tend to invest in more expensive strategies.
• External investment management fees are the primary driver of total fund expenses. These fees have risen 55% over 15 years. Non-investment management external advisor fees,1 which are the second largest average expense for U.S.
funds, have increased 115% since 1998. However, at 5% of total fund expenses, changes in this area have a more modest impact than external investment management fees.
Institutional investors are always looking for better ways to increase returns, reduce risk and achieve specific investment goals. Particularly in the wake of the financial crisis, investors have been seeking more robust ways to diversify and reduce risk.
Opportunities for Optimism? A New Vision for Value in Asset ManagementState Street
Asset managers are playing for high stakes. A rising market creates opportunities on multiple fronts, but the industry's optimism may be tested by new risks, changing client demands and non-traditional competitors. Our research identifies four emerging "value drivers" that may shape the industry's future success.
The Outsourced Chief Investment Officer Model: One Size Does Not Fit AllCallan
As investors reach for returns in a sometimes bruising market, they are adding private equity, hedge funds,
and other alternatives, leading to increasingly sophisticated—and complicated—portfolio monitoring and
management. Heightened regulatory and compliance requirements have further increased the time and
resources required to meet fiduciary responsibilities. This has led some investors to consider delegating
investment oversight, monitoring, and management duties.
The industry press regularly reports on a large and rapidly growing outsourced chief investment officer
(OCIO) market, and some fund sponsors wonder if this model would serve them better than the traditional consulting model. Funds managed through an OCIO are beholden to the same challenging market environment and regulatory atmosphere, but the burden of balancing these challenges can be largely shifted from the investment committee to the OCIO provider. Some funds find this solution meets their needs.
In the outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) model (also known as “implemented consulting,”
“discretionary consulting,” or “delegated consulting”), an institution shifts discretionary authority to an
advisory firm to manage some or all of the investment functions typically performed by the investment committee. The precise definition of this model varies as much as the name, making the size and scope of the marketplace difficult to pin down.
The increasing popularity of this model is in part a response to the frustration investment committees
have felt amid a shifting environment in which portfolio management requires more resources. While an OCIO offers an elegant solution, it is not a panacea for all the issues facing institutional investors, and relinquishing all fiduciary oversight is not an option.
In this paper we describe the OCIO market and Callan’s approach, which acknowledges that each investor faces unique challenges that require custom solutions. We offer two case studies and a series of questions that might assist fund sponsors in weighing the appropriateness of the OCIO model for their fund.
According to results of Callan Associates’ 2013 Risk Management Survey, more than half of fund sponsors (55%) say their risk management tools are effective at mitigating investment risk, but 14% see them as simply a means to improve risk identification and monitoring. One-third of respondents indicated they do not know yet the effectiveness of their risk management tools because they are new and untested in a true market crisis.
The survey found formal risk management processes are most prevalent at large funds. Half of the medium and small funds have adopted a risk management process or are doing so in 2013. Forty-two percent of respondents employ proprietary and/or third-party risk measurement tools, such as software or data services. Usage of third-party tools is most prevalent at public funds, while endowments and foundations more often use in-house (proprietary) tools.
Corporate and public funds are embracing policy-level approaches to risk management more so than endowments and foundations. Public funds have implemented economic regime asset allocations, risk parity, and risk factor-based asset allocations, while corporate funds favor liability-driven investing and funded status-based glide path de-risking.
Strategy-level approaches to mitigate risk are easier to implement than those that alter the fund’s overall investment policy, and Callan observed higher levels of adoption of strategy changes across fund types. Public funds and foundations and endowments are most heavily implementing or considering real assets, opportunistic fixed income, absolute return and long/short equity. Corporate funds are also embracing absolute return, but long duration is the most favored strategy-level approach used to address risk.
Many fund sponsors wrestle with whether or not to tactically manage plan risk. Only 30% of sponsors have made rebalancing decisions based on risk management findings. Of those that have not done so, 82% do not plan to in the future.Public (31%) and large (25%) funds are the most likely to use tactical implementations going forward.
According to the survey, most funds (94%) do not have a formal risk budget, but explicitly address risk management in their plan governance via asset allocation, investment objectives and disciplined rebalancing.
The investment committee is the body most regularly tasked with deciding when to take action based on the findings of risk management tools. The most common actions taken were asset allocation changes (64% of respondents), manager due diligence/search (56%) and increased manager monitoring (52%). Twenty percent of respondents had not yet taken any actions based on risk management findings.
The survey was conducted in November 2012 and includes responses from 53 fund sponsors representing $576 billion in assets.
2013 Callan Cost of Doing Business Survey: U.S. Funds and TrustsCallan
Monitoring and controlling costs is a primary fiduciary responsibility for all funds and trusts. In this survey, Callan compares the costs of administering and operating funds and trusts across all types of tax-exempt and tax-qualified organizations in the U.S.
We identify practices and trends to help institutional investors manage expenses.
We fielded this survey in April and May of 2013. The results incorporate responses from 49 fund sponsors representing $219 billion in assets. In this report, we include comparisons with four similar surveys Callan conducted over the past 15 years to identify enduring, long-term trends in fund/trust management and expenses.
Major long-term trends identified include rising external investment management fees and non-investment management external advisor fees, alongside falling custody costs. Allocations have steadily shifted out of U.S. equity and into non-U.S. and global equities, real estate, hedge funds, and private equity since 1998. Other key findings include:
• In 2012, funds spent an average of 54 basis points of total assets to operate their funds. Average total fund expenses have climbed more than 50% since 1998, when Callan first collected this data.
• External investment management fees represent the lion’s share of total fund expenses at 90%. This figure has grown steadily over time, from 83% in 1998. The increase can largely be attributed to growing allocations to more expensive alternative
asset classes, namely hedge funds and private equity.
• More assets flowed to hedge funds and private equity, as the percentage of funds invested in and the average allocations to these asset classes grew. Hedge fund and private equity fees saw modest declines at the median over the last four years, while averages were fairly static. Real estate fees saw little change and the average allocation remained around 6%.
• Not surprisingly, smaller funds—defined as those with less than $1 billion in total assets—pay a premium (65 basis points, on average) to administer their funds relative to mid-sized and larger funds. Conversely, there is little difference between total expenses for the medium (47 basis points) and large funds (48.5 basis points) that responded to our survey. This can
be attributed to differences in asset allocation, as large funds tend to invest in more expensive strategies.
• External investment management fees are the primary driver of total fund expenses. These fees have risen 55% over 15 years. Non-investment management external advisor fees,1 which are the second largest average expense for U.S.
funds, have increased 115% since 1998. However, at 5% of total fund expenses, changes in this area have a more modest impact than external investment management fees.
Institutional investors are always looking for better ways to increase returns, reduce risk and achieve specific investment goals. Particularly in the wake of the financial crisis, investors have been seeking more robust ways to diversify and reduce risk.
The results suggest that there is a real opportunity to improve the investment process so nonprofits can better protect the capital they’ve worked so hard to raise. I hope you find the results as interesting as I did. Please feel free to reach out to me directly if you have questions.
Five Trends Reshaping the Global Pension Fund IndustryState Street
This executive briefing explores how pension funds are adapting to the challenges of a new investment environment. The research presented in this report is based on an international State Street survey, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit in August 2014, of 134 senior executives in the pension fund industry.
This report touches upon themes such as increasing complex reporting requirements, growing demand for transparency, the adoption of big data technology solutions, the management of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in private equity portfolio companies as well as the growing popularity of various private equity fund structures, and how this is set to change over the next 12 to 24 months.
Executives View Ideal Shareholder Base as Key to Increased Market Value
Companies that want to maximize their market value would do well to pay attention to shareholder composition.
