Product Associate
Towers Watson is a leading global professional services company that helps organisations improve performance through effective people, financial and risk management. With more than 14,000 associates around the world, we offer solutions in the areas of employee benefit programmes, talent and reward programmes, and risk and capital management, including insurance and reinsurance.
Towers Watson’s investment consulting business aims to change investment for the better for the benefit of its clients. To achieve this, we look to hire and retain the best people, provide opportunities for them to continue to develop their skills and then empower them to make a difference. Our client base of leading investment institutions (including many of the world’s largest pension funds, insurance companies and sovereign wealth funds) demand excellence and creative solutions to the investment challenges they face. As a result, we look to bring people with a variety of backgrounds and skills to work collaboratively on cutting edge assignments.
For over a decade, Towers Watson has advised institutional funds on a delegated basis. We are responsible for around US$60 billion of delegated and fiduciary assets worldwide. Our flexible service helps clients extend their own governance by enabling them to delegate many aspects of their investment arrangements. Recently, the firm has developed a number of pooled fund solutions in order to efficiently implement investment portfolios for its UK and US clients. The Product Associate will join a small and new team responsible for the on-going product management and future development of these pooled fund solutions across a variety of investment strategies and the global client base.
Your main responsibilities will be to support product strategy and development across all asset classes and geographic regions. As part of the product team, you will work with all other functional areas of the investment business including investment, distribution, consulting and operations. This will include:
Development of new solutions
Manage the pipeline of new ideas passing through the firm’s product development process.
Develop business cases to evaluate new solutions or target new segments/geographies. This will involve:
Undertaking market and competitor research
Understanding the legal environment
Assessing the investment, liquidity and operational risks
Preparing the financial analysis
Assessing the operational considerations
Document, build and launch new initiatives approved by the product committee.
Management of existing solutions
Identify product gaps and develop enhancements to close the gaps.
Implement modifications to existing solutions (eg launch of new share classes).
Perform annual reviews to track deviations from the original business case.
Ensure all product documentation is maintained appropriately.
Process
Enhance the firm’s product development process.
Support the objectives of the firm’s product committee.
Influence and play a leading role in the governance mechanism used to prioritise change.
The Requirements:
- Significant related asset management experience and some experience of financial product development experience required. Alternatives experience will be a differentiator but is not required.
- Strong knowledge of fund products and an in-depth understanding of the current regulatory issues around the globe is a plus
- Proven ability to organise and prioritise multiple tasks to successfully meet deadlines
- To be proactive and demonstrate tenacity in effectively supporting the team
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
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