Fund Research and Oversight Associate recruitment
BlackRock is one of the world’s preeminent asset management firms and a premier provider of global investment management, risk management and advisory services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors around the world. BlackRock offers a range of solutions — from rigorous fundamental and quantitative active management approaches aimed at maximizing outperformance to highly efficient indexing strategies designed to gain broad exposure to the world’s capital markets. Our clients can access our investment solutions through a variety of product structures, including individual and institutional separate accounts, mutual funds and other pooled investment vehicles, and the industry-leading iShares® ETFs.
Business Unit Overview:
In light of the declining DB market, the UK DC space poses attractive opportunities for long term AUM and revenue growth potential. The UK is the third largest DC market in the world after the US and Australia and offers considerable long-term growth and revenue generation. We expect the market to grow substantially as DB schemes close to future accrual and auto-enrolment drives increased DC membership. We estimate that corporate DC AUM is expected to exceed corporate DB AUM in 2019. The shift to DC amounts to a real commercial opportunity for Blackrock to assist employers who want to offer a broader range of employee savings products.
Retirement is a key global focus for BlackRock. In the UK, we are well positioned to lead the bundled and investment-only DC markets, We currently have in excess of 500 DC clients and operate record keeping for 269 employers (September 2011) covering more than 200,000 DC members.
Job Purpose/Background:
The DC Team is seeking a team member on the Fund Development and Governance Team to monitor and help develop the range of funds available on the BlackRock Life Defined Contribution product offering. The candidate will ensure that BlackRock completes its investment and operational governance responsibilities over the fund range, therefore ensuring that the funds remain appropriate and relevant for a competitive Defined Contribution product offering. The fund range includes BlackRock managed funds, as well as funds managed by external fund management companies.
The Fund Development and Governance Team sit on the Defined Contribution Team within the BlackRock Global Client Group. The wider team focus on servicing client relationships and selling the BlackRock DC products to potential clients.
Key Responsibilities:
- To perform and report on due diligence undertaken on externally managed funds
- To monitor performance of each fund on an absolute and relative basis
- To produce reporting, including factsheets for the funds.
- To respond to queries on any aspect of the funds
- To work with the wider team to develop the fund range
- To participate in projects adding/removing funds on the fund platform
- To validate fees paid to the external managers
Development Value:
The candidate for this role will gain a good understanding of a wide range of funds available from BlackRock as well as those of a number of the leading fund management companies in the UK. They will also learn about good operational and investment governance controls over fund managers and will grow with the team to develop the working practices. In this role the candidate will develop a general understanding of how BlackRock and various external fund managers invest money for clients. Together with the rest of the team, they will work with other investment areas of BlackRock to ensure that the governance processes remain in line across the business. They will be part of an exciting and growing part of the business at the forefront of the changes in the pension industry.
Knowledge/Experience:
- Experience conducting investment, manager, and operational research on investment managers across a variety of asset classes
- An understanding of investment management processes and styles
- Experience of how unit linked funds work would be advantageous
- Appreciation of the types of risk controls that can be employed in managing funds
- Strong cross team and firm relationship building skills, capable of adapting style of communication to the audience
- Experience as a security analyst/portfolio manager or consultant preferred
Skills/Qualifications:
- Investment Management Certificate
- Degree level standard of education
- Project management skills, including an ability to move projects forward in a complex environment
- Ability to integrate input from and manage relationships with multiple stakeholders
- Ability to liaise with management of all levels to drive and communicate strategy
- Ability to work effectively in a team environment – adaptable, reliable with a strong ‘can do attitude’
- Excel skills to an advanced standard
Competencies:
- Teamwork
- Communication skills
- Tenacious and self motivated
- Takes initiative
- Project management skills