This study found that nearly all companies describe their ideal shareholder as having a long-term investment horizon, but that about half of companies’ shareholder base has a short- or medium-term horizon. As a result, the authors find, most companies see significant upside to managing their shareholder base, and senior leaders spend considerable time meeting with current and prospective investors.
“More than three-quarters of companies in our survey see significant stock market benefits from managing their shareholder base,” says Anne Beyer, associate professor of accounting at Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) and coauthor of the study. “Companies believe that if they can identify and attract the right shareholder base, they will be able to increase the price of their stock and decrease its volatility.”
In fact, this survey of 138 investor relations professionals at North American companies shows that 80% of companies believe their stock price would trade higher over a two- to three-year period if they could attract their ideal shareholder base. On average, companies estimate their stock would rise 15% and share price volatility would decrease 20%.
Read the full report!
Target Date Funds - Finding the Right Vehicle for the Road to RetirementCallan
There seems to be no stopping target date fund (TDF) strategies, which are growing both in use within defined contribution (DC) plans and in products available. Each TDF manager differs in their underlying philosophy, which shapes construction and implementation.
The wide variety of options represents both a benefit and a challenge. As plan sponsors examine and monitor TDF options they must be aware of the differences and how these differences can ultimately affect participant outcomes.
This paper draws on Callan’s comprehensive data on TDFs and DC plans, which is gathered and analyzed annually.
We present key findings and highlight questions plan sponsors may want to consider when evaluating their TDF options.
***
Just as people rely on cars to get them where they need to go, Americans increasingly depend on TDFs to help them achieve their retirement goals. For the first time since the inception of the Callan DC Index™ in 2006, TDFs (25%) recently beat out U.S. large cap equity (24%) as the largest portfolio allocation in DC plans.
As part of Callan’s annual DC Trends Survey, more than 140 DC plan sponsors were asked about their use of TDFs. Callan also annually collects qualitative and quantitative data from target date managers representing both mutual funds and collective trusts. This paper leverages this combined data to examine the current state of the TDF universe and the differentiating characteristics that help drive outcomes.
When it comes to ensuring the future of your nonprofit, an endowment can serve as a vital tool in supporting your organization and its mission. Despite this, many nonprofits – and especially smaller organizations – struggle to build and manage a successful endowment.
This struggle can come from a lack of support by leadership and the board, or just a long-standing – and unproven – belief that endowments only truly benefit organizations with big operating budgets and plenty of resources.
The truth is, any nonprofit, even the smallest organizations, can benefit from an endowment. However, like any good investment, endowments must be properly managed to reach their full potential and maintain consistent growth.
In this presentation, you’ll learn how to:
• Determine the objectives of your endowment
• Set up a payout policy by determining how your endowment will function as a tool to support your organization’s long term plans
• Decide what your investment policy should address
• Strengthen your endowment by utilizing a strong mix of assets by determining optimum asset allocation
• Select the best candidate to manage your endowment through the help of an investment consultant
• Oversee your endowment in the long-term, including the systematic review of risk, monitoring of costs and determining the forum for oversight
Around the world, many investors are turning to alternative assets to increase yield in the current low―or even negative―interest-rate environment. The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), sponsored by Northern Trust, sought to ascertain the importance of various factors to investors’ and investment managers’ alternative investment decision making. In February 2017, the EIU surveyed 200 senior asset management and institutional investor executives employed by several different types of organisations—ranging from private equity firms and hedge funds to corporations, non-profits and insurance companies.
Nick O’Donohoe, former Global Head of Research at JP Morgan, author of their report on Impact Investments presented a summary of the report's findings, specifically how impact investing is emerging as an asset class.
Be sure to check out the other presentations, videos and audio recordings from the conference at www.tbnetwork.org/uknc11/media
Real estate, followed by infrastructure, dominate real asset investing, according to a new global study. Learn why in our new report sponsored by BlackRock. More information: http://bit.ly/AraBlk
How can the financial system serve a green and inclusive economy?IIED
In May 2014, Nick Robins, co-director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, discussed "How can the financial system serve a green and inclusive economy?" in a Critical Theme seminar hosted by IIED.
In the seminar, Robins outlined the rationale behind UNEP's new Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, which has been tasked to deliver policy recommendations in 2015 that could help underpin the implementation of the new Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris climate agreement.
More details: http://www.iied.org/economics.
Credit availability in Canada 2014: Targeting an ideal capital structurelbobak
The majority of Canadian financial executives surveyed by the Canadian Financial Executives Research Foundation are more optimistic about their company’s ability to obtain sufficient capital to meet its financing requirements in the next year (whether these needs are short-term, long-term or equity based). Most financial executives surveyed said credit for working capital and growth financing is generally available to their organizations, according to the study, which was published by the research arm of Financial Executives International Canada (FEI Canada), and sponsored by EY. The report, entitled Targeting an ideal capital structure, is based on the results of an online survey of financial executives across Canada, which took place in June 2014. According to the study, even those for whom credit was less available this year, the expectation is availability will improve by the spring of 2015.
The Influential Investor. How UHNW and HNW investor behaviour is redefining p...Scorpio Partnership
The Influential Investor examines the forces that will shape the future of the wealth and investment management industry over the next ten years. The paper delves into the factors that influence UHNW investor behaviour and the ways investors are rethinking their goals for the future. Scorpio Partnership worked alongside the Economist Intelligence Unit and TNS as the recognised specialist on HNW insight
Measuring Hedge Fund Performance: Investors Weigh In InfographicManagedFunds
Investors in hedge funds look to those allocations to fulfill a number of objectives for their portfolios, according to new data from Preqin. MFA used those data to illustrate a number of important points on how investors measure hedge fund performance in a new infographic.
The New Hedge Fund-Prime Broker RelationshipBroadridge
The financial crisis has changed the relationship between hedge funds and prime brokers. With the default of some leading providers, funds have realized that they should diversify their prime broker relationships and require more transparency on operational processes of prime providers. However, as the funds industry regains momentum, they are looking to their prime brokers to provide services that will support business expansion. Hence, prime brokers need to adapt their offering and IT infrastructure to respond to the changing market.
"POR LA CUAL SE DETERMINA EL HORARIO DE ATENCIÓN AL PÚBLICO PARA LAS DEPENDENCIAS DE LA ADMINISTRACIÓN MUNICIPAL CON MOTIVO DEL PROCESO DE EMPALME PARA LA P´ROXIMA VIGENCIA".
The results suggest that there is a real opportunity to improve the investment process so nonprofits can better protect the capital they’ve worked so hard to raise. I hope you find the results as interesting as I did. Please feel free to reach out to me directly if you have questions.
Five Trends Reshaping the Global Pension Fund IndustryState Street
This executive briefing explores how pension funds are adapting to the challenges of a new investment environment. The research presented in this report is based on an international State Street survey, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit in August 2014, of 134 senior executives in the pension fund industry.
This report touches upon themes such as increasing complex reporting requirements, growing demand for transparency, the adoption of big data technology solutions, the management of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in private equity portfolio companies as well as the growing popularity of various private equity fund structures, and how this is set to change over the next 12 to 24 months.
Executives View Ideal Shareholder Base as Key to Increased Market Value
Companies that want to maximize their market value would do well to pay attention to shareholder composition.
This study found that nearly all companies describe their ideal shareholder as having a long-term investment horizon, but that about half of companies’ shareholder base has a short- or medium-term horizon. As a result, the authors find, most companies see significant upside to managing their shareholder base, and senior leaders spend considerable time meeting with current and prospective investors.
“More than three-quarters of companies in our survey see significant stock market benefits from managing their shareholder base,” says Anne Beyer, associate professor of accounting at Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) and coauthor of the study. “Companies believe that if they can identify and attract the right shareholder base, they will be able to increase the price of their stock and decrease its volatility.”
