Director of Public Market Investments - Office of the Illinois State Treasurer
Chicago, IL
About the Job
JOB OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT
Position Title: Director of Public Market Investments
Division: Fiscal
Classification: Exempt
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Salary: $100,000-$110,000
Position Summary:
This is a director-level position responsible for managing a number of investment objectives, fiduciary duties, and strategic initiatives under the Chief Investment Officer. This includes the management of due diligence and oversight for the public market focused external investment portfolios of the Office of the Illinois State Treasurer, including, but not limited to, the two (2) College Savings Programs (Bright Start and Bright Directions), Illinois Secure Choice Retirement Savings Program, and the Illinois Achieving a Better Life Experience Program (ABLE). The Director - Public Market Investments will utilize best practices to continually head effective oversight of public market investment portfolios, measure investment performance, and head the evaluation of select externally managed investment platforms while advising senior management as to the appropriateness of investment frameworks, investment managers, policies, investment objectives, and management structures. The Director - Public Market Investments interacts with many divisions within the Treasurer's Office in the interest of achieving underlying policy objectives. Attendance is an essential function of this position.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Develop and implement comprehensive investment activities that manage the evaluation, selection, retention, performance monitoring, and termination of external investment managers.
- Plan, develop, and direct asset allocation, portfolio construction, and continuous review of program and investment manager fees.
- Plan, develop, and direct investment analysis staff in the research, analysis and evaluation of investment activities.
- Develops research, market trend analysis, and cross-reference investment platform performance with pertinent benchmarks and targets.
- Lead investment and operational due diligence, conducting extensive qualitative and quantitative due diligence on approved public market investment managers.
- Lead investment analysis team in the selection, assessment, portfolio management, and integration of sustainability factors for all prospective and current investment managers.
- Develop, implement and maintain guidelines of the integration of sustainability factors for all prospective and current public market investment managers through the manager selection process including environmental, social, governance, business model/innovation, and human capital.
- Implement and maintain procedural guidelines integrating equity, diversity and inclusion as a component of the manager selection process for external public market investment portfolios.
- Coordinate efforts with current investment managers tracking and the evaluating diversity related reporting requirements as a part of the monitoring process, while effectively communicating with investment managers the fundamental benefits of diversity and inclusion related to long-term investment performance.
- Direct monthly, quarterly, annual and special onsite due diligence meetings with program managers, investment managers, and investment consultants.
- Maintains a comprehensive understanding of investment policies, relevant statutory requirements, and other pertinent operating guidelines to ensure effective analysis, reporting, and compliance.
- Communicates and advises on the performance and continuing appropriateness of each platform's investment framework, investment managers, portfolio construction, creating reports, summarizing findings, developing recommendations, and presenting analyses to senior management in a clear, concise, convincing, and actionable format.
- Provide leadership in addressing modifications to the investment policies, objectives, guidelines, or management structure of pertinent platforms as appropriate.
- Coordinate timely review of quarterly, annual and special reports issued by program managers and investment managers to ensure the completeness and accuracy of the content, and to ensure that senior management are well-positioned to assess the effectiveness of investment and program manager performance.
- Directs changes or enacting new policies and procedures related to investment platforms when required.
- Provide educational and promotional content to support out-facing publications and materials.
- Promptly advise the Chief Investment Officer as to the impact on the investment platforms of information released to the public, press, state legislature, and other press releases and similar matters, as needed.
- Actively collaborates with Directors and Managers in the Office of the Illinois State Treasurer with responsibilities relating to relevant investment platforms.
- Maintains in-depth, highly informed daily knowledge of the investment and securities markets as well as portfolio products, including the rationale for underlying holdings, sector and asset allocation decisions
- Performs other duties as assigned or required which are reasonably related to the duties enumerated above.
- Strong leadership competencies, including: decision making; developing and empowering others; global perspective; influencing skills; innovation and fund performance management; market knowledge; organizational awareness; professional confidence; results orientation; risk management; and strategic thinking and implementation.
- In-depth understanding of the financial services industry with prior portfolio analysis experience expected
- Quantitative analysis skills
- Ability to multi-task and prioritize efficiently and effectively
- Strong written and oral communication skills
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to work in a team environment
- Ability to maintain satisfactory working relationships and communicate effectively with all levels of staff and the general public
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and other standard computer program.
Bachelor's degree in accounting/finance/economics or a related field, required; Master's Degree in business/finance/economics preferred; five (5) or more years of experience in areas of financial statement analysis, investment analysis, economic analysis, portfolio management, /or a related field; OR any equivalent combination of experience and training that provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities to carry out the duties of the position.
Certificates and Licenses Required:
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) or Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designations are preferred
Application Process: Please visit https://illinoisstatetreasurer.applytojob.com/apply to apply by completing the online application, uploading a resume and letter of interest
Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Applicants must be lawfully authorized to work in the United States.
Applicants are considered for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital or veteran status, or the presence of a non-job related medical condition or disability.
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