In fact, this survey of 138 investor relations professionals at North American companies shows that 80% of companies believe their stock price would trade higher over a two- to three-year period if they could attract their ideal shareholder base. On average, companies estimate their stock would rise 15% and share price volatility would decrease 20%.
Read the full report!
Target Date Funds - Finding the Right Vehicle for the Road to RetirementCallan
There seems to be no stopping target date fund (TDF) strategies, which are growing both in use within defined contribution (DC) plans and in products available. Each TDF manager differs in their underlying philosophy, which shapes construction and implementation.
The wide variety of options represents both a benefit and a challenge. As plan sponsors examine and monitor TDF options they must be aware of the differences and how these differences can ultimately affect participant outcomes.
This paper draws on Callan’s comprehensive data on TDFs and DC plans, which is gathered and analyzed annually.
We present key findings and highlight questions plan sponsors may want to consider when evaluating their TDF options.
***
Just as people rely on cars to get them where they need to go, Americans increasingly depend on TDFs to help them achieve their retirement goals. For the first time since the inception of the Callan DC Index™ in 2006, TDFs (25%) recently beat out U.S. large cap equity (24%) as the largest portfolio allocation in DC plans.
As part of Callan’s annual DC Trends Survey, more than 140 DC plan sponsors were asked about their use of TDFs. Callan also annually collects qualitative and quantitative data from target date managers representing both mutual funds and collective trusts. This paper leverages this combined data to examine the current state of the TDF universe and the differentiating characteristics that help drive outcomes.
When it comes to ensuring the future of your nonprofit, an endowment can serve as a vital tool in supporting your organization and its mission. Despite this, many nonprofits – and especially smaller organizations – struggle to build and manage a successful endowment.
This struggle can come from a lack of support by leadership and the board, or just a long-standing – and unproven – belief that endowments only truly benefit organizations with big operating budgets and plenty of resources.
The truth is, any nonprofit, even the smallest organizations, can benefit from an endowment. However, like any good investment, endowments must be properly managed to reach their full potential and maintain consistent growth.
In this presentation, you’ll learn how to:
• Determine the objectives of your endowment
• Set up a payout policy by determining how your endowment will function as a tool to support your organization’s long term plans
• Decide what your investment policy should address
• Strengthen your endowment by utilizing a strong mix of assets by determining optimum asset allocation
• Select the best candidate to manage your endowment through the help of an investment consultant
• Oversee your endowment in the long-term, including the systematic review of risk, monitoring of costs and determining the forum for oversight
Around the world, many investors are turning to alternative assets to increase yield in the current low―or even negative―interest-rate environment. The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), sponsored by Northern Trust, sought to ascertain the importance of various factors to investors’ and investment managers’ alternative investment decision making. In February 2017, the EIU surveyed 200 senior asset management and institutional investor executives employed by several different types of organisations—ranging from private equity firms and hedge funds to corporations, non-profits and insurance companies.
Nick O’Donohoe, former Global Head of Research at JP Morgan, author of their report on Impact Investments presented a summary of the report's findings, specifically how impact investing is emerging as an asset class.
Be sure to check out the other presentations, videos and audio recordings from the conference at www.tbnetwork.org/uknc11/media
Real estate, followed by infrastructure, dominate real asset investing, according to a new global study. Learn why in our new report sponsored by BlackRock. More information: http://bit.ly/AraBlk
How can the financial system serve a green and inclusive economy?IIED
In May 2014, Nick Robins, co-director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, discussed "How can the financial system serve a green and inclusive economy?" in a Critical Theme seminar hosted by IIED.
In the seminar, Robins outlined the rationale behind UNEP's new Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, which has been tasked to deliver policy recommendations in 2015 that could help underpin the implementation of the new Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris climate agreement.
More details: http://www.iied.org/economics.
Credit availability in Canada 2014: Targeting an ideal capital structurelbobak
The majority of Canadian financial executives surveyed by the Canadian Financial Executives Research Foundation are more optimistic about their company’s ability to obtain sufficient capital to meet its financing requirements in the next year (whether these needs are short-term, long-term or equity based). Most financial executives surveyed said credit for working capital and growth financing is generally available to their organizations, according to the study, which was published by the research arm of Financial Executives International Canada (FEI Canada), and sponsored by EY. The report, entitled Targeting an ideal capital structure, is based on the results of an online survey of financial executives across Canada, which took place in June 2014. According to the study, even those for whom credit was less available this year, the expectation is availability will improve by the spring of 2015.
The Influential Investor. How UHNW and HNW investor behaviour is redefining p...Scorpio Partnership
The Influential Investor examines the forces that will shape the future of the wealth and investment management industry over the next ten years. The paper delves into the factors that influence UHNW investor behaviour and the ways investors are rethinking their goals for the future. Scorpio Partnership worked alongside the Economist Intelligence Unit and TNS as the recognised specialist on HNW insight
Measuring Hedge Fund Performance: Investors Weigh In InfographicManagedFunds
Investors in hedge funds look to those allocations to fulfill a number of objectives for their portfolios, according to new data from Preqin. MFA used those data to illustrate a number of important points on how investors measure hedge fund performance in a new infographic.
The New Hedge Fund-Prime Broker RelationshipBroadridge
The financial crisis has changed the relationship between hedge funds and prime brokers. With the default of some leading providers, funds have realized that they should diversify their prime broker relationships and require more transparency on operational processes of prime providers. However, as the funds industry regains momentum, they are looking to their prime brokers to provide services that will support business expansion. Hence, prime brokers need to adapt their offering and IT infrastructure to respond to the changing market.
"POR LA CUAL SE DETERMINA EL HORARIO DE ATENCIÓN AL PÚBLICO PARA LAS DEPENDENCIAS DE LA ADMINISTRACIÓN MUNICIPAL CON MOTIVO DEL PROCESO DE EMPALME PARA LA P´ROXIMA VIGENCIA".
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In the last hours before His suffering Jesus will provide teaching concerning the judgement coming on the Jewish nation, and how His Apostles will remember Him after He is gone. (Mark 13:1-14:72)
This is an interesting paper providing insight on the utilization of data for Asset Managers that you might find useful and informative. We are happy to schedule direct one on one discussions, as you wish.
The UK investment management industry is at a turning point. Traditional active managers have already had to adapt to changes in the institutional market, but now they face a confluence of trends – from regulation to pension auto-enrolment to the growth of passive investing – that could radically reshape the retail side of their industry as well.
Ομιλία: “ESG in Corporate Governance and public enterprises (SOEs)”
Χριστίνα Κολιάτση, Chief Legal Counsel, Ελληνική εταιρεία Συμμετοχών και Περιουσίας ΑΕ (ΕΕΣΥΠ)
2017-01-25 A Framework for Strengthening Your Nonprofit’s Investment Reserve ...Raffa Learning Community
Nonprofit Executives and their Boards know they must periodically review reserve or investment policies. They don’t always know, however, what’s involved. Through his work on the Study on Nonprofit Investing (SONI), Dennis Gogarty of Raffa Wealth Management has developed an easy-to-follow investment policy framework which will assist nonprofits in developing or strengthening their organization’s policy and procedures.
The ES&G Accountability Forum (2013) provided participants and panelists with an opportunity to examine the question of how information (both financial and non-financial) can best be provided in a form that is useful to decision makers that are affected by, or have an affect on Canada’s companies.
This document captures key points made by panelists, their answers to questions posed, and the Forum’s participants’ table discussions. It is organized around each panel: investors, companies, evaluation organizations. We hope to encourage all groups to consider the advice and comments discussed at the Forum, and to take action on the outstanding questions and issues to improve the state of ES&G disclosure, analysis and investing that are highlighted on pages 9 & 10.
This year on September 23, 2014 in Calgary, many of these unanswered questions will be addressed at the ES&G Forum 2014: "Non-financial performance... A missed opportunity?"
Building on the last two years' discussions, participants will hear how investors and businesses are implementing innovative methods to manage investor demand for ES&G information. To learn more about & register for this year's ES&G Forum, please visit: http://bit.ly/esg-forum-2014
What's New with Corporate Retirement Plans? More Than You ThinkSkoda Minotti
This presentation discusses the rapidly changing (and litigious) landscape of corporate retirement plans and the best practices top companies are implementing to maintain a quality benefit offering, reduce risk exposures, and retain top talent.
Corporate Responsibility 2018 Aura Solution Company Limitedgannuu999
In our role as a global financial services company, we dedicate our people, resources and ideas to investor success and economic progress. Our impact also extends beyond the business of
investing. By committing to social and environmental
stewardship, human rights and responsible conduct, we hope to
strengthen our communities and serve the greater good.
1. Featuring the findings of the State Street 2015 Asset Owner Survey.
Pensions With Purpose
Meeting the Retirement Challenge
Asset Owners
Demographic
Pressures
Bold
Steps
Strong
Controls
Featuring the findings of the State Street 2015 Asset Owners Survey
3. Contents
4
6
10
12
14
16
18
20
21
23
24
26
28
3O
32
33
34
36
37
RESEARCH AT A GLANCE
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OWN THE OUTCOME
Evolving the Board
Streamlining Decision-making
Governance Leaders
OWN THE STRATEGY
Transforming Investment
ESG Investing Gathers Momentum
Toward a New Model
OWN THE RISKS
Upgrading the Risk Capability
OWN THE EFFICIENCY
Sharing Resources for New Opportunities
OWN THE TALENT
Pension Funds Need to Compete for Talent
Pension Funds Rationalize External Support
CONCLUSION: OWNING THE ACCOUNTABILITY
Industry Leaders Are Taking Bold Steps in Five Key Areas
4. • Predominantly board and C-level
respondents
• 29 percent Defined Benefit (DB)-only,
20 percent Defined Contribution
(DC)-only, 51 percent have both DB
and DC schemes
• Insights from pension fund board
members, in-house and external
investment managers, private and
public funds, consultants, academics,
and State Street experts (see our
Executive Q&A Library)
• Identifies five areas where pension
funds should act:
• Own the Outcome
• Own the Strategy
• Own the Risks
• Own the Efficiency
• Own the Talent
Research at a Glance
This report is based on a State Street survey of 400
senior executives in the pension fund industry conducted
by Longitude Research in October and November 2015.
Respondents to the global survey included representatives
of public and private pension or retirement systems, and
superannuation funds across 20 countries. The quantitative
research was supplemented by in-depth interviews with 43
pension industry experts from 13 countries.
Please note all sources are based on the above State Street survey
unless otherwise indicated.
ASSET OWNERS
4 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
5. 25%
Latin America
& Caribbean
Europe Asia
Pacific
North
America
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
8%
23%
45%
Respondents by Region
Range of Total Assets Overseen
$5 billion-$9.9 billion
28%
$10 billion or more
22%
$500 million-$999 million
6%
$1 billion-$4.9 billion
42%
Less than $500 million
2%
Institution Type
Public pension or retirement system
25%
Superannuation fund
7%
Private pension or retirement system
68%
5
7. The global pension industry faces some significant
challenges in its mission to deliver optimal retirement
outcomes for plan participants. Pension funds should
rethink their strategies in the face of historically low interest
rates, demographic shifts, persistent market volatility and
funding pressures.
To succeed in this environment, pension
funds need to establish “mission clarity”
— by defining a sustainable strategy
that will deliver an acceptable level of
retirement income for their members.
Leading pension funds are taking
greater ownership of member outcomes.
They are becoming more transparent
and professional in managing risk
and reporting performance. They are
growing more sophisticated in how they
manage a greater range of alternative
assets and investment strategies. And
they are redesigning their governance
frameworks, for a more challenging
future environment. There’s no universal
one-size-fits-all approach. The size of
the fund, its available resources and the
scale of its liabilities will play a part in
determining the best course for success.
However, our latest research identifies
five areas where all pension funds
should act if they are to take control of
their future.
35%
are planning to
pool assets and
liabilities within the
next three years
92%
will upgrade at least
one of their governance
aspects in 2016
7
8. 8 OPPORTUNITIES FOR OPTIMISM?
Pensions with Purpose
Faced with aging populations and uncertain markets, the most innovative pension funds are
proceeding with a confidence that comes from clear ownership of the challenges ahead.
Own the Outcome
Governance is
getting an
upgrade as
pension funds
get fit
for purpose
Own the Strategy
Pension funds
search for a new
model to
meet changing
retirement
needs
Own the Risks
Funds pursuing
higher returns
are upgrading
their risk-
management
capabilities
Own the Talent
Pension funds
must stand on
their own two feet
— balancing a
mix of in-house
and outsourced
capabilities
Own the
Efficiency
Pension funds
consolidate to
reduce costs,
boost efficiency
and improve
oversight
Own the Outcome
Strong governance is key to
pension funds executing on their
strategies and realizing the
outcomes required by members.
The vast majority will need to
adapt their existing governance
models — at least in part — if
they are to fulfill their objectives.
According to our research, 92
percent of funds will upgrade
at least one of their governance
aspects in 2016.
Own the Strategy
Pension funds are searching for
a new model to meet changing
retirement needs. External
pressures such as demographic
shifts and low interest rates
are driving transformation
in the industry. Alternative
investment asset classes are
gaining mainstream appeal
and more funds are embracing
environmental, social and
governance (ESG) investing.
In addition, more than half
of the funds in our survey
expect their institution to
introduce a defined contribution
scheme or hybrid model in the
next three years.
ASSET OWNERS
8 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
9. Own the Risks
The industry faces stark choices
around risk. Our survey indicates
that more than one-third (36
percent) of pension funds are
ready to take on additional risk to
boost investment returns, while
45 percent are actively looking for
ways to decrease the overall risk
within their investment portfolios.
Both options require a more
sophisticated understanding of
diverse risks, including longevity
risk, liquidity risk and operational
risk. The shift into alternatives
will also put pressure on
pension funds to improve risk
management across these less
familiar asset classes.
Own the Efficiency
Some pension funds are pooling
assets or consolidating schemes
to save cost, improve visibility
on risk and enhance overall
performance. More than one-
third (35 percent) in our survey
are planning to pool assets
and liabilities within the next
three years. Gains may be made
through sharing information and
ideas, while new partnerships
can grant access to previously
unattainable investment
opportunities.
Own the Talent
Pension funds are ramping
up internal investment and
risk teams as well as bringing
aspects of their investment
management in-house. Almost
half of pension fund professionals
surveyed expect to expand both
their internal investment and
internal risk teams over the next
three years. They will be more
discerning in their use
of consultants and asset
managers too. They will look
for external advisors to add
value in new areas.
9
11. They need more reliable, accurate
ways of tracking risk and performance
as market volatility persists into 2016.
Meanwhile, the aging global population,
in combination with historically low
interest rates, is pushing pension funds
into a broader range of asset classes in
search of higher investment returns.
Strong governance will be integral to
delivering transparency across complex,
multi-asset portfolios — for the benefit
of in-house teams, for scheme members,
and for regulators that continue to
scrutinize the industry.
Improved governance structures will
also be important in providing the
agility needed to seize new investment
opportunities, while ensuring that risk
tolerance levels are not exceeded. “We
see good governance as the means by
Pension funds are upgrading their governance in response
to mounting external pressures.
41%
Adjust the balance
of responsibilities
between board
and management
Increase training
and education
opportunities
for board members
Change the process
for recruiting new
board members
Revise incentive models
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Increase transparency
to members about
the governance and
investment performance
of the fund
Overhauling Governance Models
Is your institution
planning to take any of the
following actions to
support its governance
over the next year?*
Top Governance
Actions in 2016
50%
45%
44%
41%
42%
11
12. which ideas on paper can be turned into
actual investment returns,” says David
Aleppo, Head of DB Investment Advisory
Services (UK) at Willis Towers Watson.
The old models may need to be
overhauled. Our survey shows that many
funds have not yet optimized critical
elements of governance — including
board composition, the balance of
responsibilities between the board and
investment staff, and transparency
of reporting — that will allow them to
execute new investment strategies.
Evolving the Board
Many pension funds recognize that
governance can be improved: Few of our
survey respondents feel their current
board is sufficiently equipped for the
key challenges in today’s investment
environment.
For example, fewer than 1 in 4
respondents say their board has high
levels of expertise in alternative assets.
The same modest percentage says their
board is highly effective at assessing
General
investment
literacy
38%
Gaps in Board Capabilities
How would you rate the knowledge and expertise of your institution's governing fiduciaries in the
following areas?
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Ability to
think beyond
short-term issues
32%
Understanding
of risks facing the
retirement fund
36%
Ability to
accurately assess
investment managers'
performance
23%
Expertise on
alternative assets
23%
Respondents who believe their board has a high level of:
ASSET OWNERS
12 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
13. 45%
intend to increase
training and education
opportunities for board
members in the
next year
the performance of external investment
managers. Nearly half (45 percent)
intend to increase training and education
opportunities for board members in the
next year.
As Keith Ambachtsheer, Director Emeritus
of the Rotman International Centre for
Pension Management, points out, pension
boards need a balanced representation
of key stakeholders with expertise in
strategic management, human resources
policy, finance and investing.
According to Oxford University Professor
Gordon Clark, leading funds in the UK
are attempting to bolster investment
knowledge on their boards. In part, this is
to help them pursue compound investment
strategies that combine approaches such
as index tracking and thematic equity
investing in the same portfolio. These are
designed to reduce the variance in returns
over the longer term. “Some boards have
been adding independent trustees who
have expertise in a specific area. There’s
a lot more bespoke education happening,
and boards are meeting more frequently to
address issues where they’re unfamiliar,”
says Professor Clark.
In-house investment professionals as
well as specialist external consultants
are increasingly driving education of the
board. “The investment division within the
pension scheme needs to be solid enough
in the eyes of the board so that it can be
relied upon to deliver the right information
and advice. The investment team can play
a greater role in improving the board’s
knowledge,” says Antonio Iaquinta, Head of
Institutional Business, Italy, at State Street
Global Advisors.
“Some boards
have been adding
independent
trustees who
have expertise in
a specific area.
There’s a lot more
bespoke education
happening, and
boards are meeting
more frequently
to address issues
where they’re
unfamiliar.”
PROFESSOR
GORDON CLARK
Oxford University
13
14. Our survey also highlights scope
for pension funds to create greater
transparency around risk and
performance. As funds pursue non-
traditional investment strategies,
regulators will likely demand this
transparency. Funds will also need
their external partners — including
asset managers and consultants —
to offer greater assistance in delivering
this transparency.
Further, as the industry shift intensifies
from defined benefit (DB) to defined
contribution (DC), scheme members
will need greater insight — 43 percent
of those institutions that have both
a DB and DC pension vehicle will
seek to increase transparency to
members about the governance and
investment performance of the fund
in the next 12 months.
Streamlining Decision-making
Pension funds need to strike a balance.
They need to empower investment
managers to act swiftly in response to
new opportunities and risks, while still
ensuring transparency and oversight
at the board level. It can be a difficult
equation to get right.
43%
of those institutions that
have both a DB and DC
pension vehicle will seek
to increase transparency
to members
ASSET OWNERS
14 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
15. Our survey respondents recognize the
need for a more streamlined approach
to governance: Half of respondents will
adjust the balance of responsibilities
between the board and management in
the next year.
The first step in designing such a
structure is for the board to articulate
its mission clearly and to set well-
defined risk parameters. Only then can
the investment team be handed greater
autonomy with full confidence. “A clear
mission becomes the framework by
which an investor can consider and
assess every investment opportunity that
is taken to them, so they can ask `Is the
allocation to X, Y, Z asset class consistent
with our mission?’ “ says David Aleppo
at Willis Towers Watson. “If you’ve got
a clear mission — and clear investment
beliefs underpinning it — you can react
more quickly to unexpected events or
new opportunities.”
In addition, by adapting the investment
team’s incentive models appropriately,
pension funds can empower the team
while ensuring their activity is aligned to
the fund’s long-term strategic objectives.
In our survey, nearly half (42 percent) of
those funds that intend to increase the
autonomy of the investment function
in the next year will also revise their
incentive models.
At the Church Pension Fund (CPF) in the
US, Chair of the Trustee Board Barbara
Creed says they’re already benefiting
from recent efforts to redefine the
responsibilities of the board and staff:
“We’ve cut the number of committees
and delegated some functions to staff,
and we’re spending more time looking at
the issues of major long-term concern
to the organization rather than focusing
on what’s happening today.” While some
of the focus may have shifted away from
scrutinizing daily performance, the
board has also put checks in place
to bring short-term concerns to its
immediate attention.
“A clear mission
becomes the
framework by
which an investor
can consider and
assess every
investment
opportunity that
is taken to them,
so they can ask
`Is the allocation
to X, Y, Z asset
class consistent
with our mission?’”
DAVID ALEPPO
Head of DB Investment
Advisory Services (UK)
at Willis Towers Watson
15
16. Governance Leaders
Governance Leaders Take Bold Steps
to Deliver Better Outcomes
Our survey identifies a group of Governance Leaders that fully
recognize the need to optimize their governance. We have
defined this group as those respondents that are taking actions
to upgrade four or more areas of their governance models in the
next 12 months.
By adopting an advanced approach to
governance, the Governance Leaders are
giving themselves the best chance to achieve
strong member outcomes while managing
risk exposure. They are:
• Expecting to eliminate their deficits more
quickly than the rest of the industry (an
average of 7.4 years, compared to 9.3 years
for other respondents)
• Shifting into alternative asset classes —
such as hedge funds, real estate and private
equity — to a greater extent (60 percent will
increase hedge fund exposure in the next
year, compared to 34 percent of others)
• Targeting environmental, social and
governance (ESG) investing to help deliver
returns supporting long-term liabilities of
pension funds while meeting the demand for
social responsibility (38 percent have a high
interest in ESG, compared to just 18 percent
of non-governance leaders)
• Prioritizing longevity, liquidity, investment
and operational risk management (33 percent
say investment risk is a very high priority,
compared to just 19 percent of others).
See our governance
special report for
in-depth analysis and
commentary on the
Governance Leader group
ASSET OWNERS
16 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
17. 7 Steps to Becoming a Governance Leader
Optimizing
balance of
responsibilities
— board vs.
management
Increasing
training/
education
opportunities
Changing
board
member
recruitment
Revising
incentive
models
Increasing
transparency
to members
Increasing
reporting
frequency
to board
Increasing
autonomy of
investment
function
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
of funds will take at least
4 out of 7 governance
actions in 2016
92%
68%
82%
92%
at least 3 actions
at least 2 actions
at least 1 action
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
40%
Governa
nce Activity
Leaders
17
19. Traditional investment strategies and scheme models
employed by pension funds are under strain as funds seek
to meet the future retirement needs of members. More
than one in three (37 percent) DB respondents say their
scheme is in deficit.
Pension funds will need to transform
their investment strategies — and
in many cases the structure of their
schemes — to deliver sustainable
outcomes for members. The industry
must find new ways of generating higher
investment returns as equity and bond
markets continue to struggle. In the
US, the S&P 500 declined 0.7 percent
for 2015, its worst showing since the
financial crisis in 2008, while the UK
FTSE 100 Index lost nearly 7 percent. The
start of 2016 saw the worst performance
for global stock markets since the Great
Depression, as bond yields remain at
historically low levels.
DB Schemes Face Shortfalls Across Markets
Is your defined benefit scheme in deficit?
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
32%
North America
37%
Europe
42%
Asia Pacific
DB Schemes Face Shortfalls Across Markets
Is your defined benefit scheme in deficit?
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
32%
North America
37%
Europe
42%
Asia Pacific
19
20. The Shift to Alternatives Deepens
Is your institution planning to increase its exposure to any of the following
alternative asset classes over the next three years?
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
51%
Funds of
Hedge Funds
41%
Infrastructure
50%
Real Estate
36%
Direct Loans
35%
Hedge Funds
(single manager)
46%
Private Equity
Transforming Investment
As pension funds seek to improve risk-
adjusted returns, our survey indicates
they are accelerating the move into
alternative assets: Over the next three
years, 51 percent will increase exposure
to funds of hedge funds, 50 percent to
real estate, 46 percent to private equity
and 41 percent to infrastructure.
At Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance
Company in Finland, President and CEO
Timo Ritakallio says increased allocation
to alternatives is a core component
of their investment strategy to 2020.*
“We’re aiming to increase real estate
investments from around 9 percent today
up to more than 15 percent. And we have
around 5 percent in private equity today
and are seeking to take this to around 8
percent,” he says.
William Lee, Chief Investment Officer at
Kaiser Permanente, tells a similar story:
“Over the past few years we’ve ramped
up private equity, and to some extent
hedge funds, and we’ve been doing a lot
more private real estate.”
“Over the past
few years we’ve
ramped up private
equity, and to some
extent hedge funds,
and we’ve been
doing a lot more
private real estate.”
WILLIAM LEE
Chief Investment Officer
at Kaiser Permanente
* Investment Strategy 2020, Ilmarinen
ASSET OWNERS
20 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
21. 36%
will increase their
exposure to direct
loans in the next
three years
While our survey suggests that funds
of hedge funds will see the greatest
increase in allocation over the next three
years, real estate and private equity are
not far behind. Martin Sullivan, State
Street’s Head of Asset Owner Solutions
for the Americas, says that more public
pension plans in the US are now looking
to invest directly into alternative asset
classes. “Public plans are making direct
investments in real estate and private
equity. The California Public Employees’
Retirement System (CalPERS) has
already moved in this direction and now
the smaller end of the market is also
starting to look at this more closely,”
he says. “In Canada, most large public
pension plans have been investing
directly in such asset classes for many
years and achieved exceptionally strong
returns. In some cases, the plans are
overfunded.”
Direct debt has also become a more
popular option. More than one-third
(36 percent) of our survey respondents
will increase their exposure to direct
loans in the next three years. “We’ve
seen a number of pension funds,
including ourselves, moving much
more into different types of credit,
especially in light of banks being less
willing to undertake loan credits,” says
Jens-Christian Stougaard, Director of
PensionDanmark, a Danish not-for-profit
labor market pension fund. “This really
opens up the market for pension funds
to move in and provide those types of
long-term credits in different sectors of
the economy.”
Marco Chinni, Founder of Swiss
consultancy Primecoach, believes that
the pensions industry should work
harder to capitalize on the long-term
nature of its liability profile: “We see
funds taking too much of a short-term
view on investment performance. Their
liabilities are long-term so they should
be working to an investment horizon of
at least 10 years.”
ESG Investing Gathers Momentum
Our research shows that pension funds
will not only increase their exposure to
alternative assets. It will also become
more important to consider investments
through the lens of sustainability as the
global economy changes, and companies
with responsible, sustainable practices
form a better fit for meeting the long-
term liabilities of pension funds.
According to the Global Sustainable
Investment Association (GSIA), the
sustainable investment market grew
from $13.3 trillion at the start of 2012
to $21.4 trillion at the start of 2014,
when it represented 30.2 percent of
21
22. professionally managed assets. Sarah
McPhee, Senior Advisor on Sustainability
at Norwegian financial services firm
Storebrand, says growth in unfamiliar
sectors represents a huge investment
opportunity over the next few decades
too. Storebrand is seeking to seize early-
mover advantage. In 2014, it became one
of the largest participants in Europe’s
green bond market, increasing its
investments in these assets by NOK 4
billion ($449.4 million).
The majority of our survey respondents
see opportunity here as well. Over four-
fifths (83 percent) express moderate or
high interest in environmental, social
and governance (ESG) investing over
the next three years. Implementing
successful ESG strategies will require
a new approach to analyzing investment
decisions that many pension funds may
not be equipped for today. “I think the
successful players will be the ones that
change their entire front office because
it’s a different investment theme — one
that most people in the front office are
not used to coping with,” says McPhee.
“The front office will need people who
understand the structural transition to
a more sustainable economy, who can
analyze that and invest in it.”
External consultants and investment
managers will have an important role too.
Of those respondents with a moderate or
high interest in ESG investing, 76 percent
say they are more likely to consider hiring
a manager who has ESG capabilities than
one who does not.
Sustainable Strategies Move Up the Agenda
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
57% Moderate
16% Low
26% High
1% None
Pensions’
anticipated interest in
Environmental, Social
& Governance (ESG)
in the next 3 years
Which best describes your institution’s anticipated level of interest
in ESG investing over the next 3 years?
ASSET OWNERS
22 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
23. Toward a New Model
In the Netherlands — one of the few
European countries still with a majority of
DB schemes — Gerard Riemen, Managing
Director of Pensioenfederatie, says the
country’s system will become unmanageable
if low interest rates persist: “In a DB system,
this will eventually lead to either reduced
benefits or higher premiums — neither are
popular options.”
Our survey respondents paint a similar
picture. More than half (56 percent) of
DB-only funds believe their institution will
introduce a DC scheme or a hybrid model
within the next three years.
For funds that are making the transition,
DC brings new rules for success. The most
sophisticated providers will stand out
through an IT infrastructure that delivers
transparency and greater autonomy to
plan participants, with respect to setting
investment risk tolerance, for instance.
They will also offer broader investment
choice. In our survey, 76 percent of
institutions that plan to introduce DC
schemes say they have the overall
infrastructure needed to successfully
manage this transition and realize the
benefits of the new structure.
A Global Shift to DC is Underway
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
North
America
Europe Asia
Pacific
70% 53% 45%
Does your sponsoring institution have any plans to introduce a defined contribution scheme over
the next 3 years?
23
Pension funds face clear choices about the future structure
of their schemes. They should consider whether a DB-only
model is sustainable, or whether a shift to a hybrid DB-DC or
DC-only model is necessary.
25. Note: The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
19%
No change
to risk profile
36%
Increasing
risk profile
45%
Decreasing
risk profile
An Industry Divided by Risk Appetite
What best describes your institution?
25
Our survey shows a clear divide in the
industry with respect to risk appetite: 45
percent of respondents are looking for
ways to decrease their investment risk
profile (a group we’ve called the “Risk
Cutters”), while 36 percent are pursuing
higher-risk, higher-return strategies
(“Return Hunters”). Our survey shows that
a greater proportion of private funds are
Risk Cutters, while more of the public
funds are Return Hunters (see chart
on next page).
Martin Sullivan at State Street says
many US funds are taking the question
of risk a step further. They are assessing
whether to take risk off the table by
either paying out to participants now or
Pension funds face a dilemma on risk. They are torn
between the desire to reduce investment risk and the
need to seek the higher returns that come with a risk
premium. The concern that plans will be unable to meet
the increasing demands of their members is universal,
but the “right” answer on risk strategy will be unique to
each fund.
26. obtaining cover from third-party insurers.
This latter option is more accessible to
private corporations than public sector
pensions, thereby reinforcing a difference
of approach. “Most of the public funds are
underfunded, but as a matter of public
policy they will remain in the market,”
says Sullivan.
Upgrading the Risk Capability
Only 14 percent of our survey
respondents rate themselves as highly
effective at managing investment risk,
while 15 percent say the same about
liquidity risk. This is a real concern for
pension funds, especially as many move
into new investment areas that require
specialist understanding of different
risk types.
Alternative asset classes such as
hedge funds, private equity and
infrastructure expose funds to various
types of investment and liquidity
risks. In addition to requiring specialist
investment knowledge, alternatives
tend to be more illiquid and may tie
up capital over a longer time period.
Fewer than half (46 percent) of funds
in our survey are confident they have
achieved real transparency on the risk
associated with alternative assets.
“As the pension industry moves into
more real assets, the danger is that
you’re moving away from the more
transparent, volatility-based risk
management where things are clearer
because you have mark-to-market
prices,” explains Guan Seng Khoo,
Head of Enterprise Risk Management
at Alberta Investment Management
Corporation. “Now you’re going more
into mark-to-model scenarios so you
have to change your performance and
risk metrics.”
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Risk
Cutters
Private and Public Plans Plot Different Paths
Return
Hunters
8% Superannuation fund4% Superannuation fund
17% Public pension
or retirement system
79% Private pension
or retirement system
30% Public pension
or retirement system
63% Private pension
or retirement system
“Now you’re going
more into mark-
to-model scenarios
so you have to
change your
performance
and risk metrics.”
GUAN SENG KHOO
Head of Enterprise Risk
Management at Alberta
Investment Management
Corporation
ASSET OWNERS
26 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
27. Funds need the capability to evaluate
portfolio risk across a diverse range
of assets. These risk tools must be
able to aggregate and normalize data
across all asset classes including
private equity, hedge funds and
derivatives while providing exposures,
sensitivities and stressing the portfolio
by asset type or in aggregate. Clients
should also be able to incorporate
liabilities within the risk analysis.
Some larger funds may have appropriate
tools in-house that can be optimized
for more sophisticated risk-testing,
while smaller funds may need to seek
outsourced solutions. As pension funds
increasingly employ more sophisticated
risk modeling, the accuracy of the data
feeding the models becomes more
significant. As we discuss in section 5
of this report, hiring new risk expertise
will be key in enabling such increased
sophistication in risk analysis.
As pension funds increasingly recognize
the importance of applying more
sophisticated risk modeling, the accuracy
of the data that feeds those models grows
in importance. But only 26 percent of
respondents are highly confident in the
reliability and accuracy of their risk data.
This is an area of focus for the Church
Pension Fund. “We’ve been honing our
techniques for assessing risk as carefully
as we can to make sure that future
generations enjoy the same level of
benefits that the current generation does,”
says Barbara Creed.
Each pension fund will need a clear
picture of the short- and long-term
liabilities it could face, under different
scenarios, to set the most appropriate
overarching risk strategy. Whatever
risk strategy it needs to pursue for the
sake of its members, it’s clear that a
combination of new skills, risk analytics
tools and specialist knowledge will be
required to succeed.
Longevity
21%
73%
6%
Liquidity
15%
81%
4%
Investment
14%
80%
6%
High Medium Low
Note: The base is all respondents whose funds
have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Operational
20%
80%
.03%
Mastering the Risk Challenge
How effective do you believe your institution
currently is at managing each type of risk?
Effectiveness on Risk
27
29. Across the industry, many pension funds are under intense
scrutiny by boards and stakeholders to cut costs.
Cost Pressures are Industry-wide
$5 billion-$9.9 billion
28%
$10 billion or more
22%
$500 million-$999 million
6%
$1 billion-$4.9 billion
42%
Less than $500 million
2%
Defined benefit/Defined contribution
61%
Defined contribution
68%
Defined benefit
52%
* The base is all respondents whose funds have some defined benefit (DB) component
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Under Pressure to Cost-cut Across Fund Sizes Under Pressure to Cost-cut Across Scheme Types
“The beta for markets isn’t going to be
as high as it has been and that places
a greater emphasis on costs — we still
think there’s far too much cost leakage in
the industry,” says David Aleppo at Willis
Towers Watson.
Some pension funds are turning to asset
pooling to make efficiency gains. More
than one-third (35 percent) of pension
institutions surveyed are planning to
pool assets and liabilities with other
pension plans within the next three
years. In other instances, pension
funds are choosing to share resources,
such as staff, to make savings. “In
the Danish market, we’ve seen funds
coming together to reduce the costs of
administrative functions,” says Jens-
Christian Stougaard of PensionDanmark.
“We expect that a number of small
pension funds will either decide to
merge with other funds or choose
administrative cooperation, so they can
stay independent but share their own
administrative setup with either one or
a couple of other funds.”
Iain Cowell, Interim Head of Investment
Affairs at the Pension and Lifetime
Savings Association in the UK, says that
consolidation could lead to reduced
costs and more effective governance:
“We encourage all UK pension schemes
to explore the sharing of capabilities
and investment opportunities. If more
schemes pooled their expertise together
it would help bring costs down but also
increase the scope for innovation.”
“We encourage
all UK pension
schemes to
explore the sharing
of capabilities
and investment
opportunities. If
more schemes
pooled their
expertise together
it would help bring
costs down but also
increase the scope
for innovation.”
IAIN COWELL
Interim Head of Investment
Affairs at the Pension
and Lifetime Savings
Association in the UK
29
30. In the UK, some local authority funds
are actively pursuing this strategy. At the
end of 2014, for example, the Lancashire
County Pension Fund and the London
Pensions Fund Authority announced a
partnership to create a £10 billion ($14.3
billion) pooled investment fund with the
aim of bolstering internal investment
expertise and liability management.*
Meanwhile, the German government
has advocated a plan for strengthening
occupational pensions and increasing
coverage that would involve large-scale
consolidation. “Politically, there’s a
drive toward creating industry-wide
funds to help those smaller players who
would otherwise look to an insurance
solution to manage their liabilities,” says
Nikolaus Schmidt-Narischkin, Director of
Consulting Services (Germany) at Willis
Towers Watson. The German government
has commissioned external legal experts
to further research its proposals, and
they are due to submit a final report in
March 2016.**
Technology also has a role to play in
cost reduction. Raj Mody, Head of PwC’s
Pensions Consulting Group, stresses
the importance of putting the right IT
systems in place to keep costs down.
“If you can achieve a single system for
asset management information, asset
liability modeling, actuarial valuations
and so on, you can probably halve
your advisor and analytics costs,” he
says. Joined-up systems will also help
pensions to identify and act swiftly on
new investment opportunities.
Sharing Resources for New Opportunities
Sharing resources should not only be
viewed as a cost-saving measure. It is
also an important means of developing
new capabilities and opening up fresh
opportunities.
For smaller pension funds, joining forces
with similarly sized or even larger funds
may be an effective route to obtaining
the necessary scale, investment know-
how and risk expertise to move into
* “London, Lancashire schemes to create £10bn pooled investment
fund,” Investment and Pensions Europe, December 2014
** Legal experts weigh alternatives to ‘Dutch-style’ pensions in
Germany, Investment and Pensions Europe, December 2015
ASSET OWNERS
30 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
31. “What we see is
partnerships being
formed between
funds — that is,
between asset
owners in the
same geography
or asset owners
across different
geographies —
to access
opportunities
they would
otherwise need
to use external
managers
to access.”
PROFESSOR
GORDON CLARK
Oxford University
investments such as alternatives that
represent a different risk profile. Pooling
assets and sharing resources will also
bolster smaller funds’ bargaining power
when it comes to engaging the external
asset managers with the specialist
expertise they need.
Larger funds are also taking this
approach. In 2015, Sweden’s AP2 fund
joined an investment partnership
launched by Teachers Insurance and
Annuity Association – College Retirement
Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF) that will
target high-quality farmland assets
across North America, South America
and Australia. A TIAA-CREF majority-
owned subsidiary — Westchester
Group Investment Management —
will help to provide expertise in local
farmland assets.
Professor Gordon Clark at Oxford
University also notes the trend toward
a more collaborative approach: “What
we see is partnerships being formed
between funds — that is, between asset
owners in the same geography or asset
owners across different geographies
— to access opportunities they would
otherwise need to use external
managers to access.”
There are significant benefits to be
gained by pooling assets and by sharing
knowledge and resources. Such options
are likely to become more important too,
as pension funds come under greater
pressure to cut costs and to access new
investment opportunities. And for those
pension funds seeking to pool assets,
finding partners that share similar risk
tolerance levels and a similar approach
to governance will be the key to ensuring
the strategy pays off.
31
33. As pension funds diversify their investments, their need for
specialist talent is amplified. Investment professionals with
expertise in niche assets are in demand — as well as new risk
management, data analysis and board-level skillsets.
Our survey shows that almost half (45
percent) of pension funds are expanding
their internal investment team over
the next three years, with 48 percent
expanding the internal risk team.
Japan’s Government Pension Investment
Fund, which has around $1.1 trillion in
assets under management, recently
announced that it will deepen expertise
in alternatives in its in-house investment
team. Meanwhile, the Korean National
Pension Service (NPS) has been opening
overseas offices — with the latest in
Singapore last year — in a bid to hire
more foreign fund managers and
increase its overseas investments. The
NPS is planning to increase its share of
overseas investment from 20 percent in
2014 to more than 25 percent in 2019.
The pension industry’s increasing focus
on sustainable investing is creating
strong demand for managers with
capabilities in ESG investing too. As
Sarah McPhee at Storebrand points
out above, funds will need front-office
personnel that can apply new analytical
lenses to select the assets that will
thrive in a sustainable economy.
Pension Funds Need to Compete for Talent
Pension funds face huge competition in
attracting specialist talent away from
high-paying investment banks, asset
managers and consultancies. Funds
will need to pay market-competitive
remuneration rates in order to build
certain capabilities in-house, particularly
funds that plan to increase their
exposure to alternatives. “If you’re
going to hire people to be creators of
private markets transactions, it’s an
expensive labor market, and people
need to know the rewards are there for
* The base is all respondents whose funds have
some defined benefit (DB) component.
Source: State Street Asset Owners Survey 2015
Will increase Will decrease
Boosting In-house Capability Takes Priority
Internal risk team
Internal investment team
External asset managers
External consultants
48%
22%
45%
30%
34%
39%
27%
49%
Resourcing intentions over the next 3 years
“If you’re going
to hire people to
be creators of
private markets
transactions, it’s
an expensive labor
market, and people
need to know
the rewards are
there for them.”
KEITH AMBACHTSHEER
Director Emeritus of
the Rotman International
Centre for Pension
Management
33
34. them,” says Keith Ambachtsheer at the
Rotman International Centre for Pension
Management.
Ilmarinen’s Timo Ritakallio notes that
they have enhanced their remuneration
schemes to attract the best talent. But
they also apply other approaches to
gain the necessary expertise, such as
improving the transfer of knowledge
from third parties to in-house teams.
“We target hedge fund managers and
others working in financial centers such
as London who are looking for a move
back to Finland,” he explains. “We’ve
also set up a Hong Kong office as a base
for a separate fund managed by external
managers. We send our own managers
over there to gain experience in the Asian
market too.”
Pension Funds Rationalize External Support
While building stronger in-house
investment and risk management
capabilities is appealing to many funds,
it is unlikely to be a complete solution —
consultants will continue to play a vital
role in key areas.
In our survey, 65 percent of respondents
agree that consultants are essential to
guiding their investment process. Yet
at the same time, the use of external
support is being rationalized as internal
teams grow. For instance, half (49
percent) of funds will decrease their
use of external consultants over the
next three years, while 27 percent will
increase their use.
ASSET OWNERS
34 PENSIONS WITH PURPOSE
74%
Public pensions
74%
$10bn or more
in assets
65%
All funds
78%
North America
Percentage agree
that consultants
are essential to guiding
their investment
process.
35. “We run a board
effectiveness
program that
covers board
dynamics, risk
definition and
oversight.”
KEITH AMBACHTSHEER
Director Emeritus of
the Rotman International
Centre for Pension
Management
Pension funds may be looking for fewer,
more valuable relationships with external
consultants. This trend will intensify
competition among consultants, but it
will open up new opportunities for the
most forward-looking firms. “With newer
and more complex problems arising for
pension funds, consultants are having to
specialize and really become experts in
financial technology in addition to asset
allocation and investment issues,” says
Daniel Gerard, State Street’s Head of
Advisory Solutions for Asia Pacific.
Third parties can offer significant value
in unexplored investment areas where
in-house talent is too expensive or
tough to recruit. This is evidenced by
Ilmarinen’s approach to outsourcing.
“We feel it’s more effective to manage
our European equity portfolio in-house
and bring in external help for developing
markets,” says Ritakallio.
Consultants will also be asked to provide
broader educational services to boards,
as well as advice relating to key strategic
decisions. Keith Ambachtsheer says
improving the board’s effectiveness is
high on the agenda for many funds: “We
run a board effectiveness program that
covers board dynamics, risk definition
and oversight. We also develop a skills
experience matrix for a pension board
to understand where any gaps in
experience and skills lie, so we can help
them to address those.”
Finding the best talent means arriving at
the optimal balance between in-house
teams and specialist external advisors.
More in-depth due diligence of managers
and audits of how consultants are
currently used will help ensure pensions
make the most of their third-party
engagements. Although there’s no one-
size strategy that applies to all funds, all
pensions should share the ambition to
engage the best talent they can, and a
willingness to explore multiple routes to
achieving that.
35
37. Delivering long-term success in such
a challenging environment means
reallocating investments to diverse asset
classes that combine return potential and
sustainable performance. And it means
putting stronger governance frameworks
in place that strike the right balance of
autonomy for the investment team and
oversight of risk.
Pension funds need a more diverse talent
pool to fulfill these strategies. Leading
funds are closing the remuneration
gap between pensions and external
asset managers. They’re also getting
strategic about using external advisors
— managing more investments in-house
and engaging external specialists that add
value in niche areas.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution
for pension funds. But as our research
shows, industry leaders are taking bold
steps in five key areas:
Own the Outcome
• Trustees must articulate a clear mission
and well-defined risk parameters
• The right balance of responsibilities
must be set between the board and
management teams
• Bespoke education of boards to
address unfamiliar issues is critical
Own the Strategy
• Pensions must adopt appropriate
strategies to meet long-term liabilities
• Asset allocation is realigned for the
new economy — sustainable investing
is here to stay
• Pensions must do more to capitalize
on their long-term liability profiles
Own the Risks
• A risk-on vs. risk-off decision must be
taken based on accurate data about the
fund’s position
• Risk and performance metrics must
be adjusted to fit higher risk/return
strategies
• New systems will aggregate and normalize
data across diverse asset classes to
deliver a fuller picture to risk officers
Own the Efficiency
• Pooling assets and knowledge can create
new investment opportunities at lower risk
• Consolidation delivers administrative
savings and cost-effective governance
• Efficiency gains are achieved through
joined-up systems for risk and
performance analytics
Own the Talent
• Funds need to offer competitive packages
to attract the right talent
• Diverse investment strategies call for
risk management and analytics specialists
• External consultants will add greatest
value in unexplored areas where
in-house talent is expensive or elusive
Leading pension funds are overhauling their old models to
take greater control of the outcomes delivered to members.
37
